Transforming harbour sediments into a building material - NWO Blue Route

To keep the shipping gullies in the Rotterdam harbour deep enough for the cargo vessels going in and out, the gullies are dredged regularly. In a project for the 'NWO Blue Route' researchers from NIOZ and Utrecht University looked into the possibilities to give the dredged harbour sediment a sustainable second life. They added olivine to it, a mineral known for its CO2-binding capacities when dissolved in sea water. The results are promising: the sediment-with-olivine may help reduce the CO2 emission from activities in the harbour, and shows potential as a sustainable building material.