Material Efficiency – the missing Link between Resources- and Energy Efficiency.
The Equivalence of Material and Energy Efficiency
Monday, December 8
10:00 – 11:30
Wind Power Works Pavillon of the Global Wind Energy Council, Hall 11
e5 organised this Side Event on the 8th of December 2008 in cooperation with CGERM, the Global Center for Efficiency of Resources and Materials, and TechnoCarbon Technologies, Munich. It took place on Monday December 8 at the Wind Power Works pavilion. Gudrun Merkle, e5’s Project Manager, had organised the event. e5 was represented by the council’s Chief Executive Director, Sebastian Gallehr. Peter Kriebel, Director of Strategy and Operations, represented CGERM. TechnoCarbon Technology’s speaker was Dipl-Ing. Kolja Kuse (graduated engineer: energy technology RWTH Aachen), TechnoCarbon Technologiy’s founder and Head of Application Development.
Kolja Kuse gave a presentation entitled ““StoneCompositeTechnology SCT® – A Basic Material Technology for the new Millennium, one of the missing silver bullets“ . Another presentation, „The first house wall made of CFS – Carbon Fiber reinforced stone plates“, was given by Professor Michel Heimgartner from Chur University of Applied Sciences (HTW) and Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zürich (ETH). In a subsequent panel discussion, the role of novel basic materials for construction and technology in the context of climate justice was analysed.
These presentations were repeated on Wednesday Dec. 10, at the Econcern Platform. On this occasion, as in many other respects, the generosity and friendly support e5 and its partners received from Econcern throughout the Poznan negotiations contributed in a significant way to the success of our activities.
Development and implementation of novel, climate-friendly materials are highly relevant for climate protection. Metal and concrete, the commonly used pressure and tension stable basic components of construction, are signifi-cantly inefficient. Their insulating properties are poor, and production as well as transport of these materials results in an alarmingly large carbon footprint. Thus, climate protection lacks a decisive component even if energy generation and distribution are transformed towards a sustainability path if the basic components of construction and infrastructure do not undergo a transformation as well.
„StoneCompositeTechnology“ (SCT®) is a novel basic technology which makes stone, particularly granite, a viable basic material. SCT® provides better properties at lower weight and requires less energy for production than traditional pressure stable materials. As granite is easily available across the globe, transportation needs are minimal. Twenty times less earth must be moved for granite mining compared to metal mining. Carbon fibres and resins which are needed for the coating of SCT® are currently produced from fossil fuels, but producing them from vegetable oil is feasible. Accordingly, SCT® contributes to CO2 emission reduction in two ways: by sustainable production and comparatively low carbon footprint from logistics; and by significantly better energy efficiency. As SCT® can be employed in civil engineering, ship and airplane construction and hydraulics, to name but a few examples, this is truly a revolutionary technology from the viewpoint of climate protection. Additional to high pressure resistance at low weight and tensional strength, it has a minimal thermal expansion coefficient and high mechanical and chemical resistance. But perhaps most important for climate protection is its longevity.
On invitation of the Polish government, GRANIDUS e.V. hosted the TechnoCarbon Technologies presentation and exhibition at COP 14 „Technologies for climate protection“. During the Poznan negotiations, representatives from CGERM could be found at the e5 booth in the regular exhibition area.