Nanotechnology for Sustainable Infrastructure in 21st Century Civil Engineering

Abstract

Civil engineering profession has delivered infrastructures of various scales and complexities to different generations, as far as human history can stretch. Over this period, the demands and expectations from the profession have increased. At the dawn of 20th century the expectations from the profession was articulated, defined and encapsulated in one killer-phrase- sustainable development. The Brundtland Report of 1987 highlighted development challenges to humanity. The problems stem from our living and consumption patterns vis-a-vis interaction with the wider ecosystem. Sustainable development as a concept is multidimensional, straddling across socio-economic, ecological, and technical perspectives. In the civil engineering and construction sector, the Brundtland report heralded a paradigm shift from traditional infrastructure procurement and delivery with the focus now on sustainable infrastructure systems. However, appropriate technologies are needed to transform existing construction processes in product development. This paper discusses an innovative technology that offers solution to the challenge facing civil engineering in the 21st century. Nanotechnology is an underpinning technology that addresses some of the infrastructure sustainability challenges. The paper discusses the application of nanotechnology and nanomaterials for sustainable infrastructure delivery, and charts directions for further research