Nanocem is a consortium of academic and

private industry The private sector is the part of the economy, sometimes referred to as the citizen sector, which is owned by private groups, usually as a means of establishment for profit or non profit, rather than being owned by the government. Employment The ...

groups, founded in 2004 and headquartered in

Lausanne , neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR-74), ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. The consortium researches the properties of

cement A cement is a binder, a chemical substance used for construction that sets, hardens, and adheres to other materials to bind them together. Cement is seldom used on its own, but rather to bind sand and gravel ( aggregate) together. Cement mix ...

and

concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens (cures) over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water, and is the most wi ...

on the nano- and micro-scales, with a particular focus on reducing

carbon dioxide emissions Greenhouse gas emissions from human activities strengthen the greenhouse effect, contributing to climate change. Most is carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels: coal, oil, and natural gas. The largest emitters include coal in China and lar ...

at all stages of production. , Nanocem includes 34 organizations and supports more than 120 researchers.

Description

Nanocem is a consortium of academic and

groups that researches the properties of

and

on the nano- and micro-scales. The research has a particular focus on reducing

at all stages of production. The consortium is headquartered in

. , it includes 34 organizations and supports more than 120 researchers."About Us."
Nanocem. Accessed 18-5-16. There are some 60

doctoral A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''li ...

and postdoctoral research projects in the area of fundamental research that have been supported by Nanocem. The research is conducted at a fundamental level, though high levels of industry involvement allows for focus on solutions that can work in practice and not just in theory. This model of cooperation between industry and the academic community has led to the identification of common issues, shared knowledge, and clear benefits for all those involved. For instance, Nanocem has been able to help map the research needs for lower carbon concrete. This guidance helped focus research by companies and third parties.

History

Nanocem was founded as an independent consortium in 2004 after a rejection of a 2002 bid to the

Network of Excellence The Framework Programmes for Research and Technological Development, also called Framework Programmes or abbreviated FP1 to FP9, are funding programmes created by the European Union/European Commission to support and foster research in the Europea ...

(European Framework Programme). Nanocem's eleven completed core projects have included studies of interactions between admixtures and cement, concrete durability, the

kinetics Kinetics ( grc, κίνησις, , kinesis, ''movement'' or ''to move'') may refer to: Science and medicine * Kinetics (physics), the study of motion and its causes ** Rigid body kinetics, the study of the motion of rigid bodies * Chemical ki ...

of cement

hydration Hydration may refer to: * Hydrate, a substance that contains water * Hydration enthalpy, energy released through hydrating a substance * Hydration reaction, a chemical addition reaction where a hydroxyl group and proton are added to a compound * ...

, and the use of magnetic resonance imaging techniques in concrete analysis."Our Research."
Nanocem. Accessed 4-4-17. Recent Nanocem-sponsored projects have included the use of

nanotechnology Nanotechnology, also shortened to nanotech, is the use of matter on an atomic, molecular, and supramolecular scale for industrial purposes. The earliest, widespread description of nanotechnology referred to the particular technological goal o ...

in cementitious materials, the effects of sulfate on concrete, the development of a bipolar mineral organic composite that can bond with

Portland cement Portland cement is the most common type of cement in general use around the world as a basic ingredient of concrete, mortar, stucco, and non-specialty grout. It was developed from other types of hydraulic lime in England in the early 19th c ...

on one pole and polymerize with the other, and studies of cement hydration at the molecular level. Its research has led to more than one hundred published papers and conference papers. There are some 120 academic researchers in the team who between them are in the process of managing some 60 PhD and PostDoctoral research projects in the area of fundamental research.

Participating organizations

Nanocem consists of 34 academic and private industry partners. The members of Nanocem collectively have access to a large range of state of the art equipment for the study of cementitious materials.

Academic

Aarhus University Aarhus University ( da, Aarhus Universitet, abbreviated AU) is a public research university with its main campus located in Aarhus, Denmark. It is the second largest and second oldest university in Denmark. The university is part of the Coimbra Gr ...

Bauhaus-Universität Weimar The Bauhaus-Universität Weimar is a university located in Weimar, Germany, and specializes in the artistic and technical fields. Established in 1860 as the Great Ducal Saxon Art School, it gained collegiate status on 3 June 1910. In 1919 the sc ...

Czech Technical University in Prague Czech Technical University in Prague (CTU, cs, České vysoké učení technické v Praze, ČVUT) is one of the largest university, universities in the Czech Republic with 8 faculties, and is one of the oldest institutes of technology in Centra ...

* Danish Technological Institute *

École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne École may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * École, Savoi ...

ETH Zurich (colloquially) , former_name = eidgenössische polytechnische Schule , image = ETHZ.JPG , image_size = , established = , type = Public , budget = CHF 1.896 billion (2021) , rector = Günther Dissertori , president = Joël Mesot , ac ...

* Eduardo Torroja Institute for Construction Science *

French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission The French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission or CEA ( French: Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives), is a French public government-funded research organisation in the areas of energy, defense and securit ...

* French institute of science and technology for transport, spatial planning, development and networks *

Imperial College London Imperial College London (legally Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom. Its history began with Prince Albert, consort of Queen Victoria, who developed his vision for a cu ...

Lund University , motto = Ad utrumque , mottoeng = Prepared for both , established = , type = Public research university , budget = SEK 9 billion Norwegian University of Science and Technology Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe *Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway *Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including the ...

Polytechnic University of Catalonia The Technical University of Catalonia ( ca, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, , es, link=no, Universidad Politécnica de Cataluña; UPC), currently referred to as BarcelonaTech, is the largest engineering university in Catalonia, Spai ...

* Slovenian National Building and Civil Engineering Institute * Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology *

Technical University of Denmark The Technical University of Denmark ( da, Danmarks Tekniske Universitet), often simply referred to as DTU, is a polytechnic university and school of engineering. It was founded in 1829 at the initiative of Hans Christian Ørsted as Denmark's fi ...

Technical University of Munich The Technical University of Munich (TUM or TU Munich; german: Technische Universität München) is a public research university in Munich, Germany. It specializes in engineering, technology, medicine, and applied and natural sciences. Establis ...

University of Aberdeen The University of Aberdeen ( sco, University o' 'Aiberdeen; abbreviated as ''Aberd.'' in List of post-nominal letters (United Kingdom), post-nominals; gd, Oilthigh Obar Dheathain) is a public university, public research university in Aberdeen, Sc ...

* University of Burgundy *

University of Leeds , mottoeng = And knowledge will be increased , established = 1831 – Leeds School of Medicine1874 – Yorkshire College of Science1884 - Yorkshire College1887 – affiliated to the federal Victoria University1904 – University of Leeds , ...

University of Sheffield , mottoeng = To discover the causes of things , established = – University of SheffieldPredecessor institutions: – Sheffield Medical School – Firth College – Sheffield Technical School – University College of Sheffield , type = Pu ...

University of Surrey The University of Surrey is a public research university in Guildford, Surrey, England. The university received its royal charter in 1966, along with a number of other institutions following recommendations in the Robbins Report. The institut ...

* * Vienna University of Technology

Industrial

* Aalborg Portland * BASF * CHRYSO *

CRH CRH may refer to: * Calibre radius head, a traditional British ordnance term for a concept in ballistic projectile design * Celtic Resources Holdings, an Irish mining company * China Railway High-speed, a high-speed railway service operated by Chin ...

* HeidelbergCement *

GCP Applied Technologies GCP may refer to: Companies and organizations * GCP Applied Technologies, an American chemical company * GCP Infrastructure Investments, a British investment trust * Global Centre for Pluralism, in Ottawa, Canada * Global Charity Project, a student ...

LafargeHolcim Holcim is a Swiss-based global building materials and aggregates flagship division of the Holcim Group. The original company was merged on 10 July 2015 with Lafarge to form LafargeHolcim as the new company and renamed to Holcim Group in 202 ...

Siam Cement The Siam Cement Public Company Limited (SCG; ) is the largest and oldest cement and building material company in Thailand and Southeast Asia. In 2016, SCG was also ranked as the second largest company in Thailand and the 604th largest public compan ...

Sika AG Sika AG is a Swiss multinational specialty chemical company that supplies to the building sector and motor vehicle industry, headquartered in Baar, Switzerland. The company develops and produces systems and products for bonding, sealing, dampin ...

* Titan Cement

References

External links

*
List of Nanocem publications and conference papers
{{Concrete navbox 2004 establishments in Switzerland Concrete