Producing the materials that construction companies typically use is often energy-intensive and generates lots of emissions. That’s why there’s a whole slew of companies looking to create a sustainable version of standard building materials.
In Scotland, a new startup has launched called Kenoteq that manufactures a building brick that generates less than a tenth of the carbon emissions compared to a regular brick. The brick, which is known as the K-Briq, is unfired and made of 90 percent construction waste. The startup also produces the brick on-site at the waste facility in order to minimize emissions from transportation. On top of that, the K-Briq weighs the same as a regular brick but offers better insulation properties.
Several materials researchers have come up with to improve the brick in recent years to make it more environmentally friendly, although the results have rarely made it into mass production. The good thing with the K-Briq is that its already grabbing quite a lot of attention as its being used to build the Serpentine Pavillion, an annual architecture commission that supports experimental projects by some of the world’s greatest architects.
