RMIT University’s coffee concrete innovators win national research award

A new concrete mix made by replacing a part of the sand with used coffee grounds has won its innovators an award in the Problem Solver category at Universities Australia’s Shaping Australia Awards.

The RMIT University research team included Dr Rajeev Roychand, Professor Jie Li, Associate Professor Shannon Kilmartin-Lynch, Dr Mohammad Saberian, Professor Guomin (Kevin) Zhang and Professor Chun Qing Li. The Problem Solver 2024 People’s Choice Winner award was received by Roychand and Li on behalf of the team at Parliament House in Canberra recently.

Their innovation strengthens concrete by 30% using biochar made from spent coffee grounds to give the drink-additive a ‘double shot’ at life while tackling major sustainability challenges by reducing waste going to landfill. Australia generates around 75,000 tonnes of ground coffee waste annually, contributing to 6.87 million tonnes of organic waste in landfills, which account for 3 percent of the nation's greenhouse gas emissions.

“Winning this national award is outstanding recognition of our vision to transform waste materials into valuable construction resources,” said Roychand from the School of Engineering and the lead inventor of the coffee concrete.

“What began as research into coffee grounds has now evolved into a comprehensive program converting various types of organic waste into biochar that could help reshape the environmental footprint of the built environment.”

The team’s innovation has progressed from the lab to real-world application with industry and government partners, including a world-first footpath trial in Gisborne.

Their coffee concrete is also being used in Victoria's Big Build projects, and is displayed in Germany's prestigious Futurium museum as an innovative material for a sustainable future.

Li said their research advanced sustainable construction, enabling the transformation of diverse organic waste streams into high-performance construction materials. “This Australian-led innovation demonstrates how we can pioneer solutions for global environmental challenges.” 

Kilmartin-Lynch, now at Monash University, was at RMIT when the School of Engineering team conducted this research. “By integrating the circular economy with advanced materials engineering, we're creating new pathways for reducing carbon emissions while enhancing structural performance,” he says.

With global sand demand projected to rise by 45% over the next four decades, Saberian says, “We're not only addressing waste management but also helping preserve this increasingly scarce natural resource that is vital for construction worldwide.”

The team is now collaborating with industry leaders, both locally and internationally. RMIT's partnership with Ambiolock in Australia and C-Green in Sweden emerged as a key step in advancing high durability, low-carbon biochar-based materials for sustainable construction.

RMIT is also engaged with a commercialisation partner to translate the team’s innovation into a commercial reality. The partner is in the process of building the business case with key stakeholders and supply chain partners in the construction and agriculture sectors that would potentially benefit from using biochar products or play critical roles in bringing the technology to market.

‘Transforming spent coffee grounds into a valuable resource for the enhancement of concrete strength’ is published in the Journal of Cleaner Production (DOI: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2023.138205).

Main image: Coffee concrete innovators Dr Rajeev Roychand (left) and Professor Jie Li (right) celebrate their national research award with RMIT Vice-Chancellor Professor Alec Cameron at Parliament House in Canberra. (Supplied)