Printed concrete and biofuels minimise impact of HS2 construction

HS2 is the biggest infrastructure project in British history, and there are some innovative technologies being used to reduce its impact on the environment to make it the most sustainable railway of its kind in the world.

Clean construction techniques and low-carbon technologies are being used on the project as well as the design of sustainable stations and creating a corridor of connected habitats for wildlife and green spaces along the route.

In an effort to decarbonise construction across its sites, contractor Costain Skanska Joint Venture (CSJV) is using solar and LPG-powered cabins, electric machinery, alternative biofuels, earth-friendly concrete, battery-powered lighting, hydrogen power and renewable energy as a replacement for diesel power.

Concrete printing

In a UK first, on-site 3D reinforced concrete printing is being used to deliver environmental, cost and community benefits to the project. 

Developed by ChangeMaker 3D, Printfrastructure will be used by London tunnels contractor SCS JV (Skanska Costain Strabag). The concrete, produced by UK advanced materials specialist Versarien, is mixed with graphene (which replaces traditional steel), which allows greater construction flexibility, shorter build time and a smaller carbon footprint.

Printing concrete with automated robots will allow the production of structures on site, rather than transporting precast slabs and using cranes to assemble and place them. 

The 3D-printed structures feature a strengthening internal lattice structure, which also considerably reduces the amount of concrete used and cuts waste.

SCS JV temporary works manager, Andrew Duck, said: “It is important that we give technologies such as Printfrastructure the opportunity to flourish because of the possibilities it offers the industry to make a step change in how projects are delivered.”  

Proof-of-concept trials are due to begin in spring 2022.

Cloud Cycle, a small tech start-up, is working inside HS2 Ltd’s Innovation Accelerator programme to use the Internet of Things to digitise and streamline how concrete is deployed and to reduce the amount used across the project.

Cloud Cycle co-founder Phillip White said: “The Accelerator has catapulted us into the future. We always knew that our technology would provide huge value through the whole supply chain and thanks to HS2 and Innovate UK we can now prove its worth faster than we could ever have thought possible.”

Low-carbon design

The Interchange Station in Solihull, designed by multi-disciplinary design team Arup, will be the first railway station in the world to receive a BREEAM (Building Research Establishment’s Environmental Assessment Method) ‘outstanding’ certification, putting it in the top 1% of buildings in the country for sustainability and eco-friendly credentials. 

HS2 stations director Matthew Botelle said: “This is a world-class, eco-friendly station that will play a major role in helping us deliver Britain’s new low-carbon railway.”

The station’s eco-friendly features include maximising natural daylight and ventilation, a roof design that can capture and reuse rainwater, and features to enable net-zero carbon emissions from day-to-day energy consumption. 

Energy-efficient technology such as air-source heat pumps and LED lighting will also be incorporated, and the station will have over 2,000m² of solar panels generating zero-carbon electricity.