American Concrete Institute (ACI), a Michigan-based international professional organisation, recently hosted the Concrete Projects Competition, an annual event for undergraduate students from all across the world. This year, it was organised virtually.

Three teams from Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology (CUET) secured the first, second, and third positions at the competition. Each team consisted of two students, and all six winners were recent graduates of CUET. They worked on the projects for their final-year theses.

Mahfuzul Islam and Imtiaz Ibney Gias were the champions. Their project, 'A critical review on the performance of microbial concrete developed using E. coli bacteria', was supervised by Professor Moinul Islam. The project intends to manufacture a concrete which is stronger and more durable than the conventional one. "For this purpose, we incorporated E. coli bacteria strain into concrete as a partial replacement of water. The bacteria would help in healing the micro cracks developed at an early stage," Imtiaz explained.

Syed Maruf-Ul Hassan and Ezaz Ahmed secured the second position. Their project, 'Effect of compaction on the properties of eco-friendly building blocks produced from industrial by-products', explored ways to generate value for waste materials. "Wastes produced from coal power plants and steel manufacturing industries require safe disposal. Our research introduces an alternative solution for the traditional clay burnt brick, using industrial by-products. Subsequently, the produced brick is more cost-effective, and eco-friendlier," Maruf shared.

The third position was achieved by Jannatul Ferdous and Tabassima Faria. Their project, 'Ternary combination of industrial wastes for sustainable geopolymer mortars', attempts to utilise wastes generated from different industries as binder materials to prepare eco-friendly geopolymer mortars. "Cement emits a large amount of carbon dioxide. Additionally, the proper disposal of waste is a problem encountered by different industries. Our project intends to minimise carbon emission, discard waste effectively, and prepare sustainable construction materials," Jannatul said.

The participants submitted two electronic copies of their reports. The first copy included the students' contact information and ACI member numbers, as well as the ACI member numbers of their faculty advisors. On the other hand, the second copy had no identification information of the students or the universities, in order to ensure fair results.

 There was no virtual ceremony for the winners. However, the organisers have invited them to the Concrete Convention, which will be held at Orlando, USA, in March next year. The winners extended their gratitude to their faculty advisor, Prof Dr G M Sadiqul Islam, who also supervised the teams that achieved the second and third positions.

The author is a medical student and a freelance journalist who likes reading, scribbling, and blogging. Email: mislammonamee@gmail.com.