Letting sidewalks eat the CO2

Hannah Gross
NLJ Correspondent
 
Arguably, science can be most meaningful when it produces solutions to the world’s most important problems, and a group of Newcastle High School students — led by junior Shelby Davis — was honored at the state science fair in Laramie during the first weekend in March for providing solutions to the biggest problem in the world that matters most to them — the one right outside their door. 
The local economy, as much of Wyoming, is victim to the boom and bust cycle of industries dependent on natural resources. In the modern “green era,” those cycles are driven more and more by concerns over the waste produced by the natural resourced tapped into around here, but the Dogie scientists have identified ways to not only minimize the harmful impacts produced by the waste, but also generate profit from it.
Shelby Davis’ science project was centered around carbon sequestration in concrete. According to her science paper, the purpose of the project was to determine how the pH levels of the water added in the concrete affects the CO2 absorption and durability. 
“The hypothesis for this project was if the amount of acid is increased, then the CO2 absorption will increase, and the durability will not change,” said Davis in her paper, later noting that her experiments supported her hypothesis.
Davis’ experiments involved mixing water into concrete, specifically Portland cement mix, and adding phosphoric acid to the mixture, testing three different pH levels. The CO2 absorption rates in the concrete were then measured using two different methods: a microscope and a CO2 reader.  
The idea behind the project came from a desire to produce something versatile and beneficial to the environment. Davis said she already knew she wanted to work with concrete but wasn’t sure what exactly. So, she researched world problems and greenhouse gases happened to be one of them. She said she then knew what to do for her project. 
“It fell into my lap,” Davis said. 
Her science paper explains the harm of greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide emissions being one of them. Finding a way for concrete to absorb the CO2 will help with the greenhouse gas problem, according to the paper. Davis said scientists are looking for ways to improve the earth’s environment and reduce pollution. She said the simple idea of her experiment can impact the way concrete is made and utilized. 
“This project adds to experiments that have been done. However, through all of my research I have not seen any experiment like my project, and I feel like this will open the relative thinking of people. I also feel like this is a great project to build off,” Davis says in her paper. 
A lot of research was put into the project, Davis said, including the research of scientific analogies, concrete and acid types, why they absorb carbon dioxide, etc. She said she had help from Newcastle High School science teachers Doug Scribner and Zach Beam. While her project has been undergoing trials for six months so far, she said, it’s not complete yet and she plans to run more trials. 
“This year, I wanted my project to be a redemption,” Davis said, explaining that her project last year didn’t go as well as she had hoped. She said it definitely was a redemption because she won a total of five awards at the state science fair in Laramie, Wyoming. 
Davis said she won first place in environmental science, won the anthropology award, the geology award, clean air management award and a $500 scholarship from the Mining Association. 
While she’s not sure if this particular science is something she will pursue a career in, she enjoys a variety of sciences, including forensics. 
“I just like science, in general,” said Davis.