ARMOUR - Artificial Reused Metal Offshore Underwater Reefs

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More than?one third of the?world's?coastlines, and 3000km of the UK's, are?suffering from erosion as a result of climate change and urbanisation. Traditional "hard" approaches to coastal protection like breakwaters and sea walls are made from concrete and rock, which is unsustainable and expensive. They disrupt the coastal environment, feel the full force of the ocean, and degrade over time. In the UK, we have more coastline protected in this old-fashioned way than any other country in Europe.CCell designs electrochemically grown artificial reefs that mimic the wave attenuation properties of natural coral reefs. They grow offshore and are submerged below the water surface where they reduce the impact of waves before they reach the shore.The reefs are formed initially from lightweight steel structures, around which electrolysis causes rock to grow. These structures build themselves up over time using minerals extracted from the seawater itself, they can heal from damage, and they eventually form a self-sufficient long-lasting ecosystem that protects the shoreline behind it.The UK is the biggest exporter of scrap metal in Europe, a large proportion of which is steel. Our project partners, The Alliance for Sustainable Building Products (ASBP), has extensive knowledge of the reused steel supply chain in the UK. There is an opportunity to reuse steel from buildings as the base material for CCell reefs, reducing their cost whilst contributing to the circular economy in the UK.The reuse of metal in this way is theoretically feasible; there is no reason why it would not be conductive and strong enough to form the base of CCell reefs. This project aims to address two main challenges:First, we will investigate how used steel performs electrochemically compared to new and determine any treatment that might be needed to achieve the best rock growth.Second, we will research how the forming of reused steel into an appropriate reef shape might affect its strength and identify methods for creating a reef that is strong enough to carry out its coastal protection function.Our vision is to install reefs across the UK that offer a more long-lasting and attractive coastal protection solution than traditional methods, reusing metals to make them as cost-effective and sustainable as possible.