Electro Conductive Concrete Ltd

Electro Conductive Concrete Ltd (ECCL) Case study Innovation - the first Radar Absorption Material (RAM) using concrete.

ECCL, in partnership with the Building Research Establishment (BRE), a world leader in research into new building innovation, has developed the first Radar Absorption Material (RAM) using concrete.

The shielding of electromagnetic interference is currently achieved by creating a Faraday Cage effect by building a room of welded steel sheets or lining an existing room with copper sheeting or foils. This is an expensive process and can present problems for the end user including signal breeches and an unpleasant environment.

When either of the above methods is used the shielding is obtained by reflection of the Electro Magnetic signals.

The requirement for Electromagnetic Shielding is classified in two fields, normally referred to as lower (below 500 MHz) and higher frequency ranges (up to 20GHz) as well as magnetic and electrical fields. Both require a different approach but by altering the blend of our mix we are able to shield throughout the frequency range.

The higher frequency ECCL product is anechoic; it does not simply reflect the signal but actually absorbs it. Previous testing rooms, which provide accurate measurement of the Electro Magnetic Interference (EMI) for all electrical equipment, have had to be made using extremely expensive cone shaped tiles, to absorb the signal rather than simply reflect it as in a normal steel shielded room. Our technology enables the cost of such specialised testing facilities to be substantially reduced.

The lower frequency ECCL product has a high magnetic permeability as well as conductivity and will reflect as well as absorb the signal.

There are many uses for ECCL material:

• In prisons- blocking telephone signals
• To protect sensitive equipment in military command and control centres, and disguise the control facility, to avoid radar detection
• To create secure conference rooms to protect against electronic eavesdropping and barriers to disabling technologies
• In Hospital MRI scanning rooms
• In EMC test facilities

There are numerous advantages of using ECCL's RAM products to provide Electromagnetic Shielding some of which are listed below:

• A significant reduction in cost for a vastly improved end result
• The ECCL products can be produced in Block Work, Ready Mix, Precast or Render
• Room design can be amended to provide labyrinth entrances which obviate the use of expensive steel finger stop doors
• The building is "The shield" and does not require another room to be built once the building is completed
• The room can easily be decorated using standard methods to provide a pleasant work environment
• Buildings close to airports that reflect radar, from approaching aircraft, can cause severe problems for the aviation industry as the signal reflected off any metal surface can create as much of a problem as the original signal.-ECCL products absorb rather than reflect so provide a much safer environment
• The products are a greener alternative
• The absorption is linear, so the thicker the material, the more absorption is provided; hence even very high security requirements can be catered for
• The blend is variable so different requirements of frequency attenuation can be met

The product has been independently tested by a number of leading organisations including:-

• Los Alamos EMC USA to NSA Spec 65-6
• DERA EMC
• ERA Technology EMC
• ETS- Lindgren EMC
• York University Electromagnetics EMC

The ECCL product has demonstrated a 100dB or 99.999% attenuation between 1 GHz and 36GHz.http://www.bre.co.uk/page.jsp?id=2387