LAB LOGA page on LabLog, a review site (not the lab's official page)
Environmental Functional Materials Engineering Lab
Machine-translated · View original
The lab considers the structures of the future through the evaluation and diagnosis of concrete materials.
AboutAbout the lab
Pursuing concrete that connects to the future.
The Environmental Functional Materials Engineering Lab studies concrete, the main material used in construction.
Looking ahead to innovations in concrete materials and construction technology, the lab seeks to define what concrete structures that last into the future should be.
Currently, it is advancing research and development on evaluating the properties of construction materials, diagnostic technology for structures, and carbon neutrality.
The lab's origins go back to the Concrete Engineering chair of 1928, and it has played a role in the construction and maintenance of civil structures under harsh climatic conditions.
Key terms
- Radionuclide
- A type of atom that emits radiation
- Elastic wave
- A vibration wave that propagates through an object. Ultrasonic waves are one example
- Hydrate
- A substance formed when cement reacts with water. It is the basis of how concrete hardens
NewsLab news
A paper on mortar and concrete made by 3D printing was published in Proceedings of Cement & Concrete
A student received the Outstanding Student Presentation Award from the Hokkaido Branch of the Japan Society of Civil Engineers
Open lab sessions for third-year undergraduates are held on an ongoing basis
Associate Professor Hashimoto, together with companies and other universities, received the 9th Infrastructure Maintenance Grand Prize
A paper on detecting steel corrosion deterioration through AI-based hammering-sound analysis was published in Case Studies in Construction Materials
ResearchResearch themes
The lab studies the evaluation of construction materials for next-generation construction technology and a sustainable society. Its topics are wide-ranging, including 3D printing, radioactive waste disposal, inspection using lasers and synchrotron radiation, and CO2 fixation in recycled aggregate.
*Illustrative imageConcrete made with 3D printers
When concrete is shaped with a 3D printer, its performance can vary greatly depending on the layering conditions, even with the same materials and mix proportions. Taking advantage of this, the lab aims to control and predict the performance of printed concrete from the materials, mix proportions, and layering conditions.
*Illustrative imageConfining radionuclides
To dispose of radioactive waste rationally, the lab evaluates how radionuclides move through concrete using X-ray CT images and elemental analysis. It has also developed SiTram, a simulation that simultaneously calculates ion transport and the leaching of cement hydrates.
*Illustrative imageNondestructive testing using lasers
To make ultrasonic testing, which examines cracks and other defects inside concrete, faster and possible from a distance, the lab studies a method that generates elastic waves by irradiating the concrete with a laser. This work spans the fields of concrete engineering and photon science.
*Illustrative imageLooking inside with synchrotron X-rays
Using synchrotron X-rays from SPring-8, the large synchrotron radiation facility in Hyogo Prefecture, the lab examines the composition of cement hydrates and the pore structure inside concrete. It is developing techniques that combine X-ray CT and X-ray diffraction to investigate changes in deteriorated cement-based materials.
MembersFaculty
The members of the Environmental Functional Materials Engineering Lab consist of faculty, technical staff, secretaries, and doctoral, master's, and undergraduate students.As of 2026
- ProfessorTakafumi Sugiyama
- Associate ProfessorKatsufumi Hashimoto
VoicesStudent voices
Ratings and reviews reflect the experiences of individual current or former students, not the lab's official views. Whether a lab has reviews, or how many, says nothing about the lab itself.
Students who take part in an interview may receive a thank-you gift worth ¥1,000, regardless of what they say.
Student ratings (0 students)
--
--
--
--
--
--
Student voices answer questions like these
- What's great about this lab?
- What did you learn after joining?
- What's the vibe, and what is the professor like?
- Who is this lab for?
- Where do graduates go?
Your experience can help younger students choose their lab. Your name won't be shown.
Write a lab reviewAnonymous · Your draft is saved if you stopRelatedLabs similar to Environmental Functional Materials Engineering Lab
Infrastructure Maintenance Systems Engineering LabFaculty of Engineering, Department of Environmental and Social EngineeringStructural engineering, microstructure analysis, infrastruct…
Building Materials LabFaculty of Engineering, Department of Environmental and Social EngineeringBuilding materials science, concrete chemistry, polymer phys…
Structural Control LabFaculty of Engineering, Department of Environmental and Social EngineeringSeismic isolation structures, earthquake-resistant engineeri…
Building Structural Performance LabFaculty of Engineering, Department of Environmental and Social EngineeringStructural engineering of buildings, performance-based desig…The information on this page is compiled by the LabLog team from the lab's public information and interviews. For corrections or removal requests, please contact LabLog, not the lab.
Report an errorAbout the images
The top and research theme images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab. They are cropped from Wikimedia Commons images. Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “The World's Longest 3D Printed Concrete Bridge” Municipality of Nijmegen/Michiel van der Kley / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Concrete made with 3D printers: “3D printed wall” COBOD / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Confining radionuclides: “Onkalo 2” kallerna / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Nondestructive testing using lasers: “Pulsed Laser Deposition in Action” Adam Andersen Læssøe / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Looking inside with synchrotron X-rays: “SPring- img pano” Artorius / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Infrastructure Maintenance Systems Engineering Lab): “Taushubetsu-River-Bridge” MaedaAkihiko / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Building Materials Lab): “Crushed Sioux Quartzite (upper Paleoproterozoic, b.y.) in concrete (Chamberlain, South Dakota, USA) 2” James St. John / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Structural Control Lab): “Base isolator beneath the Pasadena, California, City Hall” Keithalanporter / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Building Structural Performance Lab): “Concrete spalling caused by oxide jacking at the Herbst Pavilion, Fort Mason Center, San Francisco” Cullen328 (Jim Heaphy) / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
About LabLog
LabLog is a lab review app for students only. Student members at each university interview students in labs and publish what they say. Student voices can only be read by students who sign up with a university email address. Operated by bestiee Inc.
Learn more about LabLog ↗Search engines and AI may reference the basic lab info and rating summaries on this page and the description of LabLog. Student voices are for student members only. Automated collection by programs (scraping, or input to or training of AI) is prohibited under Article 8 of the Terms of Service. If you need data for research or analysis, please contact us.