Transparent cement lets daylight flood into room

LONDON - Italian architects have made transparent cement that lets light flood into a room.

The material, called i.light, has dozens of tiny holes in it, which lets light pass through it without compromising the structural integrity.

Up close, the 2-3 mm gaps make a startling pattern and from certain angles or at a distance appear exactly the same as normal concrete.

But on a sunny day, the effect inside a building made from the new cement is akin to a little more than a light mesh on the wall filtering the light coming in, the Daily Mail reported.

The cement has been formed by bonding special resins in a new mix created by Italian architects Italcementi.

So far, it has been used only for one building, the Italian pavilion at last year’s Expo in Shanghai, but it has already been suggested it could save electricity that would otherwise be required for daytime lighting.

Italcementi used i.light for around 40 percent of the 18-metre high Expo pavilion, or 3,774 transparent panels and semi-transparent panels made from 189 tonnes of the product.

Italcementi Group innovation director Enrico Borgarello said: “The transparent cement made from plastic resins is much cheaper than the one made from optical fibres.”