What is this collection about?
Building and infrastructure use a lot of cement, concrete and steel which are associated with a large amount of carbon emissions. To protect the environment, it is important to develop materials that are stronger, safer and release less carbon. With this cross-journal Collection, the editors at Nature Communications, Communications Sustainability, Communications Materials, Communications Earth & Environment, and npj Materials Sustainability present research on innovative materials development and eco‑friendly practices. We invite manuscripts that advance efforts to reduce the carbon footprint of cement, concrete, and steel, the three most widely used construction materials through research that integrates materials science, engineering, and sustainability.
Topics of interest include low-carbon binders, alternative aggregates, recycled and waste-based constructions materials, cleaner steel production, material durability and life-cycle benefits along with circularity in used materials with scalable solutions and real-life applicability. Nature Communications, Communications Sustainability, Communications Materials, Communications Earth & Environment, and npj Materials Sustainability will consider original Articles, Reviews and Perspectives.
Why is this collection important?
This is a cross-journal collection between Nature Communications, Communications Sustainability, Communications Materials, Communications Earth & Environment, and npj Materials Sustainability. Authors are welcome to submit to any of the participating journals. All manuscripts published in the collection are hosted on a dedicated nature portfolio portal, giving articles high visibility beyond the journal they are published in.
Why submit to a collection?
Collections like this one help promote high-quality science. They are led by In-House Editors who are experts in their fields and supported by a dedicated team of Commissioning Editors and Managing Editors at Springer Nature. Collection manuscripts typically see higher citations, downloads, and Altmetric scores, and provide a one-stop-shop on a cutting-edge topic of interest.
Who is involved?
Communications Sustainability is edited by both in-house professional editors and Editorial Board Members.
Guest editor for Communications Sustainability
Lukas Gast, PhD, University College London, United Kingdom
Dr Lukas Gast is Lecturer in Environmental Engineering and Sustainable Infrastructure at University College London. His research focuses on the application of artificial intelligence to environmental engineering and industrial production processes, with a particular emphasis on steel and cement manufacturing and the use of hydrogen in industry.
Communications Earth & Environment is edited by both in-house professional editors and Editorial Board Members.
Communications Materials is edited by both in-house professional editors and Editorial Board Members.
Nature Communications is edited by in-house professional editors.
npj Materials Sustainability is edited by a team of external academic editors.
Our editors work closely together to ensure the quality of our published papers and consistency in author experience.