Cement & Concrete

The basic process for making concrete has largely remained unchanged since the Roman Empire mixed the first batch. Today, cement and concrete are the literal building blocks of modern society, used in everything from roads to buildings. Since this time-tested recipe creates a significant amount of carbon dioxide emissions as a byproduct, efforts are now underway to reduce the product’s carbon footprint. Around the world, about eight percent of carbon emissions can be traced back to cement and concrete production.

1. Tailor Carbon Capture Research and Demonstrations for Cement Facilities

How?

1. Implement the Energy Act of 2020
The bipartisan bill includes several new authorizations for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to support low-carbon industrial manufacturing projects. It sets a goal for the Department to fund at least two carbon capture demonstration projects at industrial manufacturing facilities.

2. Diversify carbon capture R&D
The U.S. carbon capture research program is almost exclusively focused on power plant applications, although it has begun to include some industrial sector work. More dedicated research is needed to advance industrial sector applications.

Background

Cement production creates carbon dioxide emissions in two main ways. First, it requires ultra-hot heat, typically provided by fossil fuels. Second, it produces ‘process emissions’ from baking limestone (a necessary ingredient in cement). Similar to how an elementary school science project volcano creates carbon dioxide from mixing baking soda and vinegar, baking limestone also creates carbon dioxide. Thus, managing cement’s process emissions with the time-tested recipe necessitates some amount of carbon capture – even if fossil energy combustion was removed.

Around the world, about eight percent of carbon emissions can be traced back to cement and concrete production.

Many technology developers and cement makers are exploring how to apply carbon capture technologies to new and existing cement facilities. In the United States, up to 90 cement plants are eligible for the federal 45Q carbon capture tax credit, and two are partnering with the Department of Energy to study how to apply carbon capture equipment to their facilities. Elsewhere around the world, one plant in China is already online capturing tens of thousands of tons of carbon dioxide per year, and several other commercial-scale carbon capture projects at cement facilities around the world are under development.

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2. Conduct Research into New Cement & Concrete Production Methods

How?

1. Fund alternative concrete recipes and ingredients
American innovators are looking at different ways to re-engineer the concrete production process to reduce its environmental footprint.
2. Align federal sustainable materials research
Multiple federal agencies conduct research related to environmentally friendly infrastructure. These programs should be coordinated to improve efficiency and leverage resources.
3. Improve the comparability of environmental scorecards
Like a nutrition label, individual materials can be ranked by their environmental footprint in “environmental product declarations” or “life cycle analyses.” Although these metrics were not designed for comparing, improving the resolution of these metrics could improve market-based procurement decisions.

Background

Novel technologies can reduce the environmental footprint of the core ingredients in cement and concrete. For example, the filler materials that cement holds together are currently being designed using lower emissions processes, and new formulas that absorb more carbon dioxide during the curing process are commercially available today. Although the Department of Energy has been the focal point of the federal government’s clean energy and emissions management innovation portfolio, other agencies such as the Department of Transportation conduct significant pavement research that could more explicitly consider greenhouse gas mitigation.

Source: CarbonBuilt

The upfront emissions and costs associated from production alone do not tell the full environmental impact. More life cycle analysis research is needed to estimate a product’s environmental impact from creation to disposal. Designing new roads requires balancing the initial costs of production with the lifecycle costs of maintenance, material usage and carbon emissions. Pavements that marginally decrease emissions at production may still result in a net-increase of emissions over their entire lifetime. To illustrate, a road containing low-carbon materials is not that clean if it needs to be replaced much sooner than a conventional road. These more robust life cycle analyses would help guide research to the most promising new materials and recipes.

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3. Rethink Prescriptive Regulatory Requirements

How?

1. Encourage performance-based specifications
Regulations that prescribe very specific cement and concrete recipes slow down the adoption of new and cleaner technologies.

Background

Prescriptive regulatory requirements can inhibit innovation and increase barriers to the adoption of new technologies that are more economical and environmentally friendly than the status quo. Shifting the regulatory framework from requiring specific recipes to desired technical specifications, such as strength and durability, can facilitate the adoption of new technologies. Despite the availability and potential advantages of recycling agents for asphalt mixtures, many state agencies and contractors do not use or do not even allow the use of them due to regulations that only allow specific cement recipes.

How to Reform Cement and Concrete Policy

Other Resources

1. Tailor Carbon Capture Research and Demonstrations for Cement Facilities

How?

Background

Fellow Voices

2. Conduct Research into New Cement & Concrete Production Methods

How?

Background

Fellow Voices

3. Rethink Prescriptive Regulatory Requirements

How?

Background

Fellow Voices