Displaying items by tag: CO2

World: Cemex has announced the launch of new bio-based admixtures which offer CO₂ emissions reductions of up to 70% compared to oil-based admixtures in its Asian, European and Middle Eastern markets. The range includes 10% reduced-CO₂ IsoPlast Bio, 20 - 30% reduced-CO₂ IsoFlex Bio plasticisers and superplasticisers and 50% reduced-CO₂ IsoFlow Bio high-performance superplasticiser technology, as well as CO₂-reducing IsoMill Bio grinding aids. The products will subsequently become available in other markets during 2023.

CEO Fernando González said “Innovation is at the core of our efforts to become a carbon neutral company and foster a more circular building materials industry." He added "Innovative admixtures aim to enhance concrete's sustainable attributes for our customers further.”

Canada: Lafarge Canada has signed an agreement with power provider TransAlta to recover and process fly ash from the site of the latter's decommissioned Edmonton coal-fired power plant. The project will use Ash-TEK's Ponded Ash Beneficiation System (PABS) fly ash beneficiation technology. The processed ash will then be able to replace up to 25% of cement in low-CO₂ concrete production.

TransAlta previously secured with Lafarge Canada for the supply of renewable power to its Exshaw, Alberta, cement plant in February 2022.

Australia: First Graphene has partnered with Suvo Strategic Minerals to develop graphene-enhanced metakaolin for use in cement and concrete production. Metakaolin is a pozzolanic material derived from kaolinite clay. The partners believe that the technology has commercial potential to improve concrete performance and reduce CO₂ emissions.

Egypt: LafargeHolcim Egypt supplied 8200t of its ECOPlanet reduced-CO₂ cement for construction of Alamein Downtown Towers in Alamein City. The producer said that the cement reduced the project's carbon footprint by 45% compared to ordinary Portland cement (OPC). The government contracted China-based China State Construction Engineering Corporation for construction of the five-tower development. Three of the buildings will be residential, while the remaining two will house business and events facilities.

New Zealand: The Global Cement and Concrete Association has welcomed Fletcher Building’s concrete division as its first member from Oceania. Scoop News has reported that the concrete’s division’s business spans the entire concrete value chain, including 26 limestone and aggregates quarries and 80 ready-mix concrete batching plants. Its cement subsidiary Golden Bay Cement operates the 0.9Mt/yr Portland cement plant in Whangārei, New Zealand.

Fletcher Building concrete division CEO Nick Traber said "Fletcher Building firmly believes we can play a significant part in a carbon zero and circular future. Our Golden Bay EcoSure cement is one of the lowest-carbon cements in the world already, with 13 - 22% less embodied carbon than imported products. We believe having access to the global research and knowledge from the GCCA will help us improve this further and continue to lead Australasia in best practice decarbonisation of the built environment."

Germany: Ireland-based CRH has agreed to sell its subsidiaries Opterra Zement and Opterra Beton to Thomas Gruppe. Thomas Gruppe expects to complete its acquisition of the businesses later in 2022. Opterra Zement owns the 1.4Mt/yr Karsdorf, Saxony-Anhalt, cement plant and 0.5Mt/yr Sötenich, North Rhine-Westphalia, grinding plant, the latter of which is closed. Opterra Beton operates the Neufahrn, Bavaria, ready-mix concrete batching plant.

Thomas Gruppe said "For years, we have been pursuing a steady and long-term growth course in the field of cement and precast and ready-mix concrete. In the cement segment, our competitive position improved significantly with the purchase of the Erwitte (North Rhine-Westphalia) plant in 2017. Together with the grinding plant in Dorndorf (Thuringia), we have achieved a significantly larger area coverage in Germany, and also in the Netherlands, and benefit from synergy effects." It continued "We would like to continue on this growth course. An opportunity like the one to take over the cement plant in Karsdorf does not come often. The Karsdorf plant, with its gigantic limestone deposits, its market position of well over 1Mt/yr of cement and its experienced team, enables us better to supply our customers, and to leverage improvement potential. In addition, Karsdorf is of sufficient size for us to implement CO₂ separation technology in its production of clinker for the Dorndorf grinding plant." Thomas Gruppe concluded "We are convinced that cement will become a clean building material and believe in its future."

US: The Global Cement and Concrete Association (GCCA) has signed an international partnership agreement with the American Concrete Institute (ACI). Under the agreement, the partners will collaboratively develop and disseminate information on concrete production and its use in construction, with a view to advancing best practices in sustainability.

The ACI said "ACI cooperates closely with our international partners, benefitting everyone in the global concrete community. ACI looks forward to working with the GCCA towards a future where everyone has the knowledge needed to use the latest concrete technologies effectively to meet the demands of a changing world."

Croatia: Cemex supplied 37,000t of cement for construction of the new Pelješac Bridge on the Dalmatian coast. Cemex says that the 2.4km-long bridge has connected Southern Croatia to the rest of the country, eliminating the need to cross in and out of Croatia over an international border when travelling by land. Almost all of the cement used in the project was Cemex's Vertua brand reduced-CO₂ cement product.

Cemex's Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia president Sergio Menendez said “Cemex has been a proud contributor to the development of Croatia, and we are very pleased to participate in one of the largest infrastructure projects in the region. Our Vertua products are designed to meet society’s demand for resilient and long-lasting buildings and infrastructure, built with a lower carbon footprint.”

UK: Denmark-based architecture fund Henrik Frode Obel Foundation has named Seratech as winner of its Obel Award 2022. The award recognises architectural contributions to global development. Seratech has developed an olivine-based composite cement produced using CO₂ from flue emissions, which can sequester double the CO₂ of ordinary Portland cement (OPC). When used as 40% of a blend with OPC, it is able to completely offset the emissions of concrete production.

Team member Barnaby Shanks said "The beauty of the idea is that you can just use it as normal concrete. There are other carbon-neutral materials, but they can be limiting because they can only be precast, cured in a lab in special conditions and shipped elsewhere. We want people to retain the freedom to use concrete the way that they are used to. We don’t want to limit people in any way because we’ll just lessen the amount of impact we can have."

UK: Cemex has bought 10 Volvo 460 8x4 tipper trucks for use at its Angerstein Wharf aggregates depot in Greenwich. From there, the trucks will deliver sand and aggregates all around London. The trucks’ bodies are made of lightweight aluminium, and they conform to Euro 6 emissions standards. This corresponds to 80% NO_x emissions reduction and 50% particulate emissions reduction compared to Euro 5 standards.

Cemex UK fleet engineering manager Nigel Ponton said “The addition of these new trucks to our fleet will enable us to better meet customer demand, safely and efficiently. Safety is the number one focus whenever we add new trucks to our operation and these Volvos tick every box in that respect.” Ponton continued “These trucks will all be working in busy streets across London so it’s imperative we provide our drivers with the best tools possible to do the job and help protect any vulnerable road users. Moreover, thanks to the improved fuel efficiencies and enhanced payload these new Volvos are the most sustainable vehicles we’ve ever had and will help decarbonise our delivery footprint.”