Displaying items by tag: sustainability

US: The city council of Dublin, California, has enacted the Low-Carbon Concrete Code, requiring a given reduction in CO₂ emissions of all ready-mix concrete used in public and private construction projects. Independent News has reported that suitable alternatives to conventional concrete are locally available and offer cost parity, according to the city council.

France: Circular aggregates producer Néolithe has partnered with Hoffmann Green Cement Technologies and Groupe GCC to produce a fuel loading slab for a temporary bus depot in Marseille. The slab will be made of Hoffmann Green Cement Technologies’ H-UKR clinker-free cement and Néolithe’s mixed circular materials-based Anthropocite aggregates. The resulting slab will serve as a test for the use of H-UKR concrete in future Groupe GCC projects.

The partners say that a mix of H-UKR cement with 20% Anthropocite reduces CO₂ emissions by 63% compared to CEM II/A cement-based concrete produced using conventional aggregates, to 62kg CO₂eq/m³.

Groupe GCC executive vice-president Patrick Dubourg said "This project perfectly illustrates one of GCC's key priorities: implementing sustainable solutions. The work we've been doing for several years with Hoffmann Green Cement Technologies enables us to take tangible action in this direction, and the partnership with Néolithe enables us to take a further step in the direction of decarbonisation, an essential issue for construction.”

Laurence Hemerit, infrastructure director at customer Marseille Metropolitan Transport Authority (RTM), said "RTM found GCC's proposal very interesting in that it enabled us to carry out a large-scale, long-term comparative test to assess the qualities of low-carbon concrete. Our temporary bus storage site was therefore the ideal candidate for this experiment."

Saudi Arabia: Al Kifah Ready Mix & Blocks has updated the market on its achievements in the sustainable concrete space in Saudi Arabia. The producer’s mixes include slag-based aggregates, as well as natural pozzolans and CO₂ injected using equipment developed by Canada-based CarbonCure. Gulf Construction News has reported that the company's range of ultra-low CO₂ ConGreen concrete products and BloGreen concrete blocks have supported projects including the Aramco Stadium project in Al Khobar, Qiddiya amusement park in Riyadh and King Salman Global Maritime Industries Complex in Jubail.

General Manager Nigel Harries said "Al Kifah Ready Mix & Blocks’ products have been widely adopted in mega and giga projects across the kingdom and have proved their high performance, thus strengthening the company’s position in the Saudi market. Al Kifah’s green solutions have unique properties that facilitate tasks on the job site through their better workability and finishability. They can be considered an all-in-one solution, offering zero wastage, zero mobilisation time, lower emissions and a smart way for supplying concrete in remote areas."

US: Cemex USA has supplied 42,800t of its Vertua reduced-CO₂ concrete to property developer Tishman Speyer for Phase 1 of the Mission Rock mixed-use development in San Francisco, California. Vertua concrete offers enhanced sustainability for construction projects compared to conventional concrete through its reduced emissions, energy efficiency, use of recycled materials, water conservation and design optimisation. Phase 1 of the project involved the construction of foundations for two blocks of apartments and an office block. Contractor Webcor first broke ground on the project in 2020.

Cemex USA West Regional President Francisco Rivera said "We are excited to contribute to a forward-thinking project such as Mission Rock by delivering our eco-conscious building materials, advancing sustainability efforts in San Francisco.

Australia: The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) government has pledged to use low carbon concrete in all future government construction projects, where appropriate, reports Mirage News. This commitment is part of the 'Low carbon concrete policy', designed to cut emissions without significantly raising project costs. The implementation of this policy will begin on 1 January 2025 and will require that designers, engineers and builders provide options for using low carbon concrete options in government projects. This initiative is part of the broader 10-year ACT Sustainable Building Pathway, which aims to embed sustainable practices throughout the building lifecycle.

Minister for Water, Energy and Emissions Reduction, Shane Rattenbury said "Using low carbon concrete is a simple and effective way we can reduce these emissions while supporting local industry. Already in Canberra, we have started using low carbon concrete in significant projects like the new Canberra Hospital expansion and in preparation for Light Rail Stage 2A. This is a fantastic example of how seamlessly low carbon concrete can be integrated into our everyday building projects.”

Ireland: New regulations effective from 1 September 2024 require all state-funded building projects in Ireland - including roads, schools, and hospitals - to use low-carbon concrete. The directive prohibits the use of CEM I cement, mandating a minimum of 30% replacement of clinker with low-carbon alternatives for public projects.

France: Cemex France reduced the total emissions of CO₂ from its concrete and aggregates logistics operations by 10% in the two years between 2021 and 2023. The company achieved this through various initiatives, including equipment upgrades, route optimisation and the substitution of alternative fuels, including hydrogenated vegetable oil in pusher vessels, and biogas where possible. The producer says that the reduction aligns with its FRET21 transport sustainability initiative, as well as its Future in Action 2050 net zero roadmap.

Cemex France is currently preparing to renew or expand its commitment to the FRET21 initiative for another three years.

Finland: Betolar has procured a patent for a new accelerator solution for use in CEM III/B slag cement mixes. The company says that the product enables the achievement of conventional demoulding times in the production of concrete elements using slag cement with a clinker content of 20 – 34%. It will also enable its use in hollow-core slabs and as shotcrete in the mining industry.

President and CEO Tuija Kalpala said "Our patented innovation paves the way for the large-scale use of cement mixtures in the production of concrete elements and products, significantly reducing CO₂ emissions."

Finland/Germany: Heidelberg Materials and Metsä Wood have launched a concrete-based wall element designed to replace conventional walls in construction. The product is comprised of insulation and laminated veneer lumber, sandwiched between two layers of reduced-CO2 concrete. The Cool Down News has reported that the element has 30 – 50% lower CO₂ emissions than conventional concrete walls, according to its developers. It also reduces the total weight of the wall by 60%.

Metsä Wood business development manager Håkan Arnebrant said "One of the advantages of this hybrid element is that builders do not have to change their way of building with concrete elements, but can still lower their emissions. At the same time, the walls can be made 50 – 75mm thinner than walls built with concrete elements, which can give quite a few extra square meters in a building."

Brazil: Gerdau Graphene has launched NanoCONS, a new line of graphene-based admixtures for concrete. Graphene-Info News has reported that NanoCONS increases the durability and strength of concrete, while lowering its CO₂ emissions by 20%, according to the developer. Gerdau Graphene noted that the first product in the line, water-based NanoCONS W104, offers faster drying times, making it well-suited to use in precast concrete production.