Displaying items by tag: sustainability

US: Holcim US has announced the launch of its ECOPact reduced-CO₂ concrete in the Fargo, North Dakota, and Twin Cities, Minnesota, metropolitan areas. ECOPact products offer up to 80% reduced CO₂ emissions compared with ordinary Portland cement (OPC)-based concretes, and can also integrate construction and demolition waste. Holcim US has sold the ECOPact range in Boston, Massachusetts, and Washington DC since 2020.

Holcim US' North Central regional senior vice president Randy Gaworski said "With countless developments already in the pipeline, and so much on the horizon, engineers, architects and developers are driving demand to integrate sustainable building practices throughout the region. This is an exciting opportunity to offer our customers high-quality, low-carbon products for meeting our shared commitments to sustainability and net-zero construction."

South Korea: Lotte Engineering & Construction and M-Tech have successfully developed a new 90% reduced-CO₂ concrete with 5% cement content. Korea Economic Daily News has reported that the product has the same strength as ordinary Portland cement (OPC)-based concrete and has good resistance to salt damage.

India: A team at SRM Institute of Science and Technology has patented a new concrete paving block produced using fibres from waste printed circuit board (WPCB). The refuse-derived material will replace some sand and clay in the concrete mix. SRM Institute of Science and Technology said that India generates 2Mt/yr of electronic waste (e-waste), and additionally imports this type of waste from other countries. Besides being non-biodegradable, WPCB is contaminated with colouring chemicals.

The developers said "The steadily rising volume of electronic waste poses a serious hazard to human health and the environment."

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.

India: Adani Group subsidiary ACC has announced the launch of its new ACC ECOMaxX range of reduced-CO₂ ready-mix concrete products in Mumbai and other markets. The range offers a 30 – 100% reduction in CO₂ emissions compared to ordinary Portland cement (OPC)-based options. ACC developed the range using its own technology. Its aim is to help builders, developers, designers and renovators meet their sustainable construction needs.

Colombia: Cemex has announced the launch of the Tunjuelo Circularity Centre at its former Tunjuelo quarry near Bogotá. Having rebuilt parts of the 50m-deep quarry with demolition waste, Cemex will now work on its ecological restoration, while continuing to receive excavation waste for reconstruction of the ground. It will meanwhile divert demolition waste deliveries for recycling in aggregate production. In Bogotá, Cemex has launched an initiative for urban construction partnerships in collaboration with local authorities. It will also collect municipal solid waste (MSW) there for use in its cement production and collect its used plastic cement bags for recycling in building materials production.

Cemex’s Colombia and Peru president Alejandro Ramírez said "This is a pioneering model for Cemex in the construction materials industry globally, which we aim to position as a benchmark for circularity within the sustainable development of large cities in Colombia and the world. A piece of land that supplied materials for Bogotá's development for decades has received construction and demolition waste for its redevelopment and was transformed into a green area to the south of the city, an epicenter of the circular economy and an opportunity for urban development for the capital city of Colombia."

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."