Grantee Research Project Results

Problem Statement:  The worldwide manufacture and use of Portland cement for use in concrete accounts for roughly 5 percent of global CO₂ emissions. A common practice in the production of Portland cement concrete (PCC) to reduce CO₂ emissions levels is the partial substitution of cement with supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) from recycled industrial waste streams.  The incorporation of these materials can also improve the performance and ease of processing of concrete, and as such, SCMs are heavily used in the PCC industry. To further reduce CO₂ emissions during the production of concrete, a low-energy CO₂ sequestering alternative binding material can be used to replace Portland cement. However, to be easily accepted as an alternative to Portland cement in the construction industry, such a material should also allow the incorporation of SCMs.

 

Technology Description:  Solidia Technologies, Inc. (Solidia) proposes to demonstrate the ability to incorporate SCMs into concrete-like materials manufactured via a proprietary, low-energy mineral carbonation process utilizing Solidia Cement™.  This novel binding material can be readily mined in natural form or synthesized at a significantly lower temperature than Portland cement and can be used to make concrete-like products with properties similar or superior to PCC. However, as Solidia Cement™ has very different chemistry and strengthening mechanisms than Portland cement, it may not experience the same extent of property improvements that SCMs impart to PCC. The overall goal of this project is to demonstrate that the incorporation of common SCMs in building materials made via mineral carbonation yields similar property improvement as in traditional cement based building materials. The effect of the substitution of SCMs in place of Solidia Cement in amounts typically used in PCC on properties such as workability, mechanical strength and durability will be investigated and compared to traditional concrete systems.

 

Anticipated Benefits:  Demonstrating the feasibility of incorporating SCMs into concrete-like products manufactured by mineral carbonation using Solidia Cement™ will heavily strengthen the case for the widespread industrial adoption of this novel construction material. The primary benefit of such a large-scale adoption would be a dramatic reduction in CO₂ emissions associated with the construction industry—up to a 95 percent reduction using naturally mined Solidia Cement™, and up to 60 percent utilizing a synthetic version of the same material.