Cemex invests in lower carbon cement technology

CEMEX has invested in Carbon Upcycling Technologies, which has developed technology that uses clinker substitutes to reduce emissions from cement and concrete production by up to 30%.

Clinker is the main component of cement and, according to Cemex, production is the most carbon-intensive part of the cement manufacturing process. A 2020 report says that cement clinker production accounted for 4% of global CO2 emissions in 2018.

Carbon Upcycling’s proprietary technology uses CO2 to treat industrial waste, such as fly ash or slag, in a grinding process. This produces supplementary cementitious material (SCM) that can replace clinker in cement production, reducing emissions from the resulting blended cement and concretes by up to 30%. Carbon Upcycling claims to be the first company to reduce the carbon footprint of cement and concretes by “double digits”, while exceeding strength activity performance by 40%.

Cemex’s investment will aid the continued development and scaling of Carbon Upcycling’s technology and help reduce reliance on clinker in cement production. It will also fund commercial rollout of Carbon Upcycling’s technology across cement facilities in North America, Europe, and Asia.

The technology will also help scale Cemex’s capability to reduce clinker in cement production as it seeks to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.

The companies have not disclosed the investment amount.