Can 'Green' Cement Eliminate C02?

Cement production is notorious for generating large amounts of C02. Now a Stanford professor claims to have developed a new process that will eliminate the problem.

1 minute read

September 5, 2008, 10:00 AM PDT

By Michael Dudley


"[F]or every ton of ordinary cement, known as Portland cement, a ton of air-polluting carbon dioxide is released during production. Worldwide, 2.5 billion tons of cement are manufactured each year, creating about 5 percent of the Earth's CO2 emissions.

When [Stanford Professor Brent] Constantz learned about the high CO2 levels, he thought he could do better. Constantz says he has invented a green cement that could eliminate the huge amounts of carbon dioxide spewed into the atmosphere by the manufacturers of the everyday cement used in concrete for buildings, roadways and bridges.

He claims his new approach not only generates zero CO2, but has an added benefit of reducing the amount of CO2 power plants emit by sequestering it inside the cement.

Portland cement has a track record of more than 100 years, and any new material would have to get incorporated into building codes."

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