Trade Journals for the Concrete Industry

Concrete ranks as the second most widely consumed material in the world, surpassed only by water (Haci, 2022). Annually, concrete utilizes approximately 20 billion tons of raw materials, primarily consisting of Portland cement, aggregates, and water (Manzi, 2020). The average person uses 3 tons of concrete per year (Gagg, 2014). Concrete is responsible for producing substantial amounts of carbon dioxide amounts to 50% to 85% in the construction of buildings (Truscott, 2023). In addition, carbon emissions from concrete are higher than those from steel, aluminum, wood, and brick. The construction industry contributes nearly 11% of global carbon emissions (Global Alliance for Building and Construction, 2019). Portland cement is the only binding material in concrete responsible for about 7% of global carbon emissions (UNECE Newsletter, 2022). In the production of Portland cement, 40% of carbon emissions result from the combustion of raw materials such as limestone, shells, chalk, slate, blast furnace slag, silica sand, and iron ore (Dume, 2022). The remaining carbon emissions arise from the calcination process.