Solving cement’s climate problem » Yale Climate Connections

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Right now, in the U.S., it’s hard to find signs of progress in the effort to decarbonize the economy, as funding under Biden-era climate programs is revoked, frozen, clawed back, or – at most – just plain uncertain. 

One topic that’s both (perhaps surprisingly) interesting and relatively encouraging is the effort to make low-carbon cement, the key ingredient in concrete. These materials cause some 8% of global carbon emissions. (Plus, amazingly, concrete is the second most consumed substance on Earth, less only than water.) Two things make cement production problematic. One, the heat necessary to make cement usually comes from fossil fuels. Two, the central process of making cement requires splitting limestone (CaCO3) into the main ingredient of cement (CaO) and the byproduct, CO2.

The challenges and obstacles to fixing this significant problem are considerable, but this is one area where the array of startup companies makes clear both human ingenuity and the social benefits of venture capitalism. 

Good introductory and overview articles

Examples of startups and various methods

What now?

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SueEllen Campbell

SueEllen Campbell created and for over a decade curated the website “100 Views of Climate Change,” a multidisciplinary collection of pieces accessible to interested non-specialists. She is especially interested…
More by SueEllen Campbell



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