Eco Factor: Concrete developed to capture carbon dioxide and store it.
Going by the statistics, cement production accounts for at least 5 percent of the CO2 that is pumped into the atmosphere annually. While there aren’t many substitutes for concrete in building, California-based Calera is trying to develop concrete that doesn’t account for CO2 emissions but rather is carbon-negative.
The company’s process converts carbon in industrial flue emissions into components of concrete and asphalt. The process, Carbonate Mineralization by Aqueous Precipitation, or CMAP, involves running flue gases through pH-adjusted seawater or alkaline brine water. This converts the CO2 to calcium and/or magnesium carbonate that can easily be precipitated and dried and later used as cement.
CMAP can also capture up to 95 percent of sulfur dioxide in flue gases and neutralizes other pollutants such as mercury. The product can also be fruitful for desalination plants, as it can remove calcium and magnesium from seawater. Another company working on a similar product is London-based Novacem, which is claiming to have developed a product that can absorb and store atmospheric CO2 in a cost-efficient manner.
Via: Gizmag
