Photo courtesy of Sublime Systems
A sustainable cement manufacturer that calls itself the “electric car of cement making” recently reached a major milestone when its “true zero” cement was used in an actual building, CleanTechnica reported.
Sublime Systems, a startup that spun out of MIT in 2020, is revolutionizing the cement-making process, eliminating ingredients that produce huge amounts of global-warming air pollutants.
Traditionally, cement, a key ingredient in concrete, is made from limestone in kilns powered by polluting energy. These factors combine to produce large amounts of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas. It has been widely reported that the cement manufacturing industry is responsible for around 8% of the world’s air pollution that causes global warming.
Sublime’s revolutionary new process, which replaces kilns and limestone, relies on an “electrochemical process.” [that] “It extracts reactive calcium and silicates from abundant raw materials at room temperature,” CleanTechnica explained.
This process creates the equivalent of ordinary cement, which is exactly what the construction industry needs. Sublime’s patented Sublime Cement is currently being used in One Boston Wharf, a massive development on Boston’s waterfront, and the developers seem pleased with the product.
“Overall, it’s been a really tedious construction job,” said David Robb, pre-construction manager for One Boston Wharf, “but it’s a big step toward achieving our future carbon reduction goals.”
Given how much air pollution the construction industry causes, it’s past time for more developers to adopt new materials like sublime cement. In Ireland, the government recently passed new rules requiring more earth-friendly materials to be used in cement production. More countries will need to take such steps to encourage widespread adoption of new technologies.
“What surprised me was [is that] “This wasn’t done over 20 years ago,” wrote a CleanTechnica commenter.
“This is a good step that should now encourage many other companies and places to join in on this process and use of concrete,” another wrote. “Any measure that reduces overall emissions is a good step in the right direction.”
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