Grant: Alliance Grants

This international collaboration aims to develop decarbonation technology to enable carbon net-zero manufacturing of Portland cement (PC), a key ingredient of concrete that currently accounts for approximately 8% of global anthropogenic carbon emissions. The Canadian Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act enshrined Canada's commitment to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, while the 2030 Emissions Reduction Plan targets 40-45% reduction by 2030. However, existing Canadian solutions cannot meet these aggressive targets; therefore, there is an urgent need to integrate promising technological innovations developed outside Canada into current industrial processes. A team of Chilean researchers, led by Dr. Gonzalez, have developed a new process for cement manufacturing that goes beyond existing efforts by focusing on the calcination of limestone, which is responsible for over 50% of the CO2 emitted during PC manufacturing and the most challenging to decarbonize. This technology is well-suited for the Canadian cement industry due to abundant sources of renewable energy that are needed for sustainable electrification. Through this collaboration, we intend to develop a process to fabricate clinker from Ca(OH)2, which will then be mixed with gypsum to produce PC conforming to Canadian specifications. Therefore, our ED process would eliminate 50% of CO2 emissions associated with PC production immediately (those generated during limestone calcination) while providing a sustainable fuel source (H2) that could be used in cement kilns to offset fossil fuel consumption, which means added reduction of extra CO2 emissions. The results enabled by this grant will allow us to establish industry-supported projects in Chile and Canada to scale the reactor for industrial adoption, further establishing our leadership position in transitioning to net-zero.