Two companies are partnering on ambitious technology to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from cement production.
Titan Group and Thyssenkrupp Polysius have signed a memorandum of understanding under which Titan could partially replace clinker, an intermediate product produced in the manufacturing process by fusing clay and limestone at high heat.
This phase also produces carbon dioxide. According to the World Economic Forum, concrete production is responsible for 8% of global planet-warming pollution, and this stage is largely to blame.
Polysius has designed an alternative clay that can replace some of the clinker. Both companies hope the innovation will allow the clinker ratio to drop below 40%, down from 93% in traditional Portland cement.
This could reduce energy needs in clinker production and the pollution generated by the process itself.
Cement remains a vital part of modern construction, and it is needed to meet growing housing needs. That said, reducing environmental damage from its use is vital to meeting pollution-reduction goals.
Increasing atmospheric pollution has exacerbated destructive weather patterns such as floods, storms, droughts, heat waves, and wildfires. These have clear costs in the agricultural, housing, and ecological sectors, among others.
Other companies and researchers have proposed solutions to reducing cement production pollution, including the use of olivine catalysts, plasma heating, or replacing clinker with fly ash.
Titan will use the specialized clay, meca, in its facilities in Patras, Greece, for a pilot project in 2026. Polysius representatives were optimistic about the deployment.
"This collaboration with Titan is a strong confirmation: demand for solutions like meca is not theoretical — it is coming from leading producers who are now industrially implementing decarbonisation at scale", said Björn Olaf Assmann, head of innovation at Thyssenkrupp Polysius.
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Definitely 👍 Assmann added that meca "unlocks" a path to decarbonization in a key cement-making process.
"This partnership shows how fast the technology is moving from pilots into scalable product," he added.
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