The valorization of contaminated waste glass to produce locally sourced, low-carbon cement at the Cemex Rugby cement plant

英国燃煤电厂的快速退役无意中造成了建筑业的供应链危机，因为大多数水泥和混凝土生产商将煤飞灰用作水泥中的主要辅助胶凝材料(SCM)。煤炭、电力和钢铁行业缺乏本地供应链，导致从欧洲大陆和其他地方的进口增加，进一步加剧了与英国建筑业相关的碳排放。Carbon UpCying Technologies UK(CUT)是加拿大一家屡获殊荣的初创企业Carbon UpCying Technologies(例如，Carbon X奖获得者和Solar ImPulse Efficient解决方案标签所有者)的子公司，该公司正在扩展一项碳利用技术，该技术可以激活一系列丰富的可用废物，如垃圾填埋灰、玻璃、粘土和火山岩，以永久储存二氧化碳并生产活性低碳水泥。该联合体旨在开创循环经济解决方案，将当地低品位、受污染的玻璃碎块转化为高性能辅助胶凝材料(SCM)。CUT及其项目合作伙伴将密切合作，开发一种突破性的二氧化碳增强型玻璃火山灰。这种创新材料不仅减少了水泥和混凝土的碳足迹，还重新利用了受污染的消费后玻璃，使其不再用作预制块中的惰性填料。认识到质量控制在水泥行业的重要性，该项目将为加工材料建立一个强大的质量控制系统，包括调查前处理以提高材料质量和产量。设计的工厂功能齐全，能够加工各种粒度约4毫米的干法原料。这种适应性使演示者能够验证不同基础行业的替代原料类型，促进循环并为这些行业的减排努力做出贡献。二氧化碳增强型玻璃火山灰与其他试验类型一起，将在Cemex橄榄球工厂被集成到水泥中。得到的混合物将用于各种基础设施元素的预拌和预制混凝土，如人行道、路缘、排水沟、车道和基础。这种整合旨在大幅减少英国建造的基础设施的碳足迹。这种玻璃衍生的火山灰有望将混凝土混合料中的水泥用量减少25%以上，增强强度性能，并将混凝土耐久性提高高达45%。这些改进有助于提高应对气候变化相关环境影响的应变能力。通过直接与英国的循环经济目标保持一致，并支持英国到2050年减少80%碳排放的承诺，该项目发挥着至关重要的作用。鉴于基础设施部门占总排放量的近六分之一，基础设施部门的参与有助于实现国家碳减排目标。目前，低碳水泥和混凝土预计将为实现净零排放目标贡献12%的减排。

The rapid decommissioning of coal power plants in the UK has inadvertently created a supply chain crisis in the construction industry, as most cement and concrete producers use coal fly ash as a staple supplementary cementitious material (SCM) in cements. The lack of local SCMs from the coal power and steel industries has led to increased imports from mainland Europe and elsewhere, further exacerbating the carbon emissions associated with the UK construction industry. Carbon Upcycling Technologies UK (CUT) is a subsidiary of Carbon Upcycling Technologies, an award-winning Canadian startup (e.g., Carbon X-Prize winner and Solar Impulse Efficient Solution Label owner) scaling a carbon utilization technology that can activate a range of abundantly available waste materials such as landfilled ash, glass, clays, and volcanic rocks to permanently store CO2 and produce reactive low carbon cements.For this initiative, CUT will assemble a consortium primarily comprising partners from two pivotal foundation industries: the glass sector, represented by Glass Technology Services and MKD32, and the cement industry, represented by CEMEX. Together, this consortium aims to pioneer a circular economy solution, transforming local low-grade, contaminated glass cullets into high-performance Supplementary Cementitious Materials (SCMs).Collaborating closely, CUT and its project partners will develop a groundbreaking CO2-enhanced glass pozzolan. This innovative material not only reduces the carbon footprint of cement and concrete but also repurposes contaminated post-consumer glass, diverting it from its current use as an inert filler in precast blocks. Recognizing the significance of quality control in the cement sector, the project will establish a robust quality control system for processing materials, including investigations into pre-processing to enhance material quality and output.The designed plant is versatile, capable of processing various dry feedstocks with a particle size of approximately <4mm. This adaptability allows the demonstrator to validate alternative feedstock types for diverse foundational industries, promoting circularity and contributing to emission reduction efforts across these industries.The CO2-enhanced glass pozzolan, along with other trial types, will be integrated into cement at the CEMEX Rugby plant. The resulting blend will be utilized in ready-mix and precast concrete for various infrastructure elements such as sidewalks, curbs, gutters, driveways, and foundations. This integration aims to significantly reduce the carbon footprint of UK-built infrastructure. The glass-derived pozzolan is expected to decrease the amount of cement in a concrete mix by over 25%, enhance strength performance, and improve concrete durability by up to 45%. These improvements contribute to increased resilience against environmental impacts related to climate change.By directly aligning with the UK's circular economy goals and supporting the nation's commitment to an 80% reduction in carbon emissions by 2050, this project plays a crucial role. Given that the infrastructure sector accounts for almost one-sixth of total emissions, its participation is instrumental in achieving national carbon reduction targets. Currently, low carbon cement and concrete are projected to contribute a 12% reduction toward reaching a net-zero emissions target.