Quest for “green” cement draws big name investors to $300B industry

Enlarge / The hope is future concrete can be a lot more environmentally friendly than concrete put down in 1972. (credit: Denver Post via Getty Images)

For Bryan Kalbfleisch, cement is a way of life. I was born and raised in the ready-mix concrete business," says the New Jersey-based chief executive, explaining his father worked in the sector for 40 years. I was the kind of kid who could operate heavy machinery, before I could drive."

Now he is doing something that he never imagined-developing a new type of concrete that can store carbon dioxide to help combat climate change.

The Solidia Technologies startup that he runs is part of a growing number trying to solve one of the toughest problems in heavy industry: how to make concrete without producing a lot of greenhouse gas emissions.

Read 26 remaining paragraphs | Comments