How a Small Business in Arizona is Helping Decarbonize Concrete
upstart writes:
Block-Lite is a small concrete manufacturer in an industrial corridor of Flagstaff, Arizona. The third-generation family business makes bricks and other masonry materials for retaining walls, driveways, and landscaping projects. The company was already a local leader in sustainability - in 2020, it became the first manufacturer in Flagstaff to power its operations with on-site solar panels. But now it's doing something much more ambitious.
On Tuesday, Block-Lite announced a pioneering collaboration with climate tech startups Aircapture and CarbonBuilt to suck carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and stash it in concrete blocks. The companies estimate the project will reduce the carbon footprint of Block-Lite's products by 70 percent, creating a model they hope could reshape the industry.
[...] CarbonBuilt has developed a solution that addresses the issue in two distinct ways. First, the company found a proprietary way to replace cement with a mix of inexpensive, locally-sourced industrial waste materials. CEO Rahul Shendure told Grist they include common byproducts of coal plants, steelmaking, and chemical production that would, for the most part, otherwise be destined for landfills. The company's second feat is the way its equipment hardens that slurry into concrete blocks - by curing it with carbon dioxide. That's where Aircapture comes in. The company will build one of its machines which extract carbon dioxide from the ambient air directly on Block-Lite's site.
[...] Block-Lite did not respond to Grist's inquiry, but in a press release, the company suggested that the new concrete products would be no costlier than its current offerings. "All too often sustainable building materials require a trade off between cost and performance, but what is unique about this project is that there's no 'green premium.'" Block-Lite said. "We're going to be able to produce on-spec, ultra-low carbon blocks at price parity with traditional blocks which should speed adoption and impact."
Read more of this story at SoylentNews.