Articles, Guides & Reports

This guide focuses on practical, data-driven strategies for reducing the carbon footprint of concrete, with particular emphasis on the material and mixture decisions that designers, engineers, contractors, and policymakers make at the project level. The goal is to support performance-based choices that lower emissions meaningfully while meeting the safety, strength, and durability expected of traditional concrete.

As the effects of global warming become more evident, cement and concrete are increasingly part of the conversation, contributing as much as 6 to 8% of global CO2 emissions. The climate crisis has moved the industry to consider technologies that can successfully reduce CO2 emissions in both the short- and mid-term. With a goal of maintaining the global temperature rise below 2°C (3.6°F) above pre-industrial levels, novel approaches are now being introduced.

We’re hit with a plethora of terms: green, resilient, low carbon footprint, sustainable, low emissions, carbon offset, eco-conscious, net-zero, renewable, global warming potential, carbon neutral, and the list goes on. The first thing to note is that the word carbon is being used to represent CO2, or in some cases CO2 equivalents (combined impact of all greenhouse gases). Given our name, NEU: An ACI Center of Excellence for Carbon Neutral Concrete, I will focus on the term carbon neutral. Note that NEU in the name is not an acronym but is from the word NEUtral, as that is our goal.