Contribution of composite cements in reducing embodied CO[sub]2

Over the last decades, there is a growing demand to reduce the Portland Cement (PC) content and increase the amount of various supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) used in concrete mixture to help reduce the embodied CO2 (ECO2) of concrete and more generally, the environmental impacts of concrete industry. The main objective of this paper is to assess the CO2 emissions associated with concrete production using various combinations of SCMs as per EN197-1 and further to develop concrete mixes with reduced ECO2 and enhanced durability. The results indicate that the ECO2 reduction in the composite cements is proportional to the substituted amount of PC by the SCMs in the concrete mix. In addition to the environmental benefits generated by the use of high content of SCMs as substitute of PC, the obtained results reveal a significant long-term improvement in strength properties and durability performance of composite cement concretes. Keywords. Supplementary cementitious materials, Initial surface absorption, Mechanical properties, Sustainable concrete, Embodied CO2