Carbon Upcycling Secures $6M Financing for Sustainable Concrete Efforts

Carbon Upcycling Technologies

(Credit: Carbon Upcycling Technologies)

by | Apr 21, 2022

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Carbon Upcycling Technologies

(Credit: Carbon Upcycling Technologies)

Carbon Upcycling Technologies has closed on $6 million in financing to help it continue advancing carbon reduction in the concrete industry.

The company produces a carbon dioxide-embedded cement and concrete additive, which it says has enabled it to reduce emissions in concrete production that is more than double the industry standard. The financing was led by Clean Energy Ventures, a venture capital firm that funds early-stage climate tech innovations.

Canadian-based Carbon Upcycling will use the funding to help build its second facility in North America, which will be capable of manufacturing more than 200 tons per day of low carbon cement and concrete additive. Clean Energy Ventures believes Carbon Upcycling’s technology could help mitigate 4 gigatons of carbon emissions through 2050 with wide scale implementation.

Cement is one of the most widely used construction materials and has a global annual market of around $750 billion. Its production accounts for about 8% of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions, according to the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Supplementary cementitious materials to help make concrete stronger and more permeable and economical has increased in use over the past decade, according to Carbon Upcycling, but the company says they aren’t sustainable and that they favor performance over emissions reductions.

The company says its technology, which essentially leaves carbon dioxide intact in the cement material and hardens it in the product, helps alleviate that production issue. Carbon Upcycling also says its material exceeds activity strength by 40%.

Making materials such as cement more sustainable is seen as an important part of making construction and cities reduce their carbon footprints. Using more sustainable materials in pavement is part of a New York community being built with an overall net zero focus.

Similar industries such as asphalt also have advanced their net zero goals, aiming to reach that target by 2050 especially through the use of recycled materials.

Carbon Upcycling also says its portfolio of carbon dioxide-derived solid nanoparticles has been validated for use in plastics. The company recently launched a consumer goods brand called Oco.

CEMEX Ventures, Amplify Capital and Oxy Low Carbon Ventures also participated in the financing. Others include Zero Carbon Partners, Purpose ESG, Clean Energy Venture Group, Fund for Sustainability and Energy, Prithvi Ventures, Bryan Trudel, and Mark and Faye McGregor.

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