!["[It] is not only a possibility in the future — it's a reality on the ground today."](https://www.thecooldown.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/MevoCemimage-rec8Oexf5krWD0yZ7.jpg?w=1920&h=800)
A United Kingdom-based startup has taken a significant step toward shaking up the industrial sector with its next-gen cement.
As detailed by Agg-Net, Material Evolution began producing its ultra-low-carbon cement at its manufacturing site in Wrexham in October. As the company explains on its website, cement is all around us — the second-most used commodity after water, per MIT.
However, even though cement (the main ingredient in concrete) is a strong building material — often used to hurricane-proof homes — there's a downside: the cement industry produces 8% of global carbon pollution, and 80% of pollution associated with concrete comes from making that cement, according to data from the World Economic Forum and World Resources Institute.
Given that human-generated carbon is contributing to the Earth's accelerated warming, innovators are determined to support crucial infrastructure and keep people safely sheltered while reducing pollution connected to an uptick in more intense extreme weather events.
Some of the more sustainable solutions garnering buzz include fire-resistant homes constructed from compressed earthen blocks and hurricane-resistant buildings made with seaweed.
As for Material Evolution, established in 2017 by Dr. Liz Gilligan and Sam Clark, it says it has developed a cement that surpasses industry standards while eliminating up to 85% of production emissions compared to a conventional Portland cement.
"In just a few years, we've achieved a remarkable position within the industry. … Our ultimate goal is to remove one gigaton of carbon by 2040, and these ambitious targets are driving our research forward with like-minded collaborators across various industries as we continue to accelerate the net-zero agenda," Dr. Gilligan told Agg-Net over the summer.
Builders can use the ultra-low-carbon product, dubbed MevoCem, for a range of applications, including foundations, paving, and piping. Moreover, according to the company, adopting this eco-friendly cement requires no painstaking adjustment of operations.
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Absolutely 💯 Material Evolution projects that its first facility will be able to produce approximately 132,000 tons of its ultra-low-carbon cement annually using its patented alkali-fusion process, which requires none of the conventional (and highly polluting) heat and kilns, per Wrexham.com.
"We hope this facility proves that cement and concrete decarbonization is not only a possibility in the future — it's a reality on the ground today. We look forward to working with government agencies, trade bodies and concrete specifiers to join us on our mission to realize the green transition here in the U.K.," Clark told the online platform.
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