Arne Peys

Cement and concrete are the backbone of infrastructure worldwide. The downside is the climate impact these products have. Part of the solution to cement's climate challenge lies in the use of cement substitutes. A promising and local source of cement substitutes is clay-based dredging sludge. VITO is building a Flash-Calciner pilot installation to convert these and other clay-containing streams into functional cement substitutes.

Although we don’t immediately associate it with our continent, Europe still has a lot of mining activity. Nevertheless, mining metals such as copper, nickel and zinc produces large quantities of mineral waste - so-called tailings. Because this waste is mainly sent to landfills, it has a large environmental impact. The Horizon 2020 project NEMO, that ended late 2022, researched, developed and demonstrated solutions in this regard. VITO was also involved in the part of the project on recovering the mineral fraction of mining waste, working closely with ResourceFull.

The production of concrete, largely through the manufacture of cement, is responsible for 5 to 8 percent of global greenhouse emissions. In order to bring these immense emissions down, there is an urgent need for new concrete mixes based on alternative raw materials.