Sources: CarbiCrete, Montreal; CP staff

CarbiCrete, developer of a concrete masonry unit production process abating and removing 150 kilograms of carbon dioxide per metric ton of output, has taken a critical commercialization step through charter North American producer, Quebec-based Patio Drummond. After extensive testing of steel slag binder and CO₂ gas to replace portland cement and steam in CMU mixes and curing, the producer has begun selling CarbiCrete 8- x 16-in. block directly from its Drummondville plant northeast of Montreal. Patio Drummond promotes the block as carbon-negative, reflecting upfront emissions avoidance, followed by CO₂ sequestration as each block cures and hardens to specification in a chamber confining the greenhouse gas. 

“This breakthrough heralds a promising future for us and the concrete industry,” says Patio Drummond co-owner Philippe Girardin. “We are convinced that CarbiCrete technology, combined with our expertise, will position us as a leader in the manufacturing of sustainable concrete products that exceed all industry specifications.” 

“We have been working with Patio Drummond since 2018. Bringing our carbon-negative technology to market is a very exciting step in the evolution of that partnership,” observes CarbiCrete CEO Chris Stern. Beyond creating construction products that will reduce embodied carbon in the built environment, he adds, CarbiCrete technology adoption will generate valuable credits for companies looking to offset emissions and meet carbon reduction targets.

Funding for the Patio Drummond pilot and its scale-up to full CarbiCrete process commercialization was provided by Transition Énergétique Québec’s Technoclimat program; Sustainable Development Technology Canada; and, NGen, Canada’s Advanced Manufacturing Supercluster.

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