Although not sponsored by an international organization (other than NEU), this session is intended to provide a global perspective on decarbonization efforts related to the concrete industry. This session, sponsored by NEU: an ACI Center of Excellence for Carbon Neutral Concrete, will provide a comprehensive overview of the latest advancements in low-carbon concrete. This session will explore everything from cutting-edge materials and technologies to real-world applications. Through compelling case studies and expert insights, attendees will discover how successful projects have leveraged these innovations to significantly reduce the carbon footprint of concrete. Beyond the technological breakthroughs, this session will also examine the critical path forward, looking at how policy, market incentives, and collaborative strategies are working together to achieve carbon reduction goals.
Learning Objectives:
(1) Identify the most promising low-carbon concrete solutions, including novel materials and technologies;
(2) Discover how engineers and architects can design structures and write specifications that effectively integrate low-carbon concrete and encourage innovation;
(3) Analyze lessons learned from successful projects to understand both achievements and the challenges that remain;
(4) Explore the critical roles of digital tools, government policy, and industry collaboration in accelerating the transition to a net-zero future.
Concrete Roadmap the Journey, Measuring and Tracking Decarbonization through use Cement and Concrete Solutions in the Built Environment
Presented By: SHAWN KALYN
Affiliation: VCNA ST MARYS CEMENT
Description: Presentation Description: American Concrete Association, Concrete road map 2030 and 2050. Integrating new innovations in Cement and concrete production using metrics like Environmental product declarations (EPDs)and material solutions to connect and communicate solutions from cement manufacturing decarbonization to blended cements and supplementary materials to concrete plants transportation and material efficiency to budgeting solutions in construction. The journey to be successful requires collaboration, education and communication with policy makers; the standards groups, designers and end users and society.
Laboratory Testing and Small-Scale Demonstrations – The Pathway to Success for Low Carbon Concrete
Presented By: Thomas Van Dam
Affiliation: Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc.
Description: This presentation discusses employing rigorous laboratory testing and small-scale demonstrations to achieve success when using low carbon concrete in construction. Carbon reduction is achieved by reducing portland cement clinker in concrete, replacing it in the binder with alternative cements and/or supplementary cementitious materials and by reducing the total cementitious content in the concrete through aggregate optimization. This often results in concrete mixtures that behave differently than those traditionally provided by suppliers and placed by contractors. This presentation emphasizes the need to conduct rigorous laboratory testing to evaluate fresh and hardened concrete properties beyond traditional testing, paying special attention to workability, bleeding, setting, and thermal characteristics as well as early strength gain, shrinkage, and other hardened properties. The use of full-scale demonstrations are suggested to ensure that the means and methods of concrete production and construction are well-suited to placement of the low embodied carbon concrete to avoid surprises once construction begins.
Optimizing Concrete Mixtures with AI: From Open-Source Models to Data-Center Deployment
Presented By: Nishant Garg
Affiliation: University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Description: Modern concrete must simultaneously satisfy evolving demands for mechanical performance, workability, durability, and sustainability, making mix designs increasingly complex. Recent studies with AI and ML models show promise in predicting compressive strength and guiding mix optimization. However, they rely largely on proprietary industrial datasets and closed-source models. Here we introduce an open-source AI model trained on a new open-access dataset comprising 500+ diverse strength measurements (1–15 ksi) from 123 mortar (69) and concrete (54) mixes tested across five ages (1, 3, 5, 14, and 28 days). This high-fidelity dataset was generated at University of Illinois by importing all concrete ingredients from a specific data center site in Minnesota. Using Gaussian Process Regression combined with Bayesian Optimization, our AI model was able to reliably forecast strength-development trajectories while quantifying predictive uncertainty (R² = 0.95 and RMSE = 670 psi). Finally, the AI model enabled generation of optimized mix recipes with lower CO2 footprint and higher performance compared to the baseline mix. These recipes were then deployed in critical sections (floor slabs) of the data center, scheduled to open in 2026. This openly shared dataset and model, and its deployment in a real-world setting establishes a promising foundation for future data-driven strength forecasting and mix optimization.
Implementing Low Carbon Concrete
Presented By: Ryan Cialdella
Affiliation: Ozinga
Description: This presentation provides an overview of Ozinga strategy to implement a successful Low Carbon Concrete initiative. It focuses on the key steps taken and lessons learned on specific projects, including a tilt up panel pilot project in St. Louis, MO, to full scale application and construction of the Amazon Web Services (AWS) data center campus project in Indiana.