This challenge is supporting the development of breakthrough technologies in one or more of the following domains:

• Advanced technologies that change the paradigm of prevailing binder technologies with alternative low-carbon compounds based on alternative feedstocks (e/g magnesia-based, (ultra-) mafic rocks), and curing processes (e/g carbonation curing), and the combination thereof. Widespread adoption of such radical new pathways will also need breakthrough innovations in energy efficient industrial production processes. Such engineered carbon mineralisation pathways (e/g MOMS) can in principle utilize and store large amounts of CO2 with high permanence and (CCUS) value in the final mortar and (reinforced) concrete applications. As the alternative feedstocks often formed the host rocks for valuable ores, some mine waste could contain accessible, abundant, and useful raw materials.
• Advanced technologies for a more efficient use of clinker in cement (reducing its clinker fraction), and of cement in concrete compositions (binder efficiency).

For cement, radical innovations are sought that further extend the use of supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs), and that give access to novel, abundantly available alternative sources of reactive SCMs compared to the prevailing SCM materials that have limited (or even declining) availability.

For concrete, the amount of binder used to produce concretes of a given strength can vary considerably (e/g depending on use case and geographical location). This points to substantial CO2 mitigation potential with innovations that solve for a consistently more efficient use of cement, for example. through innovations that optimize and control particle size distribution (e/g more sophisticated grinding processes) in combination with compatible admixtures, and technologies that support industrialization to reduce variability of binder intensity and reduce waste.

Novel reinforcement technologies may further improve efficient use of cement in reinforced concrete (e/g consumption driven by concerns about steel corrosion), and may be necessary for novel pathways for cement and concrete technologies that are not compatible with steel reinforcement.

Novel pathways for compatible and equally performing “synthetic aggregates” may offer additional potential for CCUS at the concrete-mix level.

• Advanced technologies that lower or negate the need for burning fossil fuels to avoid the associated CO2 emissions. For example, novel breakthrough process innovations to manufacture decarbonized lime (e/g at low process temperatures, by non-thermal processes, electrified processes).
• Enabling technologies in support of (1), (2) and (3) based on technologies for computational material science or data-driven science (including AI and ML). There is a need for breakthrough simulation and prediction technologies that enhance the understanding of the characteristics and interactions of raw materials, hydration processes and microstructural development of cementitious materials. If generalizable technologies can be adapted to a wide variety and variation of real-world raw materials without the need for extensive local empirical testing, this would greatly enhance and accelerate development cycles, knowledge acquisition, discovery, and implementation.