In a major stride toward sustainable construction and carbon reduction, Heidelberg Materials has officially launched its first industrial-scale pilot facility for enforced carbonation at its Górażdże cement plant in Poland. The facility forms a core part of the company’s patented ReConcrete process, aimed at reducing the carbon footprint of cement by combining circular economy practices with decarbonisation innovation.
The process centres around Recycled Concrete Paste (RCP) — a by-product recovered from old concrete at Heidelberg’s recycling plant in Katowice. RCP has the natural ability to absorb and permanently bind carbon dioxide (CO₂), acting as a carbon sink. The new Górażdże facility accelerates this natural process by exposing RCP to kiln exhaust gases, enabling chemical binding of CO₂ through a treatment known as enforced carbonation.
Once treated, the carbonated RCP serves as a Supplementary Cementitious Material (SCM), replacing the carbon-intensive clinker typically used in cement production. This innovation could lead to CO₂ emission reductions of 900 to 1,000 kg per tonne of RCP, including 100–150 kg of permanently bound CO₂ and up to 850 kg avoided by clinker substitution.
“Scaling ReConcrete is an important step in unlocking new ways to reduce the carbon footprint of our products,” said Dr. Katharina Beumelburg, Chief Sustainability and New Technologies Officer.
“It’s a great example of how we integrate sustainability across the value chain.”
Jon Morrish, Member of the Managing Board for Europe, added:
“With strong local execution and central R&D support, this Polish project is a blueprint for similar decarbonisation efforts globally.”
The facility in Katowice, launched earlier in 2024, uses a proprietary separation technology to break old concrete into high-quality aggregates and fine RCP. The output not only meets the standards of virgin raw materials but enables complete circular usage of construction debris.
This initiative is part of the international Carbon4Minerals R&D project, co-funded by the European Union and Switzerland’s SERI (State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation). It brings together scientists, engineers, and industrial players to advance carbon capture and resource efficiency across Europe.
The Górażdże pilot facility marks a pivotal moment in the building sector’s transition toward net-zero construction, reaffirming Heidelberg Materials’ commitment to low-carbon innovation, material circularity, and scalable climate solutions.
