Cementitious Materials International Congress Americas 2026

The implementation sustainable and reduced concrete is more than following a code, standard, or specification. There are many obstacles and obstructions that can limit, prohibit, or contradict the actual goals. This presentation will highlight those impediments and various strategies for solving them from the ground level perspective with multiple real life and field based examples.

As sustainability expectations accelerate across public and private construction, 2026 represents a defining moment for the ready mixed concrete industry. This presentation highlights NRMCA’s leadership in providing the technical resources, data frameworks, and guidance needed to meet emerging embodied-carbon requirements while ensuring durable, resilient concrete. Key focus areas include the new 2026 Product Category Rule (PCR) for Concrete, which establishes updated, internationally aligned rules for developing Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs); the NRMCA Industry-Wide Benchmarks, offering transparent, sector-wide performance baselines that support procurement programs and carbon-reduction planning; and the enhanced NRMCA Low-Carbon Concrete Calculator, designed to help producers and specifiers evaluate mix-level carbon impacts and chart optimized reduction pathways.

The push for lower carbon emissions and higher performance standards is reshaping the cement and concrete landscape. Slag cement (GGBFS) offers one of the most practical and proven pathways to meet these evolving demands. This presentation examines how the use of slag cement enhances durability, reduces embodied carbon, and supports long-term infrastructure resilience across a range of applications.

Drawing from field experience and performance data across the southern United States, the session highlights innovations in mix optimization, compatibility with blended and portland-limestone cements, and strategies for achieving consistent results in ready-mix and precast production. The discussion will also touch on the broader sustainability narrative—how incorporating industrial byproducts like slag aligns with circular economy principles and emerging environmental standards worldwide.

By focusing on technical innovation and sustainable practice, this session positions slag cement as a key component in the next generation of performance-based concrete solutions.

Concrete pavements in Texas operate under some of the most demanding environmental and loading conditions in the country, making material optimization essential for long-term performance. This presentation will explore how advances in cement chemistry, supplementary cementitious materials, and mixture design are improving durability, sustainability, and constructability across the state. Drawing on recent research, field observations, and project experience from TxDOT and local agencies, the discussion will highlight how Texas is adopting blended cement, optimized mixtures, and cement stabilization of soils and bases to meet rising expectations for resilience and reduced carbon intensity. Key considerations—including aggregate selection, pavements' response to extreme traffic and soil variability, and long-term pavement performance (LTPP) trends—will be addressed. Practical recommendations will be provided for optimizing materials to ensure cost-effective, high-performing concrete pavements capable of meeting Texas' evolving transportation needs.

Although the momentum has shifted in the public sector, the cement and concrete industries are making progress related to carbon reduction targets in concrete construction. Strong demand signals remain in domestic private sector projects and with international work, leading to ongoing innovation, changes in codes and standards, and increasing industry stakeholder needs.

As the cement industry pushes toward goals of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) play an immediate role in achieving short-term goals and will continue to contribute to long-term goals. Traditional SCMs like fly ash and slag cannot meet the demand from the industry, and we are seeing increased production of natural pozzolans to fill the need. Calcined clays have attracted international attention for the high reactivity and the widespread geographic availability of clay deposits. A blended cement called LC3 (limestone calcined clay cement) gets a lot of attention for its ability to maintain good performance while only containing 50% of portland cement clinker. LC3 cements can be produced under the ASTM C595 Type IT designation, but to date are not sold in the US. The concrete industry in the meantime can approximate LC3 by combining Type IL cements with calcined clays and other SCMs to achieve very similar clinker reductions and good performance. This presentation showcases data using regional blends of Type IL cements, calcined clays, and other SCMs.

Heidelberg Materials is accelerating the adoption of next‑generation supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) and blended cements to cut embodied carbon while maintaining performance across diverse applications and specifications. Building on our 2030 commitments (including the <400 kg CO₂/t cementitious target) and net‑zero roadmap, we are expanding slag availability and distribution in North America and investing in innovative SCM technologies.

We will share insights on calcined clay/LC3 binder use and discuss the low‑clinker binder systems and blended cements concrete producers and consumers are most likely to encounter in the coming years. We will also present progress from work on different innovations including beneficiated ash acquisitions/operations as well Recycled Concrete Fines (RCF) to integrate carbonated recycled paste into cementitious systems—advancing circularity and reducing clinker dependence.

Finally, we’ll discuss deployment considerations (sourcing, quality control, codes/standards, and market engagement), and how coordinated SCM portfolios position ready‑mix and infrastructure teams to achieve durable, lower‑carbon concrete at scale in North America.

In the past few years, ambitious Buy Clean climate policies have been passed by local governments seeking to reduce their industrial environmental impacts and transform the marketplace. With cement and concrete's embodied carbon emissions representing significant greenhouse gas contributions, low-carbon solutions in public procurement can address their impacts. This study conducted stakeholder engagements along the Maryland concrete value-chain, investigated the various Buy Clean programs against the national benchmarks, and addressed its technical vulnerabilities which require an understanding of its reporting tool. By shedding light on the shortcomings of the policy and its tools, we can begin identifying the essential knowledge to propose feasible pathways towards climate neutrality. Because global cement production is predicted to increase, it is therefore imperative for the construction industry to enhance the effectiveness of this policy for future implementation. With Buy Clean, the manufacturer, architects and structural engineers have a unique opportunity to become key players in global carbon dioxide removal efforts using current and developing carbon-efficient materials.

As the construction industry accelerates its shift toward decarbonization, carbon budgeting has emerged as a powerful tool for reducing project emissions and meeting climate goals. This session presents a practical, stakeholder-focused framework for integrating ready-mix concrete carbon budgets into the planning, design, and delivery of buildings and infrastructure.

A carbon budget, defined as an emissions ceiling for a project, can serve as a guiding metric from early design through construction. We'll explore how to establish realistic carbon budgets based on regional material availability, market capabilities, and structural demands. Real-world case studies will illustrate how teams have successfully implemented carbon budgeting using achievable targets, aligned with performance requirements such as exposure classes, strength needs, and construction sequencing.

Special focus will be given to technical levers how they influence embodied carbon outcomes. Attendees will gain insight into how early engagement across the value chain ensures that sustainability goals translate into real-world results.

Learning Objectives:

Define carbon budgeting for ready mix concrete and its purpose in sustainable construction.

Identify technical and market factors that influence carbon targets.

Understand how carbon budgets are applied from design through construction.

Explain how collaboration supports effective carbon reduction strategies across the value chain.

Short Description (50 words)

Explore a practical framework for carbon budgeting in buildings and infrastructure. Learn how to define realistic emissions ceilings, evaluate technical and market constraints, and apply real-world strategies from early design through delivery. This session will explore how owners and general contractors are beginning to implement carbon budgeting and incorporate lower-carbon concrete in upcoming projects This will empower project teams to move from sustainability goals to measurable carbon reduction outcomes.

Supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) are widely used to reduce the cost and carbon footprint of concrete, yet most commercially available SCMs slow early-age strength development, limiting their broader adoption in practice. This presentation introduces an integrated approach to engineering next-generation SCMs that combine carbon sequestration, accelerated strength gain, and improved cement efficiency. We will discuss our recent advances in converting recycled concrete fines into value-added SCMs through a regulated CO₂ mineralization process. By actively controlling carbonation reactions at the particle level, this technology transforms low-reactivity demolition waste into a reactive SCM that can enhances early-age hydration and strength. Building on this concept, we further demonstrate the development of a new class of concrete strength enhancers derived from similar reaction-control and functionalization principles. These materials not only accelerate early-age strength but also improve later-age performance, enabling significant reductions in cement content while meeting strength requirements. The combined benefits offer a practical, scalable pathway toward faster, lower-cost, and lower-carbon concrete for industrial deployment.