Sustainable low-carbon cement
The University of Barcelona (UB) is promoting an innovative project to develop more sustainable cement with a lower carbon footprint, within the framework of the Proof of Concept (PoC) call of the Innovation Promotion Fund (F2I). The initiative is led by Dr Josep Maria Chimenos, Full Professor at the Faculty of Chemistry and member of the DIOPMA research group.
The project, entitled “Mechanical activation of secondary clay resources for their use in the construction sector”, has been selected as one of the four projects funded in this edition of the F2I grants, receiving €25,000 to advance its technological maturation.
Reusing resources and reducing emissions: a new generation of cement
The research focuses on reusing secondary clay resources —abundant materials that currently cannot be industrially valorised— to partially replace Portland cement, one of the main sources of CO₂ emissions in the construction sector.
To make this possible, the research team uses an innovative mechanical activation process that replaces traditional thermal treatments, which are typically intensive in fossil fuel consumption. This new strategy enables the activation of clay mineral phases using electrical energy, potentially from renewable sources, thereby significantly reducing associated emissions.
“The goal is to produce more sustainable cement while minimising the carbon footprint, making use of currently underutilised resources and avoiding processes that generate greenhouse gas emissions,” explains Dr Chimenos.
From research to market: proof of concept and scalability
Thanks to the F2I grant, the project will be able to take a qualitative leap from laboratory scale to a pre-industrial proof of concept. The objective is to validate that the process is viable with larger material volumes and that the final product maintains performance comparable to conventional cement.
This phase is key to bringing the technology closer to market requirements and facilitating its transfer, either through licensing to existing companies or through the creation of a future spin-off.
The solution has broad application potential in sectors such as the cement industry, mining and waste treatment, and aligns with sustainability and circular economy challenges.
The F2I Proof of Concept grants are aimed at UB researchers leading transfer projects in which the University owns or co-owns both the background knowledge and technology, as well as the results for which funding is requested.
The F2I programme is part of the Bosch i Gimpera Foundation’s knowledge transfer strategy, which works to connect UB research with industry and generate innovations with social, economic and environmental impact.
This activity is part of the project “Implementation programme of the UB–FBG Knowledge Transfer Plan (2025–2028), IMPACTE UB-FBG” (operation code UR68-8121), co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) of the European Union, with the support of the Department of Research and Universities of the Government of Catalonia, within the framework of the Catalonia ERDF Programme 2021–2027.