Fortera opens green cement plant

Fortera has opened a facility in Redding, California, that it says will produce 15,000 metric tons of cement per year using carbon dioxide released by a conventional cement plant. Cement makers typically heat calcium carbonate to make calcium oxide, a key cement ingredient, in a process that generates carbon dioxide. Fortera mineralizes the CO₂ released from this reaction and transforms it into a reactive form of calcium carbonate that can be used in cement. The company says the carbon footprint of its process is 70% lower than that of typical cement manufacturing.