Carbon Dioxide | How Can Carbon Dioxide Help the Concrete Industry?

How Can Carbon Dioxide Help the Concrete Industry?

At Abdullah Hashim Industrial Gases & Equipment, one of our standard products is Carbon Dioxide. Some essential facts about Carbon Dioxide:

1. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a Chemical compound comprised of Carbon and Oxygen.
2. At temperatures higher than -78.8°C, Carbon Dioxide sublimes as it cannot exist as a liquid at standard atmospheric pressure.
3. At temperatures below -78.8°C, Carbon Dioxide can exist as a solid, known as Dry Ice
4. Carbon Dioxide is a colorless, odorless, and non-flammable gas that is heavier than air and soluble in Water.
5. Carbon dioxide is considered a greenhouse gas because it helps traps heat in the atmosphere. Without it, and other gases, the Earth would be frozen.

What are the methods of producing Carbon Dioxide:

1. Carbon dioxide is mostly produced by the burning of fossil fuels.
2. Through the use of carbon capture technologies, air or the exhausts from manufacturing facilities is sucked into a recovery unit.
3. Inside the recovery unit, the carbon dioxide is separated from the other gases that would be available in the mix and purified.
4. After the Carbon Dioxide is captured and purified, it is then transported to suitable storage sites.

Key facts about concrete?

1. Concrete is made is up of aggregate material that is primarily rocks, sand, cement, and water.
2. The concrete industry emits almost 7-8% of the total Carbon Dioxide emissions.
3. It is the most common building material used worldwide.
4. Concrete buildings are proven to be long-standing and energy-efficient when built correctly.

What is Concrete Curing?

After concrete is poured, it must cure in order to harden. The curing process allows the concrete to:

1. Increase its durability
2. Resistant to cracking
3. Become less permeable to water
4. Build its resistance to freezing and thawing

Curing concrete is typically done by steaming, misting, and covering the poured concrete with moisture-retaining sheets to slow down the moisture evaporation. These are conventional methods, today curing concrete using Carbon Dioxide has become a very viable option.

What are the advantages of using Carbon Dioxide in the curing process?

1. The highlight of using this Carbon Dioxide as the curing mean is that it allows for the formation of a solid, stable compound (CaCO3) that helps in having the concrete build strength rapidly
2. The CO2 becomes trapped in the carbon Dioxide, which helps reduce the carbon dioxide emissions.
3. Usually cement curing takes weeks in order for the concrete to fully finish its cycle, however with carbon dioxide curing, the curing process takes on average of six hours.
4. Allows pre-cast concrete operations to rapidly complete projects as their cycle times increase.
5. The carbon captured in the cement can only be released if the cement is burned.
6. Although the cost associated with making a single block of cement is increased, the increased cycle time provided a substantial gain that makes this method feasible and profitable.
7. Where carbon footprint taxes are applicable, there can be a substantial reduction in the taxable amount due to the overall reduction of the carbon footprint when recovered carbon dioxide is used.

For almost 70 years, Abdullah Hashim Industrial Gases & Equipment has been supplying the Saudi Arabian market with Industrial and Medical gases. AHG have a large fleet of over two hundred vehicles that transport our products across the Kingdom, and our continuously expanding list of branches are scattered across the Kingdom to ensure maximum coverage within the country. However, some of our customers require a fit-for-purpose solution to match their specific requirement or to overcome logistical hurdles that can impact their supply. This is where AHG and AirProducts, our international partners, can proudly say that we have extensive experience in providing our customers with customized solutions that provide their business with their exact requirements.