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Setting Standards for Calculating
Embodied Carbon of Concrete
An essential tool for decarbonizing the built
environment.
CarbonStar is a quantification method for calculating the embodied carbon of concrete.
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CarbonStar Mission Statement
Complementing EPDs and PCRs related to concrete, CarbonStar provides a simple and easy-to-compare quantification of GWP for concrete in commercial applications. As the success of EnergyStar demonstrates, a simple technically-based approach focused on a single important performance metric can enable and accelerate a broader, more rapid adoption of lower carbon products.
Concrete's Carbon Problem
Concrete is the most-used building material on the planet. It is also the most polluting, accounting for 8% of global emissions.
That huge amount of embodied carbon is because cement, the key ingredient of concrete, is one of the most carbon-intensive materials on earth, as it requires heating limestone to 1450°C / 2600F.
Share of Global Emissions
Components of Concrete
Counting the Carbon
With the rapidly growing number of techniques and technologies being used to reduce the embodied carbon of concrete, a method for counting that carbon is required. The technical specification, CSA SPE-112:21 published by CSA Group, outlines the methodology for the carbon intensity quantification and verification of concrete.