Concrete enforced carbonation as a carbon sequestration technique – Review on life cycle assessment of existing processes

The concrete industry accounts for approximately 8% of global carbon dioxide emissions, due to the high volume of concrete produced every year. Carbon capture, utilization and storage techniques are being developed to limit this environmental impact. A promising topic is concrete carbonation. While natural carbonation is considered detrimental, enforced carbonation has proved to have remarkable carbon sequestration capabilities without compromising the durability of the material, thanks to improved transport properties. The technologies available for enforced carbonation are typically energy-intensive and life cycle assessment analysis should be applied to evaluate their impact. Hence, a review of the most recent studies on the different carbonation techniques is herein proposed.