3
leaders, policymakers, and researchers to better strategize
carbon reduction initiatives specific to the United States
cement industry. The principal objective of the paper is to
present a comprehensive analysis of the cement industry
in the United States and the trajectory of decarbonization
within the sector.
The remainder of this paper has been divided into three
parts. The first part presents an overview of the historical
context of the U.S. cement industry. Following this sec-
tion, we discuss the current state and progress of cement
industry decarbonization initiatives in the U.S. this sec-
tion also highlights current federal and state support for
cement industry decarbonization as well as technologi-
cal innovation within the sector. The final section draws
together the various strands of the paper, including future
directions and recommendations for cement manufacture
and decarbonization.
HISTORICAL CONTEXT OF THE U.S.
CEMENT INDUSTRY
The cement industry in the United States has experienced
accelerated growth over the past century, primarily driven
by large-scale infrastructure projects across the country.
Our understanding of the U.S. and global cement indus-
tries relies mainly on industry-level estimates and reports
submitted to the United States Geological Survey (USGS)
and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) by various
companies regarding production (USGS, 2024), environ-
mental releases (U.S. EPA 2024c U.S. EPA, 2024b U.S.
EPA, 2024d) among others. In 2023, the U.S. cement
production, apparent consumption, and clinker produc-
tion were about 91 million tons, 120 million tons, and
77 million tons, respectively. While the United States
is a major cement producer, it also relies significantly on
cement imports to meet domestic demand. In 2023, the
U.S. sourced approximately 22% of its total cement sup-
ply from Turkey, Canada, Greece, and Mexico, marking
an increase from 15% in 2019 and 19% in 2021 (USGS,
2024). Between 1925 and 2023, the U.S. produced about
5,944,777,000 tons of cement. The production levels accel-
erated appreciably, followed by a significant drop (from
2007 to 2009), which could be attributed to the Great
Recession. These variabilities in cement production closely
align with trends observed in: (1) clinker production and
apparent cement consumption and (2) CO2 emissions
(van Oss 2005) reflecting a strong correlation between the
industry’s production (or supply) and market demand.
From recent and historical trends, it appears plausible
that the current primary sources and releases of CO2 emis-
sions from cement manufacturing (e.g., from calcination
and fuel utilization) will at least remain steady or acceler-
ate over the coming decades. Many process-related factors
support this assertion. For example, the clinker-to-cement
ratio and raw meal-to-clinker ratio have not changed sig-
nificantly for many years (Marceau et al., 2006 Huntzinger
and Eatmon, 2009). On balance, the historical evidence
noted here suggests that these trends could be in part driven
by market forces (cement demand and supply) rather than
fundamental changes in manufacturing processes in the
U.S.
CO2 emissions in the cement industry are closely tied
to production volumes, typically estimated using clinker
production data (Hanle et al., 2006). This inherent rela-
tionship highlights the challenge of achieving significant
emissions reductions without fundamental changes to
manufacturing processes or breakthrough technologies, a
reason the industry is often characterized as hard-to-abate.
While we do believe (supported by the evidence shown in
this study) that the total emission from the industry is pri-
marily scaling with market-driven production levels (which
is accelerating), we caution against overgeneralizing these
findings, especially when considering the potential impact
of future decarbonization strategies and process innovations
aimed at decoupling emissions from production levels.
Current decarbonization efforts in the cement indus-
try span multiple domains: governmental initiatives at fed-
eral and state levels, technological innovations in cement
chemistry and manufacturing processes, and advances in
carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS). While the
scientific consensus (Pisciotta et al., 2023 Psarras et al.,
2017 Paltsev et al., 2021) suggests these approaches could
substantially reduce industry emissions, the magnitude
of achievable emissions-production volume decoupling
remains uncertain. This uncertainty comes primarily from
political headwinds in climate policy implementation, scal-
ability challenges faced by startups, and the inherent risks
in deploying novel technologies (or emerging products) at
industrial scale.
Building upon our analysis of production trajectories
and emission profile of the industry, we now examine pres-
ent roadmaps, technological advancement, and pragmatic
solutions for the U.S cement industry decarbonization. The
following section evaluates both near-term process improve-
ments and long-term technological transformations, with
particular emphasis on alternative materials, fuel substitu-
tion, and enabling federal and state-level policy mecha-
nisms. The assessment of each intervention encompasses
three key dimensions: (1) deployability in our current infra-
structure and their scalability to meet future demands (2)
economic aspects and (3) emissions reduction potential.
leaders, policymakers, and researchers to better strategize
carbon reduction initiatives specific to the United States
cement industry. The principal objective of the paper is to
present a comprehensive analysis of the cement industry
in the United States and the trajectory of decarbonization
within the sector.
The remainder of this paper has been divided into three
parts. The first part presents an overview of the historical
context of the U.S. cement industry. Following this sec-
tion, we discuss the current state and progress of cement
industry decarbonization initiatives in the U.S. this sec-
tion also highlights current federal and state support for
cement industry decarbonization as well as technologi-
cal innovation within the sector. The final section draws
together the various strands of the paper, including future
directions and recommendations for cement manufacture
and decarbonization.
HISTORICAL CONTEXT OF THE U.S.
CEMENT INDUSTRY
The cement industry in the United States has experienced
accelerated growth over the past century, primarily driven
by large-scale infrastructure projects across the country.
Our understanding of the U.S. and global cement indus-
tries relies mainly on industry-level estimates and reports
submitted to the United States Geological Survey (USGS)
and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) by various
companies regarding production (USGS, 2024), environ-
mental releases (U.S. EPA 2024c U.S. EPA, 2024b U.S.
EPA, 2024d) among others. In 2023, the U.S. cement
production, apparent consumption, and clinker produc-
tion were about 91 million tons, 120 million tons, and
77 million tons, respectively. While the United States
is a major cement producer, it also relies significantly on
cement imports to meet domestic demand. In 2023, the
U.S. sourced approximately 22% of its total cement sup-
ply from Turkey, Canada, Greece, and Mexico, marking
an increase from 15% in 2019 and 19% in 2021 (USGS,
2024). Between 1925 and 2023, the U.S. produced about
5,944,777,000 tons of cement. The production levels accel-
erated appreciably, followed by a significant drop (from
2007 to 2009), which could be attributed to the Great
Recession. These variabilities in cement production closely
align with trends observed in: (1) clinker production and
apparent cement consumption and (2) CO2 emissions
(van Oss 2005) reflecting a strong correlation between the
industry’s production (or supply) and market demand.
From recent and historical trends, it appears plausible
that the current primary sources and releases of CO2 emis-
sions from cement manufacturing (e.g., from calcination
and fuel utilization) will at least remain steady or acceler-
ate over the coming decades. Many process-related factors
support this assertion. For example, the clinker-to-cement
ratio and raw meal-to-clinker ratio have not changed sig-
nificantly for many years (Marceau et al., 2006 Huntzinger
and Eatmon, 2009). On balance, the historical evidence
noted here suggests that these trends could be in part driven
by market forces (cement demand and supply) rather than
fundamental changes in manufacturing processes in the
U.S.
CO2 emissions in the cement industry are closely tied
to production volumes, typically estimated using clinker
production data (Hanle et al., 2006). This inherent rela-
tionship highlights the challenge of achieving significant
emissions reductions without fundamental changes to
manufacturing processes or breakthrough technologies, a
reason the industry is often characterized as hard-to-abate.
While we do believe (supported by the evidence shown in
this study) that the total emission from the industry is pri-
marily scaling with market-driven production levels (which
is accelerating), we caution against overgeneralizing these
findings, especially when considering the potential impact
of future decarbonization strategies and process innovations
aimed at decoupling emissions from production levels.
Current decarbonization efforts in the cement indus-
try span multiple domains: governmental initiatives at fed-
eral and state levels, technological innovations in cement
chemistry and manufacturing processes, and advances in
carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS). While the
scientific consensus (Pisciotta et al., 2023 Psarras et al.,
2017 Paltsev et al., 2021) suggests these approaches could
substantially reduce industry emissions, the magnitude
of achievable emissions-production volume decoupling
remains uncertain. This uncertainty comes primarily from
political headwinds in climate policy implementation, scal-
ability challenges faced by startups, and the inherent risks
in deploying novel technologies (or emerging products) at
industrial scale.
Building upon our analysis of production trajectories
and emission profile of the industry, we now examine pres-
ent roadmaps, technological advancement, and pragmatic
solutions for the U.S cement industry decarbonization. The
following section evaluates both near-term process improve-
ments and long-term technological transformations, with
particular emphasis on alternative materials, fuel substitu-
tion, and enabling federal and state-level policy mecha-
nisms. The assessment of each intervention encompasses
three key dimensions: (1) deployability in our current infra-
structure and their scalability to meet future demands (2)
economic aspects and (3) emissions reduction potential.