MCi Carbon has reached a significant commercial milestone after its low-carbon cement material, Pozzlock, was successfully used in concrete field trials aimed at supporting the development of lower-emissions construction materials for infrastructure projects.

The material, produced at the company's Myrtle demonstration plant in Newcastle, was evaluated during field trials hosted by Boral at its Maldon Cement Works in New South Wales. The program forms part of a broader research initiative led by the SmartCrete Cooperative Research Centre in collaboration with Transport for NSW and the University of Technology Sydney to assess new supplementary cementitious materials for potential use in lower carbon concrete.

Pozzlock is a synthetic pozzolan manufactured through MCi Carbon's mineral carbonation process, wherein CO₂ reacts with mineral-rich feedstocks to form stable carbonates while generating a cementitious material that can partially replace high-emissions clinker in concrete.

The Myrtle demonstration facility, officially opened in June 2026, is designed to scale MCi Carbon’s technology from pilot research to industrial deployment.

In addition to the CO2 mineralised during manufacturing, MCi Carbon estimates that every tonne of its cementitious material has the potential to avoid around 0.5 tonnes of CO2 by reducing clinker use in concrete, offering further lifecycle emissions reductions as production expands.

The field trial incorporated Pozzlock at 5% cement replacement level, while the project has also identified a pathway to investigate replacement rates of up to 10% in future testing.

“Producing Pozzlock at this scale is a critical step in our commercialisation journey. What’s particularly significant about this project is how it brings together industry, research and government to demonstrate how innovation in concrete can be delivered in practice. It’s a strong example of how new low carbon materials can be validated and integrated into existing construction processes, accelerating their pathway to adoption,” says Marcus Dawe, Founder and CEO of MCi Carbon.

The testing program progressed through several stages, beginning with mortar testing and laboratory concrete trials before advancing to larger-scale mixing trials. For early-stage concrete testing, researchers at UTS Tech Lab in Sydney assessed workability, slump retention, and compressive strength compared with conventional fly ash concrete, then replicated commercial batching conditions using high-shear mixing equipment to evaluate concrete performance.

The final phase involved producing two full concrete truckloads—one mix incorporated conventional fly ash, while the other used MCi Carbon's cementitious material. Each batch produced approximately 3.5 m³ of concrete, which was pumped, placed, and finished into test slabs.

According to the project team, the concrete containing Pozzlock delivered fresh concrete properties comparable to the conventional mix, including slump retention, air content, and density. Early-age compressive strength and drying shrinkage also remained within expected performance ranges, supporting further evaluation of the material for future infrastructure applications.

Images: Supplied

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