Sources: Open Compute Project Foundation, Austin, Texas; CP staff
The Open Compute Project Foundation (OCP) has tapped construction materials testing and engineering giant Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates Inc. (WJE) to measure a set of low embodied carbon concrete mixes for their potential in data center floors. The mixes use supplementary cementitious materials plus a portland cement alternative binder derived from feedstocks and commercially available processes yet to be used at large scale given perceived and technical implementation risks. The “greenest” of four mix designs subject to WJE evaluation achieves a greater than 50 percent carbon impact reduction as measured against conventional concrete.
WJE hosted an early-August, four-slab placement and finishing demonstration at its Northbrook, Ill. headquarters. Joining OCP leaders for the event were Amazon Web Services, Google, Meta and Microsoft senior engineering team members, plus representatives from the White House Council on Environmental Quality, White House Office of Science & Technology; U.S. Department of Transportation; Environmental Protection Agency; Natural Resources Defense Council; Rocky Mountain Institute; and, Urban Land Institute.
“By aligning our Community’s ability to impact the material supply chain, this demonstration project will support the creation of sustainable and scalable data center buildings,” says OCP CEO George Tchaparian. “Low-embodied carbon concrete represents a significant advancement in environmentally responsible building practices. By reducing the carbon footprint associated with concrete production, we can make a tangible impact in mitigating the data center industry’s environmental impact. This demonstration will provide valuable insights into the performance and viability of low-embodied carbon concrete, paving the way for its widespread adoption throughout the industry.”
To measure and observe trial concretes’ performance in practice, an OCP implementation team and WJE plan extensive laboratory and field testing. Results will be used to better understand areas of risk, possible mitigation strategies, and ways to further optimize the mixtures to deliver concrete meeting data center structural performance requirements. The findings will be coalesced into a final whitepaper and made available to the public via OCP to inform other efforts to adopt new concrete technologies.
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