JURA ECO3 – the visibly sustainable cement

May 2024

Small CO2 footprint, lowest grey energy value of all Swiss cements and 100% Swiss Made - the JURA ECO3 with local, calcined clay also sets a visual example for sustainable building thanks to its warm earthy colour.

Clinker is the most important component of cement and consists of ground limestone and marl, which is fired at 1450° Celsius. The carbon from the limestone is released into the atmosphere during the burning process. This accounts for around two thirds of CO2 emissions per tonne of clinker. Some cement manufacturers replace clinker with granulated blast furnace slag or fly ash in order to reduce CO2 emissions. However, these materials are available in reduced quantities or have to be imported.

“In our latest cement JURA ECO3, we are replacing a significant proportion of the clinker with clay,” explains Emanuel Meyer, Head of the Technical Competence Centre TCC of the JURA Materials Group. “Clay is fired at half the temperature of clinker and generates two thirds less CO2 emissions. We extract the clay from our own clay pit. JURA ECO3 cement also contains the least grey energy compared to all other Swiss cements. If a concrete is produced with JURA ECO3 cement, the total CO2 emissions per m3 of concrete are approx. 20 % lower compared to building construction concretes with Portland limestone cement.

Certified and tested
JURA ECO3 is the only CEM II/C-M (Q-LL) cement approved in Switzerland with strength class 42.5 N, externally tested and certified in accordance with
SN EN 197-5. It is approved for building construction (concrete types A-C). “The product meets the growing demand for sustainable solutions,” explains Ralf Schumann, Commercial Director Cement of the JURA Materials Group, “whether from architects or investors such as cities and municipalities, pension funds and insurance companies, for whom the carbon footprint of a construction project is playing an increasingly important role. Thanks to JURA ECO3, they can significantly improve this.”

JURA ECO3 cement is certified by ecobau as an eco1 product. It is suitable for Minergie (A-/P-)-ECO projects and fulfils the 1st priority ecoBKP/ecoDevis. With its warm earthy colour, it also sets a visual example for sustainable construction. The JURA ECO3 cement will soon be available in the KBOB* calculator. This can be used to calculate the environmental impact of one m³ of concrete of your choice.

*KBOB = Coordination Conference of the Construction and Property Bodies of Public Building Owners

In addition to a small CO2 footprint, concrete made from JURA ECO3 cement with calcined clay has a warmer colour and also sets a visual example for sustainable construction. ECAP construction site, Couvet (zVG)

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