The Faculty of Civil Engineering of the University of Zagreb is the coordinator of a three-year project that brings together the Croatian Geological Survey (HGI) and the companies Nexe, Beton Lučko, Indeloop and Urbanex . The aim of the project is to convert secondary raw materials into at least two construction products with net-zero carbon emissions using accelerated mineral carbonation technology .

Close to three million euros are financed by grant funds from Loan No. 9558-HR between the Republic of Croatia and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), a member of the World Bank Group. The total value of the Loan is 106 million euros, and its purpose is to support the transformation of the Croatian research and innovation sector through investments in green and digital technologies. The grant for the ACCEL project was awarded under the DIGIT.2.1.02 CHALLENGE program, and the rest of the funds for project implementation were provided by project partners from the private sector. The implementing bodies and co-signatories of the agreement on the allocation of funds are the Ministry of Science, Education and Youth and the Croatian Science Foundation.

 

ACCEL tries to cover two major challenges of the construction sector – the need to reduce CO₂ emissions and the need for circular use of materials and secondary raw materials in production. There is a special focus on sectors where it is difficult to reduce these emissions, among which the cement industry and construction stand out. The backbone of the project is the process of accelerated mineral carbonation The goal is to use the ability of certain secondary mineral raw materials to chemically bind CO₂ and use them to produce construction materials.

The core strength of ACCEL is in mobilizing Croatian scientific institutions and industrial stakeholders in a common mission, which has scientific, technological, economic, but also social value. The entire value chain, from innovation, verification of innovative concept, industrial validation and commercialization, is covered by Croatian partners. The participation of renowned European institutions as active collaborators, but not beneficiaries of project funds, ensures access to international knowledge and best practices while maintaining full financial focus on building the Croatian research and innovation sector.