Prediction Open · timeframe Nov 2028
Finke: Calcium silicate cement will be lower cost at scale
“In the modern economy, we think that will be lower cost at scale.”
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Finke: Decarbonized cement will not achieve quick global adoption unless it is Portland cement
“We don't think global adoption will happen if it's not Portland cement. Or at least it won't happen quickly.”
Assertion Supported
Finke: Brimstone's process can be carbon-negative even using dirty fuels
“The beauty of our process is that actually could be substantially lower carbon or even carbon negative under a wide range of energy sources, including the use of those dirtier fuels.”
Assertion Supported
Finke: Calcium silicate eliminates 60% of cement emissions immediately
“The calcium silicate rock, A, does not contain any CO two. So we eliminate 60% of the emissions just by using a different rock.”
Assertion Supported
Finke: Brimstone process yields magnesium waste that passively sequesters CO2
“It produces a magnesium-based waste product, and that magnesium-based waste product will passively sequester CO₂. Just sitting on the ground, it will react with CO₂ in the air to permanently sequester CO₂.”
Insight
Finke: Do-good technologies require an economic case to achieve scale
“Deploying these sort of do good technologies is not trivial because people don't just buy them and install them out of the goodness of their heart, or at least not enough. There needs to be a compelling economic case.”
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Finke: Structural failures and delays cost 10 to 100 times more than cement
“Because both structural failures and construction delays are way more expensive than the cement. They're like 10 to a hundred times more expensive.”
Assertion Partly supported
Finke: Slowing coal power and steel growth is driving up cement prices
“The current production of cement actually relies on the production of electricity and steel from coal. And both of those industries' growth have slowed. And That is leading to a domino effect where the price of cement has been rising.”
Assertion Supported
Finke: Brimstone cement certified as chemically identical Ordinary Portland Cement
“So just this last July, we got a third party certification that we, the cement that we made passed the existing standard for ordinary Portland cement showing that it's chemically and physically identical to the conventionally produced product.”
Assertion Supported
Finke: Brimstone holds patents on producing Portland cement from silicate rock
“So the process is patented and the utilization of this rock to produce Portland cement is also patented. So another company would need to license or joint venture with us in order to make cement via this process.”
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Finke: Global cement plants will probably grow to 5,000 by 2100
“So let's say a cement plant, a modern cement plant costs around a billion dollars, and there are 3000 of them today, and there probably will be 5000 by the end of the century, because we will need to develop the rapidly developing world, as well as transition …”
Assertion Supported
Finke: Hydrogen is made from fossil fuels because it is cheapest
“We don't make hydrogen by splitting water today. We make hydrogen a different way from a fossil fuel, actually. And we do that because it's the lowest cost way to make hydrogen.”
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Finke: Cement had the lowest decarbonization funding per ton of emissions
“One metric that was really interesting to me was the dollars invested in decarbonizing the product per ton of greenhouse gas emissions. And I couldn't really find anything lower than cement.”
Assertion Supported
Finke: Cement accounts for about 90% of concrete's carbon emissions
“And just to clarify the cement and concrete, concrete is the building material, and cement is the binder, the glue. And about 90% of the emissions come from cement.”
Assertion Supported
Finke: Fuel and energy account for 40% of cement emissions
“The first is you need to burn a lot of fuel because you need to use a lot of energy to make cement, and that's about 40% of the emissions in cement production.”
Assertion Supported
Finke: Most cement emissions stem from chemical breakdown of limestone
“And the majority of the CO two emissions from cement come from that chemistry for releasing the CO two from the rock.”
Prediction Open · timeframe Nov 2028
Finke: Brimstone commercial plant unlikely to be fully operational in five years
“So in the next five years, we will be working on building a first commercial plant. I think it's probably unlikely that it's, you know, fully operational.”
