(B09) Meta’s Road to Net Zero: How Artificial Intelligence Can Be Leveraged by Project Teams to Scale Use of Low Carbon Concrete

Concrete is the most widely used engineered material globally. Cement in concrete accounts for ~8% of global carbon emissions. There is widespread interest in quickly identifying innovative low-carbon concrete formulae (e.g., by reducing cement or substituting with low-carbon alternatives) without compromises to engineering performance. Under Meta's 2030 Net Zero Commitment, we are exploring options to reduce emissions from concrete as it is the primary contributor to emissions from data center construction. This presentation shows how we leveraged Artificial Intelligence (AI) to identify low-carbon concrete mixes which we refined via lab and field tests and ultimately used at scale in a data center application in DeKalb, Illinois. In the first project phase, Meta partnered with the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign to develop a generative AI model based on data from an open-source concrete environmental product declaration database. This model quickly assessed hundreds of concrete mixes based on environmental and design characteristics, and generated completely new low-carbon options that would theoretically meet Meta's stringent design requirements. These recommendations were lab-tested by the University to confirm compliance with Meta's requirements on criteria like compressive strength. In the second phase, we worked with Ozinga (local concrete supplier) to refine the mixes, leveraging Ozinga's nuanced understanding of local concrete ingredients, weather/site conditions, and logistics. Subsequently we partnered with Mortenson (general contractor) to field-test the refined mixes in mockups of structural and non-structural applications. Lastly, we incorporated lessons from the field tests to develop a low-carbon concrete mix for a specific application (foundations) which we are applying at-scale in 3 buildings, resulting in significant carbon savings. Our presentation will cover each project phase, highlighting technical details and the cross-functional stakeholder engagement process, with a focus on how this work can be replicated broadly, agnostic of building typology, location, concrete application, or low-carbon technology.