Advancing sustainable production of eco-friendly foamed concrete: a comprehensive review on utilizing waste materials for cement reduction

The construction sector is responsible for over one-third of energy consumption and Carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions, posing a significant threat to the creation of a sustainable environment for future generations. Foamed concrete has garnered considerable attention from researchers due to its impressive ability to reduce energy consumption through its low thermal conductivity. However, similar to other types of concrete, foamed concrete heavily relies on cement as a binder, thereby contributing to the Cement industry’s CO₂ emissions. Over the past years, several studies have explored the use of waste materials such as fly ash, slags, silica fume, agricultural waste, and other types of waste materials as a partial replacement for cement in order to develop eco-friendly foamed concrete. However, the limited understanding of its impact on the diverse properties of foamed concrete has impeded its broad adoption within the industry. Consequently, The objective of this study is to conduct a comprehensive review of previous research in order to determine the impact of substituting cement with waste materials on the mechanical and physical properties of eco-friendly foamed concrete.