World demand for cement and concrete additive is forecast to rise 6.8% per year through 2008 to US$6.7 billion, according to a news study from Cleveland-based The Freedonia Group, Inc. Fueling these gains will be an improving construction outlook that will bode favorably for the global cement market.

In addition, higher performance requirements for concrete will prompt greater loading factors for additives. The smaller fiber additive sector will register the strongest gains, continuing the trend of the past decade, says the report. However, 90% of overall demand will remain concentrated in the chemical and mineral additive sectors.

According to Freedonia, developing countries will register the healthiest gains, averaging more than 9% per year through 2008. A number of developing countries in the Asia/Pacific region, such as China, India, and Vietnam, will exhibit particularly healthy growth. Not surprisingly, developed markets will generally post weaker — but still respectable — overall gains that will average around 6% per year through 2008. Demand for cement and concrete additives in the United States will register gains matching the world average, an impressive performance considering the highly mature U.S. economy and construction sector.

The penetration of a number of key cement additive products, such as superplasticizers and set retarders in the U.S. market has yet to approach the intensity seen in Western Europe and Japan. The West European cement and concrete additive market will register gains lagging the world average through 2008. The region will remain the most important cement and concrete additive market in the world in 2008. Despite a strong recovery, the Japanese cement and concrete additive market will remain the slowest growing among the major markets in the Asia/Pacific region.

Globally, mineral additives such as fly ash and blast furnace slag are increasingly being used to partially replace portland cement, the most expensive component of concrete. In doing so, producers of concrete are realizing significant cost benefits as well as performance and durability improvements, says the report. Governments have recognized the environmental benefits of reducing cement production by replacing it with mineral additives. Technological improvement will continue to allow an ever-increasing share of cement to be replaced with pozzolanic mineral additives through 2008.