Material Insights · Understanding the Material World

Cement and Construction chemicals

Construction chemicals and cement are used together: admixtures are dosed into cement-based concrete to cut water and cement, grinding aids go into cement itself, and many tile adhesives and repair mortars are cement-based products. Their makers share the same construction demand, and admixtures are one of the main tools for lowering cement, and so CO2, per cubic metre of concrete.

Cement (commodity) and Construction chemicals (chemical): 5 relationships.

How they are linked

1. Cement-based products

Physical flow · Medium · Cement into dry-mix construction chemicals

Many construction chemical products, such as tile adhesives, grouts and repair mortars, are factory blends built on cement, so cement is a raw material for that part of the industry.

For these dry-mix products cement is a bulk input while the additives give the product its value, and makers are now working to replace part of it: Sika aims to partly replace cement in all its mortar categories and planned its first cement-free tile adhesive for 2023. Liquid admixtures and waterproofing membranes contain no cement and are sold to be used with it, so the feedstock link covers only part of the sector.

Sources: Sika

2. Grinding aids in cement

Physical flow · Medium · Construction chemicals into cement

Cement plants add small amounts of grinding aids and performance enhancers while milling clinker, which improves mill efficiency and cement strength.

  • 0.5 kg per t grinding additive dosage at a Peruvian cement plant
  • 10 to 20% cement strength increase reported with the additive

Higher strength lets producers replace more clinker with supplementary materials such as slag, fly ash or calcined clay while meeting the same standard. This makes cement makers direct customers of the chemical suppliers, alongside ready-mix and precast producers.

Sources: WBCSD

3. Less cement per cubic metre

Transition · Rising · Admixtures reduce cement and water use

Concrete strength falls as water content rises, so superplasticisers that disperse cement particles allow less water, and then less cement, for the same strength and workability.

  • up to 35% water reduction per cubic metre with water-reducing admixtures
  • roughly 8% cement's share of global CO2 emissions
  • up to 50% clinker reduction from adding supplementary materials to cement

Polycarboxylate superplasticisers adsorb onto cement particles and keep them apart by steric hindrance, giving large water reductions at low dosages. Sika presents its admixtures as cutting cement consumption and clinker content. The trade-off for cement makers is fewer tonnes per cubic metre, offset where concrete volumes are growing.

Sources: Sika; Sabanci University

4. Price link: used with

Cost and price · Weak · Both ways

Both are sold into the same construction cycle, but construction chemical prices follow petrochemical inputs and brands, while cement prices follow local supply and fuel, so their prices move only loosely together.

  • 0.18 monthly change correlation
  • 0.21 12-month change correlation
  • 0.95 fitted elasticity

The low correlation means a cement price cycle tells little about construction chemical margins. Volumes are the stronger link, since a slowdown in building or infrastructure reduces demand for both.

Sources: Material Insights (World Bank, FRED, IMF data)

5. India's cement growth

Transition · High in India · Rising cement use widens the admixture market

Each extra tonne of cement placed as ready-mix or precast concrete creates demand for admixtures, and India's per capita cement use is still about half the world average.

  • 290 kg India's cement consumption per person, FY2024-25, against 540 kg globally
  • 32.8% concrete admixtures' share of India's construction chemicals market, 2025 (IMARC estimate)

India produced about 427 Mt of cement in FY2023-24 from about 639 Mt of capacity. According to IMARC, admixtures lead India's construction chemicals market because of the large volumes of ready-mix concrete used in infrastructure.

Sources: International Cement Review (CemNet); IMARC Group

For investors

Key learnings

  1. Construction chemical demand tracks concrete volumes, but grows faster than cement where ready-mix and precast take share from site mixing.
  2. Admixtures and grinding aids help cement makers cut clinker and CO2, so decarbonisation rules in cement tend to raise construction chemical sales.
  3. Prices of the two move only loosely, so margins in construction chemicals depend on petrochemical inputs and pricing power more than on the cement cycle.

What to track

  • Cement despatches and capacity utilisation: Volume growth lifts admixture and dry-mix demand (Monthly · Office of the Economic Adviser core sector data, company results)
  • Share of blended and low-clinker cement: A rising share increases need for admixtures and grinding aids (Annual · cement company sustainability reports, GCCA)
  • Prices of ethylene oxide and acrylic acid: Higher input costs squeeze superplasticiser margins (Monthly · price reporting agencies)

For policymakers

Key learnings

  1. Admixtures are a low-cost lever for cutting cement, and so CO2, in public construction, if specifications allow performance-based mixes.
  2. India's low per capita cement use means construction chemical demand will grow with infrastructure spending.
  3. Standards that permit higher clinker substitution depend on chemical additives to meet strength targets, so codes and chemicals need to move together.

What to track

  • Public infrastructure capital spending: Higher outlays lift both cement and admixture demand (Annual budget, monthly accounts · Controller General of Accounts)
  • Blended cement share in Indian output: A higher share signals progress on clinker reduction (Annual · cement company sustainability reports, Cement Manufacturers' Association)

India

India used only about 290 kg of cement per person in FY2024-25 against a world average of 540 kg, so its construction chemicals market, estimated by IMARC at about USD 2.6 billion in 2025, has room to grow with infrastructure and ready-mix concrete.

Sources

  1. Price correlation, Material Insights, Material Insights (World Bank, FRED, IMF data)
  2. How to make concrete more sustainable, Sika
  3. Industry and materials sector: energy efficient cement grinding additive, WBCSD
  4. High performance superplasticizer for cement, Sabanci University (2023)
  5. Indian cement consumption is 290kg/capita in FY24-25 (Economic Survey 2024-25), International Cement Review (CemNet) (2025)
  6. India construction chemicals market size, share, trends and forecast 2026 to 2034, IMARC Group (2026)
  7. Formulation: the key for success, Sika