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IBF to use ground granulated blast furnace slag in all drainage products
Written by Global Slag staff
03 May 2024
Denmark: Building products company IBF says that it will replace some cement in all of its drainage products with ground granulated blast furnace slag. Dagbladet Licitationen News has reported that performance and prices will be unaffected, according to the company.
CEO Jesper Bang said that trials will commence with a few specific drainage products, prior to full roll-out. This will eventually result in a 40% drop in the products’ CO2 emissions.
St Marys Cement wins triple at Slag Cement in Sustainable Concrete Awards 2023
Written by Global Slag staff
26 April 2024
US: St Marys Cement won three national awards at the Slag Cement in Sustainable Concrete Awards 2023. The producer won the awards for supplying its slag cement for the construction of Wixom Assembly Park in Wixom, Michigan; of 333 North Water in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and of Excellerate Manufacturing in Appleton, Wisconsin.
Texas Lehigh Cement Company to commission Houston slag cement plant in mid-2024
Written by Global Slag staff
10 April 2024
US: Eagle Materials and Heidelberg Materials North America, through their joint venture Texas Lehigh Cement Company, are currently building a new slag cement plant in Houston, Texas. When operational, the plant will have a production capacity of 500,000t/yr. Texas Lehigh Cement Company expects it to enter operation later in mid-2024. The plant's production will supplement that of the company's existing Buda cement plant in Texas.
Hong Kong study reveals the role of slag in blended cement
Written by Global Slag staff
08 April 2024
China: A new study from Hong Kong Polytechnic University showcases sustainable cement production methods, focusing on low-clinker cements and alternative solutions for incinerator fly ash (IFA). The research demonstrates that using carbonated-washed IFA mixed with slag, coal fly ash, or metakaolin can replace 60% of Portland cement, forming ternary blended cement. This approach reportedly reduces the carbon footprint of cement production.
The study found that slag was the most effective,improving pore structure and increasing ettringite and hemicarboaluminate formation with a blend of 40% slag and 20% IFA. It achieved 90% of the compressive strength of pure Portland cement after 90 days.
The researchers said "This study demonstrated the promising potential of the blended cements to simultaneously divert IFA from landfills and reduce the clinker content of cement."
Ecocem strikes deal with OBM to expand capacity at Moerdijk
Written by Global Slag staff
28 March 2024
Netherlands: Ireland-based Ecocem has agreed a deal with Overslagbedrijf Moerdijk (OBM) to expand production and storage capacity at the company’s Moerdijk slag cement grinding plant. The project is intended to allow the unit to both produce and store the company’s advanced cement technology (ACT) product. It will quadruple the storage capacity for key materials at the site up to 40,000t. Ecocem has signed a long-term agreement to lease the site from OBM, who will manage the handling and storing materials on Ecocem’s behalf.
This expansion of the Moerdijk plant is part of Ecocem’s plans to expand its manufacturing and storage capacity to support the commercialisation of ACT across all its plants. It follows the expansion of its Dunkirk plant in France, which was announced in June 2023. These expansion plans will be supported by licencing and partnership strategies to accelerate availability and adoption of scalable low clinker cement at speed.
Conor O’Riain, Managing Director (Europe), at Ecocem, said: “We are increasing our capacity at all of our locations and our deal with OBM is a hugely important aspect of our expansion strategy. It will accelerate our ability to manufacture ACT our low clinker cement technology and make it available commercially by 2026. At the same time, we are actively pursuing licensing and partnership agreements in the construction industry to ensure the benefits of this technology are shared widely and we accelerate progress to Net Zero.”
In February 2024 Ecocem said that its ACT technology received an ETA (European Technical Assessment), which provides the technology with a route to full commercialisation by 2026.