Contribution of product, engineering services and site labor to Habitat for Humanity Central Arizona’s Net-Zero Energy home, enclosed in a panelized concrete forming system, garnered Scottsdale, Ariz.-based cement and aggregate producer Salt River Materials Group an “Excellence in Economic Development and Energy Leadership Award” from Arizona Governor Jan Brewer. Honoring partnerships, organizations and companies that implement development strategies for their…
Read MoreCategory: News
Ash Grove Kansas obtains Haz-waste permit renewal
A Hazardous Waste Permit renewed by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 7 allows Ash Grove Cement’s Chanute facility to continue container and tank storage, plus kiln burning, of hazardous waste. Issued pursuant to a comprehensive technical review and a late-2009 public hearing, followed by minor modifications to a preliminary draft, the…
Read MoreAsh Grove, Neb. Wildlife to open education center
Representatives from Ash Grove Cement Co. and Nebraska Wildlife Rehab, Inc. (NWRI) announced plans recently for NWRI’s first Wildlife Education and Rehabilitation Operations Center in the former site of Ash Grove’s original Nebraska office building located near the Omaha metro area in Louisville. Ash Grove is allowing NWRI to use the 4,500-sq-ft historic office on a long-term basis at a…
Read MoreNew group counters regulatory action hovering over fly ash
Prompted by increased environmentalist attacks on coal ash and signals by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that it may regulate coal ash as a hazardous waste, a new advocacy group—Citizens for Recycling First—will counter moves threatening the material’s use in construction. Although the failure of a coal ash disposal impoundment in December 2008 triggered an outcry among environmentalists, EPA remains…
Read MoreFLS, Aalborg Portland deploy nanotechnology for reduced-carbon powder process
A Danish effort to develop process technology for the production of high-quality, environmentally friendly cement has been launched through a DKK15 million [US$2.5 million] National Advanced Technology Foundation grant. The four-year effort targets formulation, through nanotechnology methods, of new types of reactive supplementary cementitious materials, plus development of process technology needed for large-scale SCM production based on locally available raw…
Read MoreEPA Weighs Fly Ash Concrete Stigma Vs. Broader Coal Ash Hazardous Waste Label
In its proposed regulation of power plants’ coal combustion residuals (CCR) under the Resource Conservation & Recovery Act (RCRA), EPA acknowledges potential backlash a hazardous waste designation might have on beneficial uses of concrete. The agency’s Federal Register posting (above item) cites a letter from December 2009—then a working deadline for proposed rule publication–wherein ASTM Committee C09 officers “indicated that…
Read MoreFeds Place Three Cemex Plants in 2010 Energy Star Ranks
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of Energy have awarded the 2010 Energy Star to Cemex USA cement plants in Clinchfield, Ga.; Louisville, Ky.; and Demopolis, Ala. Over the last year, the plants conducted compressed air system surveys to identify leaks; installed more efficient motors; completed staff energy-training programs; upgraded lighting systems with motion sensors; increased the use…
Read MoreAuthor Traces Rediscovery of Great Pyramid-Era Binder
A new book describes a silicate rock, made without heat or pressure, as a potential aggregate-binding substitute for portland cement in a range of building and infrastructure concrete conditions. The Great Pyramid Secret: Egypt’s Amazing Lost Mystery Science Returns claims the artificial rock, when mixed with aggregates, “forms concrete that has fooled geologists,” and concludes that the silicate compound represents…
Read MoreRoanoke Cement commended for safety, air quality
State and county officials on behalf of the North Carolina Department of Labor and County of Forsyth, respectively, honored Roanoke Cement Co.’s Winston-Salem terminal for outstanding safety and air-quality compliance. Roanoke Cement Co. is a subsidiary of Titan America LLC.
Read MoreIceland engineers confirm volcanic ash’s binding, AAR-quelling properties
The International Centre of Research and Applied Technology for Alkali Aggregate Reactions has confirmed AAR-mitigating potential in ash from April’s Eyjafjallajökull volcano eruption, crediting the material’s particle fineness and approximately 60% silicon dioxide content. Using methods from ASTM C 1260 Multi-Laboratory Study of the Accelerated Mortar Bar Test for Alkali-Silica Reaction, staff at the Mannvit Engineering-housed facility prepared specimens from…
Read More