Displaying items by tag: blocks

India: Research institution Sasthra Vedhi has developed a method for the disposal of hazardous wastes like nickel-cadmium batteries and flourescent light bulbs in hollow concrete blocks called Blue Blocks. Blue Blocks can contain mercury leaks and other hazards while meeting strength standards by transferring the entire load into the solid concrete of the block.

Saudi Arabia: Al Kifah Ready Mix & Blocks has updated the market on its achievements in the sustainable concrete space in Saudi Arabia. The producer’s mixes include slag-based aggregates, as well as natural pozzolans and CO₂ injected using equipment developed by Canada-based CarbonCure. Gulf Construction News has reported that the company's range of ultra-low CO₂ ConGreen concrete products and BloGreen concrete blocks have supported projects including the Aramco Stadium project in Al Khobar, Qiddiya amusement park in Riyadh and King Salman Global Maritime Industries Complex in Jubail.

General Manager Nigel Harries said "Al Kifah Ready Mix & Blocks’ products have been widely adopted in mega and giga projects across the kingdom and have proved their high performance, thus strengthening the company’s position in the Saudi market. Al Kifah’s green solutions have unique properties that facilitate tasks on the job site through their better workability and finishability. They can be considered an all-in-one solution, offering zero wastage, zero mobilisation time, lower emissions and a smart way for supplying concrete in remote areas."

US: Builders Supply Co. plans to invest US$10.6m in the construction of a new concrete block plant in Fort Payne, Alabama. Local press has reported that the plant is scheduled for commissioning in mid-2025 and will employ 10 people.

Builders Supply Co. president George Weatherly said “We are extremely proud to be a multi-generational, family-owned and operated local business. We are excited to reinvest in the future of our employees, our families and the communities in which we work and live.”

Mexico: The government commissioned the 500t/day San Lorenzo-Tláhuac demolition materials recycling plant in Mexico City on 6 June 2024. The US$2.18m plant will produce 600m³/day of concrete, as well as concrete blocks at a rate of 2000/day. It will receive demolition materials from the Xochimilco Lagoon, where 14Mm³ was deposited following the 1985 Mexican City earthquake, as well as from current job sites in Mexico City.

Secretary of Works Jesús Esteva Medina noted that the San Lorenzo-Tláhuac plant is the first in public ownership, operating alongside privately-owned plants at Bordo Poniente and Miguel Hidalgo.

Canada: Concrete block producer Canal Block has integrated CarbiCrete’s cement-free concrete production technology at its Port Colborne plant in Ontario. CarbiCrete’s technology produces concrete from steel slag. The integration at the Port Colborne plant commands US$2.24m-worth of funding from the global innovation cluster NGen, towards a total project cost of US$5.97m.

CarbiCrete CEO Chris Stern said "We are tremendously grateful for NGen's continued support, which is helping Canada position itself as the undisputed world leader in low carbon concrete."

Canal Block president Durk Bylsma said "Canal Block has had a long history of developing sustainable products for the masonry industry. We are excited to partner with CarbiCrete to bring this truly revolutionary technology to market and further our commitment to be an ecologically and socially responsible manufacturer."

Canada: Carbon-negative concrete producer CarbiCrete has signed a deal with Holcim subsidiary Lafarge Canada. Under the deal, Lafarge Canada will process steel slag at its St. Constant cement plant in Québec for use as an ingredient in CarbiCrete’s CO₂-cured cement-free concrete.

CarbiCrete partner Patio Drummond produces carbon-negative concrete blocks using CarbiCrete’s technology at its Drummondville concrete block plant in Québec. The company is on a drive to double the production of CarbiCrete blocks. It first partnered with CarbiCrete during trial production of its material in 2018.

Lafarge Canada vice-president of cement Andrew Stewart said “We are committed to reducing our environmental footprint and leading the way in sustainable construction. Our partnership with CarbiCrete is a testament to our dedication to offering sustainable solutions and actively participating in the circular economy.”

CarbiCrete CEO Chris Stern said “Collaborating with Lafarge allows us to leverage long-established infrastructure and years of expertise in processing steel-related by-products. This enables us to make an immediate climate impact as we scale the deployment of our technology which reduces embodied carbon in concrete by both avoiding emissions and removing carbon through mineralisation.” Regarding the on-going scale-up of production at Patio Drummond’s Drummondville plant, Stern said “Increased production of our carbon-negative blocks brings us closer to our common goal of decarbonising production of the world’s most consumed man-made substance.”

US: Carbon Built’s proprietary technology for the production of reduced-CO₂ concrete blocks won awards across three categories at the Fast Company Innovation by Design Awards 2023. The product won the Circular Design, Materials and Sustainability prizes. Carbon Built’s technology enables existing concrete block plants to use common alternative raw materials to produce blocks with 70 – 100% lower CO₂ emissions than ordinary Portland cement-based blocks.

US: Block-Lite plans to install a system to cure concrete blocks using direct air capture (DAC)-sourced CO₂ at its Flagstaff, Arizona, concrete block plant. The upgrade will implement CarbonBuilt’s low-CO₂ concrete production technology and AirCapture’s modular DAC technology, across five or six capture units. Direct air capture will thus remove 500 – 600t/yr of CO₂ from the atmosphere, while process changes will reduce CO₂ emissions from the Flagstaff plant by over 2000t/yr. The project has attracted fundraising from the 4 Corners Carbon Coalition (4CCC), with a goal of US$50,000. The Arizon Daily Sun newspaper has reported that Block-Lite plans to supply its first shipment of low-CO₂ blocks to a 50-home development by Habitat for Humanity in Flagstaff.

Finland: Betolar has signed a cooperation agreement with concrete producer Consolis Parma to develop reduced-CO₂ hollow concrete slabs. The development process will implement Betolar's Geoprime binder into Consolis Parma's concrete production. Consolis Parma is committed to halving its CO₂ emissions between 2021 and 2035.

Consolis Parma's Technology Director Juha Rämö said “The use of alternative new binder combinations and additives that ensure the efficiency of the manufacturing process are key factors in achieving our climate goals. We are actively seeking new channels to address these challenges. The cooperation with Betolar is an important new partnership for us."

UK: SigmaRoc subsidiary CCP has launched Greenbloc Standard, Ultra and Premium. The new designations correspond to 50%, 80% and 100% cement substitution. Professional Builder News has reported that Using Greenbloc Standard reduces structures’ CO₂ emissions by 77% compared with structures built with conventional ordinary Portland cement (OPC)-based blocks. For an average semi-detached house, this is equivalent to 2.7t of CO₂.

CCP general manager Phil Rotheram said “The expansion of our Greenbloc range continues our commitment to sustainable alternatives to our product offering as we fully commit to the challenges of removing embodied carbon from the built environment.”

Greenbloc Ultra featured in a gold medal-winning garden at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2023 in May 2023.