Good News for Fly Ash
by Bill Palmer
“Environmental releases of constituents of potential concern from coal combustion residuals fly ash concrete and FGD gypsum wallboard during use by the consumer are comparable to or lower than those from analogous non-CCR products, or are at or below relevant regulatory and health-based benchmarks for human and ecological receptors,” the EPA said in its report. “EPA supports the beneficial use of coal fly ash in concrete and FGD gypsum in wallboard.” Click here to read the full report.
This is a significant endorsement from the EPA. Thanks to the leadership of the American Coal Ash Association and its executive director Tom Adams, this should dissipate the cloud that has been hanging over fly ash for the last several years. From the concrete industry’s viewpoint, this is much more than simply an environmental coup; more important to us is the improvement fly ash imparts to concrete properties. Even a small percentage of cement replacement results in concrete with lower permeability, less susceptibility to alkali-silica reactivity, lower heat of hydration, and a smaller carbon footprint. EPA has committed to finalizing the fly ash rules by the end of 2014 and it looks likely now that we will see more fly ash use in the coming years.
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