Japan: Taiheiyo Cement, JFE Steel and the Global Institute for Environmental Technology are working together to develop a carbon capture and storage system. The system will use wet alkaline earth metals extracted from steel slag to produce carbonates from exhaust gases at cement and steel plants. The partners are investigating the possibility of using these carbonates, specifically calcium carbonate and magnesium carbonate, as additives in cement production at Taiheiyo Cement’s plants. Taiheiyo Cement president Masafumi Shigehara said, “With the effects of climate change becoming apparent both in Japan and overseas, the importance of global warming counter-measures is increasing.”
First quarter of 2020 global steel production falls to 443Mt
World: Data from the World Steel Association shows that global crude steel production fell by 1.4% year-on-year to 443Mt in the first three months of 2020. Asia produced 316Mt of crude steel in the first quarter of 2020, a year-on-year decrease of 0.3%. The European Union (EU) produced 38.3Mt of crude steel in the first quarter of 2020, down by 10%. North America’s crude steel production fell by 4% to 29.5Mt.
US slag cement shipments rise by 10.8% to 3.8Mt in 2019
US: The Slag Cement Association (SCA) data shows that slag cement shipments rose by 10.8% year-on-year to 3.8Mt in 2019 from 3.5Mt in 2018. This is the fourth consecutive year that slag cement shipments have increased at a rate of 10% or greater. The SCA collects shipment data from its members.
“We have seen a substantial increase in slag cement use as concrete professionals become more and more familiar with the product” said Ed Griffith, president of the SCA.
Hanson uses ground granulated blastfurnace slag product in London super sewer project
UK: Hanson supplied its Regen ground granulated blastfurnace slag (GGBS) product for use on part of the Thames Tideway Tunnel super sewer project in Wapping, London. The product was used to overcome difficult ground conditions. Around 5700t tonnes of Regen, supplied from its Purfleet grinding plant in Essex, was used with 3000t of Ketton cement to create a binder to stabilise soil so work to construct a combined sewer overflow could progress and provide a connection to the main east tunnel.
Costain, VINCI Construction Grands Projects and Bachy Soletanche worked with Hanson in laboratory trials to test the performance of the system and suitability of the selected mix design. Deep soil mixing, a technique that enhances the characteristics of weak soils by combining them with a cementitious binder, was chosen as the final stabilisation method.
The Thames Tideway sewer network expansion is due for completion in 2024 and is happening across 24 construction sites in London, spanning from Acton in West London to Beckton in the east of the city.
