PFA can be used in many applications. The applications page showcases some well know projects that have utilized PFA based products.
Eurotunnel Rail Link
CEMEX UK (formerly RMC) has supplied more than 40,000 tonnes of cement and 120,000 tonnes of Fly Ash provided by us to Eurotunnel Rail Link contractors working on Britain's first major new railway for over a century.
This material was used for track beds, walkways and pre-cast concrete tunnel lining segments. The tunnels are two 10-kilometre long London Tunnels East which connect Dagenham with Stratford, and the two 7.5-kilometre London Tunnels West from Stratford to King's Cross Lands north of St Pancras.
Contractor Nishimatsu-Cementation Skanska Joint Venture (NCSJV), worked closely with CEMEX to overcome a number of concreting challenges and achieve a unique very dry mix design using certificated Fly Ash (EN450) to ensure the concrete walkways that were up to 1.4 metres high would stand up immediately without the need for temporary support.
Fly Ash has the ability to help control the set of the concrete, which is especially beneficial in slipform concreting. The concrete could instantly be moulded into the required walkway shape by the slipform paving machine. The walkways immediately stood erect without subsiding, even when weight was applied. A tight, high-standard, blemish free surface finish was also achieved due to the spherical shape of ash particles.
Northwich Salt Mines
We are fulfilling the biggest single order of PFA ever to be placed in the UK, demonstrating our ability to supply projects involving high volumes of material which needs to be transported to sites considerable distances away from the power station.
Over 1 million tonnes of conditioned PFA is being used to fill our 19th century mines at the Northwich Salt Mines Infill Project in Cheshire. The scheme is being conducted by Wrekin Construction Ltd, under contract to Vale Royal Borough Council and will fill a total area of around 17 hectares, lying at approximately 90 metres depth.
Daily trainloads weighing 1,100 tonnes are being delivered by rail to a purpose built mixing plant in Northwich, where the grout mixture is then pumped into the old mine workings in order to stabilise the ground above and prevent probable collapse.
Port of Grimsby & Immingham
Associated British Ports (ABP), owner and operator of the Port of Grimsby & Immingham, further secured the port's position as the UK's leading ports complex following the opening of two major riverside facilities - Humber International Terminal 2 and DFDS Nordic Terminal Riverside at Immingham Outer Harbour.
A major component in the construction of various new pavement areas and associated improvements to the road infrastructure has been conditioned PFA supplied by us.
DFDS Nordic Riverside Terminal at Immingham Outer Harbour was constructed following an agreement between Danish roll-on/roll-off ferry operator DFDS Tor Line, increasing the terminal's storage capacity by 50 acres.
Immingham's Humber International Terminal 2 was built at a cost of £59.5 million. This dedicated coal-handling facility, capable of handling about 10 million tonnes of coal a year, represents ABPS's largest ever investment in a single terminal to date.
The total surfacing undertaken on both developments was in excess of 200,000m². We have supplied some 15,000 tonnes of PFA to ABP. Roller Compacted Concrete Company produced and placed the Cement Bound Material (CBM) layer of the pavement. The majority of the CBM was completed using secondary aggregates - a proportion of which was our PFA - providing associated environmental benefits to a mechanically sound material solution.
Welham Bridge
Motorists travelling over Welham Bridge in East Yorkshire are finding the journey easier following work to widen the road and introduce a new 1km section of highway leading up to the crossing.
Part of the redevelopment by contractor Carillion was to construct a new 23m-long bridge with a 10m span over the River Foulness on the A614, due to the existing bridge no longer being able to sustain heavy traffic loads.
The bridge design included reinforced earth abutments with integral bank seats and pre-cast bridge beams forming the deck. Construction of the embankments used a PFA core to reduce the load imposed on the piles and minestone shoulders.
Structural fill for the project was created using 2,500 tonnes of conditioned PFA from us. The low density PFA complemented specialist ground engineering needed due to the underlying peat layer on which the road and bridge are constructed. Our product was also selected because of its ability to easily supply the quantities required.