UBC Study: Pulp Mill Fly Ash Can Boost Cement Strength and Resilience
Foreign media coverage highlights that pulp mills generate significant waste volumes, and researchers are finding increasingly creative ways to repurpose them—including foam, batteries and stronger concrete. The newest example comes from the University of British Columbia (UBC), where a team used pulp mill waste as a filler in cement and produced a material with improved strength and resilience.
The breakthrough centers on pulp mill fly ash (PFA). North America's pulp and paper industry generates more than 1 million tons of PFA every year. Rather than landfilling all of it, the UBC team examined whether it could work as a sustainable binding material for road construction.
Experiments showed that the recycled wood ash structure can create more robust interfaces among cement constituents. The team also produced this sustainable building material with lower energy demand than conventional cement.
Dr. Chinchu Cherian, author of the research report, explained that PFA's porosity acts similarly to a binder among cement components, making the overall structure stronger and more resilient than PFA-free materials. According to the study, material characterization and toxicological analysis indicated that producing the new material can deliver greater environmental and social benefits, improved energy efficiency and lower carbon emissions.
One concern with using recycled pulp mill products such as PFA is that toxins from the facilities' initial processes could leach from the material into the environment. The team confirmed, however, that the chemical bonds inside the cement are strong enough that little or no chemicals escape, so they consider the cement safe.
Cherian said the research affirms that using recycled wood ash from pulp mills in construction activities—such as sustainable roads and cost-neutral buildings—can bring substantial environmental and economic benefits. Reducing landfill use and lowering the ecological footprint would help not only the industry but society as a whole, according to Cherian.
Source: China Packaging Network (pack.cn); original article: http://news.pack.cn/show-377899.html
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