PUDUCHERRY: The bottom ash produced in thermal power stations will now be used in construction activities, as a substitute for fine sand. And towards that the Neyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC) and Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT) have signed an MoU.
Because of the restriction in sand quarrying, river sand which is the main requisite for construction has become very scarce. Bottom ash, that contains mainly inert sand particles, bears close similarities to river sand except for impurities and is normally dumped back into the mines. This prompted NLC to investigate the possibility of using bottom ash in place of river sand which it did with encouraging results.
Apart from bottom ash which is being generated every year as a waste product from all its three power plants, another kind of ash, fly ash, is supplied to cement industries, brick manufacturers, etc.
In view of this, NLC is undertaking an R&D project in collaboration with VIT, in which the characteristics of bottom ash will be studied along with whether it makes for a good substitute for river sand.
Based on this, NLC will manufacture masonry building blocks and construct an experimental building by using bottom ash, the successful outcome of which will ensure substantial cost savings towards usage of sand in construction activities, specially so in NLC’s construction activities.
K Kandasamy, director (planning & projects), NLC, signed the MoU with A Senthil Kumar, director VIT, at a function here on Saturday. This is the latest collaboration with an educational institution while several R&D works are being executed by teaming up with IITs, NIITs, agricultural universities, etc.