The 10,000th load of Hanson’s Regen ground granulated blastfurnace slag (GGBS) has been delivered to the Hinkley Point C (HPC) new nuclear power station construction site in Somerset, UK. The material is helping to enhance the project’s low-carbon credentials before it begins operations to supply some 6m homes with low-carbon electricity.
Regen GGBS is a replacement product for some of the ordinary Portland cement (OPC) content in concrete, which can significantly reduce the environmental impact of a project as it cuts the CO2 emissions associated with concrete while helping to conserve natural resources for future generations.
Since 2014, more than 230,000t of Regen GGBS has been supplied to EDF’s contractors from the company’s Port Talbot site in south Wales. This is sampled and checked at a dedicated on-site testing laboratory at Port Talbot and again on delivery to HPC’s site to ensure it meets with the exacting technical specifications required before being used to make concrete for the project.
The addition of Regen GGBS into the concrete mix provides a more sustainable alternative to other cement substitutes, such as fly ash, as it reduces the amount of embodied CO2, claims Hanson UK. Using just one tonne of Regen GGBS in the concrete cuts embodied CO2 by around 850kg, compared to using one tonne of Portland Cement, making it less impactful on the environment.
Hanson UK is delivering Regen GGBS to Hinkley Point C Nuclear power station
