Summary, Draft #2, Coal ash into concrete

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The NaturalBlaze.com article, "Researchers Turn Waste from Coal Power Plants into Concrete," (2019), reports that researchers from Drexel University have discovered a sustainable solution to protect the natural environment and improve the built environment by recycling coal ash. Coal ash, a harmful byproduct of coal-fired power plants, ends up extremely abundant in landfills each year. Concrete is one of the most popular building materials in the world but one defect is that it requires the right atmospheric conditions to get the desirable outcome. The article states that by turning these waste coal ash into a special additive, a porous lightweight aggregate and adding them into the concrete while curing process, it will improve the durability and quality of the concrete (as cited in the journal “Cement and Concrete Composites”). Hence, by using this method, it will reduce the number of coal ash in landfills and benefits the industry.

While I agree with the assertion of using SPoRA in concrete reduces cost and benefits the concrete industry based on the points elaborated in this article, I have found the lack of information regarding grades of coal ash, where and what time is suitable for the contractors to use it. 

Researchers Turn Waste From Coal Power Plants Into Concrete (Oct-29-2019). NaturalBlaze. Retrieved, Feb-01-2020, from
https://www.naturalblaze.com/2019/10/researchers-turn-waste-from-coal-power-plants-into-concrete.html




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