National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) has signed a know-how transfer agreement for the production of Nano Concrete building products and Aggregate (NACA) with the Visakhapatnam-based Institute for Solid Waste Research and Ecological Balance (INSWREB), in New Delhi
NTPC Executive Director C. Shiva Kumar has singed the know-how licence agreement with N. Bhanumathidas and N. Kalidas, Founder Directors of INSWAREB. NTPC General Manager SK Saxena, GM-Ash Technologies R. Satyakam, and Assistant General Manager S.S. Rao were present.
Nano concrete (NAC) was developed by N. Bhanumathidas and N. Kalidas in 2008 and was patented. NAC contains 65-75% fly ash with minor cement and admixtures. It was field tested by casting 10.5 ft diametre dome on Fal-G mansion at Sheela Nagar in Visakhapatnam in 2010 apart from being used in the construction of a few pillars and casting slab for temples.
As NAC can develop strengths as high as 50 to 100 MPa, it was decided to break NAC stone into aggregate. Concrete with NACA behaves closer to that of natural stone aggregate (NSA) and hence acceptable for structural applications. NACA concrete weighs 25% lesser than conventional concrete.
NTPC has conducted a national-level contest in 2019 seeking technological solutions to promote mass scale fly ash utilisation. NACA has bagged the first prize for its potential of mass scale utilisation together with sustainable development.
