Advantages Of GGBS In Concrete

Ground granulated blastfurnace slag (GGBS) is a hydraulic binder, i.e. a cement, which has been known
and used for 150 years. It improves the quality and durability of concrete, and its production is virtually
CO
2
-free. Yet its many advantages in producing sustainable, high-quality concrete remain
underappreciated and underused.
In an increasingly resource-constrained and environmentally conscious world, all that is about to
change.
Quality, sustainable concrete
Blastfurnaces produce pig iron, together with a slag by-product: a tightly controlled and stable material
with the same constituents, though in different proportions, to normal cement. If the slag is vitrified by
rapid quenching as it comes from the blastfurnace, its cementitious qualities are preserved.
Dried and ground to a fine powder, GGBS can be used to make quality, sustainable concrete. To ensure
its activation, GGBS is most often used with normal cement. It will typically replace 30 - 70% of cement
on an equal weight basis.
Reduction in CO
2
emissions
The manufacture of normal cement (CEM I of EN 197) results in the emission of 930 kg of CO
2
/t of
cement (British Cement Association, 2009): approximately 50% from decarbonation of the limestone
raw material (process emissions), 40% from fossil fuel consumption, and 10% from generating the
electricity used in the process.
GGBS manufacture typically releases 35 kg of CO
2
/t of GGBS: less than 4% of the carbon footprint of
normal cement.
Solar reflectance
Concrete made with GGBS will have a high solar reflectance: studies in the US have shown increases of
20% in reflection of sunlight by concrete with GGBS. This will reduce the heat island effect in urban
developments, as well as having other beneficial effects (reduced need for artificial lighting at night,
safer roads from better visibility). Significantly, the reflected sunlight is not infrared radiation, and so will
not be trapped by the greenhouse effect of the earths atmosphere.
Durability
Durability is essential to the long service life of concrete. In practice, concrete will deteriorate over time.
The factors driving this deterioration can be internal (e.g. alkali-silica reaction) or due to external
aggressive environments (e.g. sulfate attack, or the effects of chlorides on reinforced concrete).
GGBS substantially improves the ability of concrete to resist deterioration from all major threats to long
service life. Requiring the use of GGBS is now established best practice where long service lives must be
achieved, even in the most aggressive environments. GGBS concrete will even provide better fire
resistance.

Limitations
However, it is identified that there are still some hindrances that prevent the prevalence of
its usage in local market. Technically speaking, GGBS concrete suffers from lower rate of
strength development which is highly sensitive to curing conditions. In this connection,
certain site measures have to be introduced to the construction industry to ensure better
quality of curing process in order to secure high quality of GGBS concrete. On the other
hand, designers have to be cautious of the potential bleeding problem of GGBS concrete
Advantages Of GGBS
The major use of GGBS is in ready-mixed concrete, and it is utilized in a third of all UK ready-mix
deliveries. Specifiers are well aware of the technical benefits, which GGBS imparts to concrete,
including:
better workability, making placing and compaction easier
lower early-age temperature rise, reducing the risk of thermal cracking in large pours
elimination of the risk of damaging internal reactions such as ASR
high resistance to chloride ingress, reducing the risk of reinforcement corrosion
high resistance to attack by sulphate and other chemicals
considerable sustainability benefits

In the production of ready-mixed concrete, GGBS replaces a substantial portion of the normal Portland
cement content, generally about 50%, but sometimes up to 70%. The higher the proportion, the better
is the durability. The disadvantage of the higher replacement level is that early-age strength
development is somewhat slower.

GGBS is also used in other forms of concrete, including site-batched and precast. Unfortunately, it is not
available for smaller-scale concrete production because it can only be economically supplied in bulk.
GGBS is not only used in concrete and other applications include the in-situ stabilization of soil.