UK’s National Grid completed a record-breaking cement-free concrete pour

The United Kingdom’s National Grid, along with its contractor, recently completed the world’s largest continuous Earth Friendly Concrete pour.

The project aimed at filling the base of a 55-meter-deep tunnel drive shaft at Hurst Substation in South London by pouring 736 cubic meters of cement-free concrete.

The innovative cement-free concrete, developed by Wagners, is made of a binder that consists of ground granulated blast furnace slag and pulverized fly ash, chemically activated by industrial waste products.

This product reduces carbon emissions by 64% by not using cement, which requires a great amount of energy to be produced. The 64% saving translates to a 111kg of CO2 reduction per cubic meter compared to conventional concrete.

Earth Friendly Concrete was extensively tested prior to the record braking pour, which took place on Earth Day, April 22. More specifically, the material was used and tested in the £1bn London Power Tunnels project.

This is just one of the methods implemented by National Grid to achieve its net zero emission plans by 2025/2026.

Finally, it is worth mentioning that the 736 cubic meters poured in this instance are estimated to have saved 82 tons of CO2 emissions, equivalent to a car driving around the world 18 times.