Ideaz

Problem Statement:

The building process goes through enormous quantities of natural resources, especially cement, sand, and aggregates, and also produces huge amounts of waste. Cement alone production contributes to almost 7–8% of global CO₂ emissions, thus being one of the most carbon-intensive materials. In the meantime, others like thermal power and steel plants emit enormous quantities of fly ash and blast furnace slag, most of which are underutilized and sent to landfills, causing environmental and land-use issues.

Gap in Existing Solutions:

Despite decades of research on supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) such as fly ash and slag, they have limited practical implementation in the local construction industry because of:

* Small and medium-scale builders' lack of awareness.
* Heterogeneity of quality and lack of universal standardized local guidelines.
* Dependence on traditional raw materials in an industry that is slow to change.

Therefore, the mismatch is not of availability, but of practical integration, optimization, and standardization of such materials in routine construction.Proposed Idea

The proposal is to create a sustainable concrete mix that has locally available industrial by-products as an input. For instance:

*Fly ash can be used to substitute for up to 30–35% of cement, enhancing workability and long-term strength due to pozzolanic reactions.
*Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBS) can substitute 40–50% of cement, increasing durability, chemical resistance to attack, and heat of hydration reduction.
* Blending fly ash and slag can maximize strength gain, decrease cost, and decrease CO₂ emissions by as much as 40–50% compared to ordinary Portland cement (OPC) concrete.

Beneficiaries:

*Construction companies: Savings in costs and green building certification compliance.
*Builders: Low-cost, long-lasting, and locally accessible materials.
*Environment: Lower greenhouse gas emissions, less landfill waste, and natural resource conservation.

Conclusion:

This solution solves the dual issue of waste management in industry and resource scarcity in construction. By closing the gap between research and practice, the project shows how waste can be converted into a sustainable input for sustainable, cost-effective, and durable construction materials.