Green technology company Vecor has developed a recycled building material with remanufactured coal fly ash.
Vecor Founder and CEO Alex Koszo said the company’s patented and fully industrialised technologies provide profitability to otherwise environmentally destructive industrial by-products.
“It is estimated that over 300 million tonnes of the ultra-fine coal fly ash particles are dumped each year, where it may pollute the soil, water and air with harmful elements such as arsenic, mercury and lithium,” Mr Koszo said.
“A great multiple of this tonnage is sitting in lakes and unlined landfills all over the industrialised world, requiring remediation.”
Mr Koszo said Vecor are using the material to manufacture building products suitable for multiple industrial hardware applications, as part of their grey to green vision.
“The innovations underpinning Vecor’s technology span the disciplines of material science, chemistry and industrial hardware,” Mr Koszo said.
“With technology originally conceived at the University of New South Wales, and further developed at its proprietary laboratories, Vecor has developed and patented six highly competitive product applications with 50 to 99 per cent recycled content.”
Applications include ceramic tiles, refractories, industrial ceramics, fillers for paint and plastics, aggregates and sand.
“The sintering step of Vecor’s process has been independently proven to render all harmful and toxic elements in the fly ash completely and permanently inert,” Mr Koszo said.
According to Mr Koszo, in addition to providing a solution to the coal fly ash waste problem, Vecor’s technology promotes sustainability in the highly resource intensive porcelain tile industry.
“Our product consumes 50 per cent less virgin raw material, 85 per cent less water and 15 per cent less energy compared to the porcelain tile manufacturing process, translating into a significant manufacturing cost advantage,” Mr Koszo said.
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