TOOELE
Ash Grove’s Geofortis product solves an increasingly severe challenge to the concrete industry. At the core of this product is an age-old pozzolan mineral. Ancient Roman structures built with similar materials still standing today.
Our Geofortis pozzolan product solves a critical product shortage crisis
Ash Grove’s natural pozzolan product, produced from naturally occurring volcanic ash, can act as a replacement to Portland cement in concrete. Because Portland cement manufacturing is a significant source of greenhouse gases, natural pozzolans provide a greener alternative, at a lower cost, to pure cement mixes.
The primary pozzolan used in concrete in recent years has been fly ash, a residual from coal-burning power plants. Production has diminished as coal plants close or convert to natural gas. The Western U.S. is facing supply shortages of fly ash, creating big problems for concrete suppliers, including contract delivery issues, cost, capacity limits, quality, and performance. Significant additional closures and conversions are scheduled, creating a bigger deficit in an already constrained market.
Ash Grove Tooele Plant Located in Utah
Ash Grove’s plant is located in Tooele, UT, 30 miles west of Salt Lake City. The plant serves the greater Salt Lake area and beyond.
The plant receives raw pozzolan by truck, has a 15,000 square foot storage building, a rotary dryer, belt conveyor systems, a Cemengal Plug & Grind ball mill system, pneumatic conveyance systems, three storage silos for finished product and truck loadout systems.
The finished Geofortis product is loaded out into pneumatic bulk trucks for transport to customers. The loadout system is designed to load out typical 40-ton double trailers in less than 15 minutes.
All aspects of the plant are operated from the central control room. The plant also features a Quality Control laboratory, offices, and maintenance facilities.
Construction began in late 2020 and was completed in less than twelve months, despite significant issues with the Covid pandemic and international transport logistics.
Local contractors and vendors were used where practical and nationally recognized firms were used for specialty work.
“Ash Grove is developing innovative technologies and products like Geofortis to solve an increasingly severe challenge to the concrete industry.”
Before the use of fly ash as a concrete additive, natural pozzolans were successfully used as a raw ingredient in concrete to improve its performance and durability. Now that the availability of fly ash has become limited and the costs have increased, a replacement is needed. Ash Grove’s Geofortis natural pozzolans add to the market with a proven track record of meeting these industry needs.
