Sustainable medium‐strength concrete (CS‐concrete) from colliery spoil in South Wales UK

Abstract This paper reviews one way in which colliery spoil can be utilized in low‐strength concrete. Colliery Spoil (CS) (minestone), a by‐product of coal mining, is abundant in most parts of the world. It has potential as a construction material but it has not been fully appreciated. This is partly because colliery spoil is not easy to utilize, due a number of drawbacks. The major problems identified in attempts to utilize CS in construction include excessive wear, expansive behaviour, leaching of heavy metals and even radioactivity. Thus, to date, the bulk of the CS utilization is limited to isolated cases of highway embankments, backfilling of mines, quarries and other surface tips, or in extreme cases subjected to marine and other disposal. This paper reports on the scope of technological benefits of utilizing colliery spoil (CS) in low to medium strength concrete. There has been intermittent pursuance of the benefits of utilizing colliery spoil in the United Kingdom. However, there is still no well‐...