In a significant development, India’s first National Highway Steel Slag Road section on NH-66, connecting Mumbai to Goa was inaugurated on Saturday. The highway marks a milestone in sustainable road construction technology, converting waste from steel industries into a valuable resource for building robust and eco-friendly national highways.
CSIR-CRRI’s Transformative Steel Slag Road Technology: Performance and Cost-Efficiency
The revolutionary Steel Slag Road Technology, developed by the CSIR-Central Road Research Institute (CSIR-CRRI), plays a pivotal role in repurposing steel industry waste into wealth. This technology helps the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) in constructing stronger and environmentally friendly national highways across the country.
Satish Pandey, Principal Scientist at CSIR-CRRI and Project Leader of the project highlighted that the bituminous steel slag road is constructed with 28% less thickness compared to conventional bituminous roads on NH-66. Furthermore, both the bituminous and cement concrete sections are approximately 32% more economical than traditional roads while demonstrating better durability.
Constructing the four-lane steel slag road section
Under the technological guidance of CSIR-CRRI, JSW Steel has successfully constructed a 1 km long four-lane steel slag road section on the Indapur-Panvel Section of NH-66 Mumbai-Goa. The construction process involved converting approximately 80,000 tons of CONARC Steel slag into processed steel slag aggregates at the JSW Steel Dolvi plant in Raigad. These processed steel slag aggregates exhibit superior mechanical properties compared to natural aggregates and have been used in all layers of the road, replacing traditional natural aggregates. The road includes bituminous and cement concrete steel slag sections on both the right-hand and left-hand carriageways.
G S Rathore, Chief Operating Officer of JSW Steel Ltd, expressed appreciation for the collaborative efforts between CSIR-CRRI and JSW Steel Ltd. He also acknowledged the support received from NHAI, which played a crucial role in the successful completion of the project.
National Guidelines for Steel Slag Road Construction
Dr. Manoranjan Parida, Director of CSIR-CRRI, revealed that under a sponsored research project of the Ministry of Steel, CSIR-CRRI is actively developing national guidelines for the utilization of processed steel slag in steel slag road construction. The institute, in collaboration with various steel industries, has already successfully implemented steel slag in road construction projects in Gujarat, Jharkhand, and Arunachal Pradesh.
The successful implementation of the Steel Slag Road Technology on NH-66 reflects a sustainable and cost-effective approach to national highway construction, setting a precedent for future infrastructure projects in India.