Sand for civil construction is running out in many places of the world - Solution UHPC Desert Sand Binder + Nature Desert sand

Sand consumption today

In more and more parts of the world, the availability of sand is becoming increasingly difficult or even impossible for the construction industry.
Gigantic sales are now being made with sand.
Millions of tons of sand are transported to the oceans each year, and demand will continue to rise.

Example

• Over 47 billion tons of sand are mined annually
• For a standard house you need approx. 200 to of sand
• For 1 kilometre highway you need approx. 30000 to of sand
• Global sand business is 70 billion US Dollar/year

Types of sand extraction

• Sand mines
• Sand from rivers
• Beach Sand
• Sand mining in coastal area

 

 

WPE DK is manufacturer of UHPC Desert Sand Binder for more than 10 years. This binder system is mixed only with desert sand and a little water. Now there is the 3rd development stage of UHPC Desert Sand binder. This new generation differs significantly from the 1st generation in strength, workability, sustainability and much lower CO2 footprint. The latest generation can also be produced on site with local raw materials without any problems. 

For us as WPE DK, the sustainable future has begun with desert sand.

WPE DK International

Phone: 0049 176 601 73146
E-mail: info@wpe-dk.dk
Homepage: www.wpe-dk.com

We increase the sustainability of UHPC

With our high-performance UHPC products, we started

using sustainable products years ago. We are also

increasingly focusing on sustainability when it comes

to units for our UHPC binders.

One example is corundum, which we use as an aggregate,

among other things. Corundum can be produced as

synthetic corundum with very high energy consumption

or can be mined as natural corundum in open-cast mining.

We have chosen natural corundum for more than 15 years.

Together with our partner in Africa, we pay attention to a

nature-friendly mining and an equally nature-friendly

restoration of the surface areas. The natural corundum

mined by our partner has proven to be an almost perfect

unit for our UHPC over many hundreds of applications

in the offshore industry, architecture, wear protection

and security industry.

Another problematic aggregate of quartz sand, we can

completely replace today with desert sand, including

from Africa. The technical values ​​of desert sand

concrete are far above the best standard concrete.

In our opinion, it is not necessary to destroy beaches

and rivers by sand mining. The cost of desert sand

mining is many times less than the predatory mining

of river sand or beach sand.

As far as the reinforcement systems or fiber systems

are concerned, nature offers us very sustainable

products that can be used in combination with

high-quality UHPC binder systems to create a perfect

sustainable product.

Our goal is always to produce UHPC binder systems

so flexibly that we can always use a high proportion

of local raw materials.

WPE DK International

Phone: 0049 176 601 73146
E-mail: info@wpe-dk.dk
Homepage: www.wpe-dk.com

 

UHPC concrete for outdoor furniture

More and more manufacturers of outdoor furniture

are discovering UHPC concrete as the perfect

material for their existing furniture designs and for

completely new furniture designs that can not be

realized with standard concrete.

We deliver for each customer his special UHPC

with which he can realize his designs.

With UHPC almost all natural stones can be

reproduced and any surface design is possible.

Our customers achieve extremely fine surface

structures with our UHPC.

For our customers in the Arab countries we can

produce an extremely white UHPC.

Something very special is our desert sand UHPC.

This UHPC concrete can be made from local

desert sand and shows the local context through 

its color scheme and structure. In connection with,

for example, local wood, unique pieces are created.

For the processing you need a mixer, UHPC binder, 

water and sand (or other aggregates instead of sand), 

nothing more. Molded parts may generally be

removed from the mold in less than 24 hours.

The advantages of our UHPC

 - Over 50% weight saving compared to standard

    concrete elements

 - Much thinner wall thicknesses compared to

    standard concrete are possible

 - Extremely corrosion resistant
 - Absolutely saltwater resistant
 - High wear resistance
 - Extremely resistant to thermal shocks

 - Significantly higher strength values ​​than

    standard concrete

 - UHPC is very easy to pour
 - UHPC is self-compacting

 - Furniture elements made of UHPC can easily

    reach a life of 80+ years

 - Fully recyclable
 - Processing of recycled materials as aggregate

It has been produced with our UHPC concrete

• Lamps
• Fireplaces
• Garbage can
• Planter    
• Bench
• Chairs
• Side table
• Dining tables
• Bookshelf

UHPC concrete and optical fiber for Media Architecture

Some years ago, a customer approached
us with the problem that he needed a
wear lining in a brown coal dust silo and,
if possible, in combination with a lighting system. The problem was that lignite
dust is highly explosive.

The solution we offered and executed
was a UHPC® wear protection liner in
which we inserted optical fibers. With
optical fibers we could have solved two
problems at once; first, the lighting and
second, the existing wear can not interfere
with the function of fiber optic lighting.

This combination UHPC® / optical fiber
was also used by a customer for illuminated
facade elements.

2001 First tests with UHPC / optical fiber elements

Here, too, environmental influences could
not hinder the function of optical fibers as
lighting. This system is completely
maintenance free.

Similar application ideas already had architects and designers for UHPC® ceiling panels and
wall panels. The advantage is architectural
and designer's view is that the lighting is not visible during the day. No matter which
geometry or surface structure the UHPC®
element has, the optical fibers are not visible. Another advantage is that optical fibers do
not generate heat.

Lamp design made of UHPC® with optical
fibers have already been manufactured.
Interior architects have designed bar counters
made of UHPC® and optical fibers.

Today, these solutions are used and further
developed, among other things, in Media
Architecture.

www.hhbc-consulting.de
info@hhbc-consulting.de 

 

UHPC Navy Concrete - Ferrocement

The technique of using fine wire mesh as a 
reinforcement for concrete (ferroconcrete) 
structures is already very old. This 
technique has been used above all in the 
manufacture of boat and ship hulls, simple 
construction elements and in the design 
sector.

Today, less so-called chicken wire mesh is 
used and more plastic and ceramic mesh is 
used, which exceeds the tensile strengths 
of steel several times over.

With UHPC (Ultra High Performance 
Concrete) Navy binder it is also possible to 
use very fine aggregates, which in turn make 
it possible to use very fine meshes. Modern 
high quality UHPC Navy materials are a 
multiple times superior to standard concrete 
in all technical values.


UHPC has been used in the offshore industry 
for more than 25 years as a construction 
material and as a corrosion protection material 
under the harshest environmental conditions. 
In many areas, UHPC is superior to steel and 
replaces it there.

UHPC Navy offers the professional navy 
architect, boatbuilder and shipyard a more 
than interesting alternative to steel, plastic 
and wooden constructions.
Production methods such as casting and 
spraying and the rapid development of 
strength can save enormous costs.


This new development also makes it possible 
to manufacture boats or ships in series. 
Special hulls are possible. UHPC designs for 
floating windmill systems are in production today.

 

Statement on Ferrocement	Statement on UHPC Navy
Ferrocement = Steel reinforcement plus   mortar concrete   Small dia high tensil steel rods sandwiched   between layers of wire mesh (chicken mesh)	UHPC Navy = Steel, cermic fiber or plastic fiber   reinforcement plus   Ultra High Performance Concrete   Extreme high tensil strength ceramic or glasfibre   mesh and ceramic rods
The shell structure of mortar and steel would   be sufficiently impermeable, strong and   impact resistant and with the right degree of   flexibility	The shell structure of UHPC Navy and   reinforcement would be high sufficiently   impermeable, extreme strong, very high impact   resistant and with a extreme high flexibility.
Ferrocement boats are produced in Britain,   Canada, South Africa, Hong Kong and USA	Hong Kong, Singapore, United Arabs Emirates
Ferrocement hulls do not rot, nor do such   marine animals as bores and tered worm   have any effect on the mortar	UHPC Navy hulls are absolutly sea water resistant, absolutly restinstant      against marine animals high dense structure and extreme high corrosions resistant
Ferrocement hulls are stronger than hull    build in wood or glassfibre	UHPC Navy hulls are much stronger than hulls in wood or glassfibre
A partical characteristic of ferrocement,   unlike others, is that if gains strength with   age rather than loose it.	UHPC Navy already reaches more than 70% of final strength after 48 hours and gain strength with age.
Ferrocement   Tensil strength 37 MPa   Compressive Strength 83 MPa	UHPC Navy Tensil strength 52 MPa+ or 755 psi (depends on reinforcement system)   Compressive strength 140 MPa+ or 2300 psi   (depends on reinforcement)
Ferrocement is high temperature resistant	UHPC Navy is very high temperature resistant. In a special high temperature resistant version UHPC Navy it temperature resistant up to 1200°C or 2192°F
Ferrocement has a very low thermal  conductivity	UHPC Navy has a low thermal conductivity in   combination. With special insulation aggregates   UHPC will have a extreme low thermal conductivity
Absence of maintenance cost for the hull	UHPC Navy hulls are maintenace free
A problem would be the difficulty of   achieving complete penetration of mortar   through the mesh matrix	UHPC Navy mortar, spray and castable products are selfcompacting. The penedration through the mesh is nearly to 100%
Portland cement, Slag cement	UHPC Navy Binder
Water/cement ratio 0,35	Water/ cement below 0,25
Aggregate: Sand which pass 3/16 in sive	Aggregate: 0 – 3 mm Quarzsand or insulation   material in the same grain size or desert sand
Mixing ratio cement : aggregates 1:2	Mixing ration UHPC Navy binder : aggregates 1:1
Density 2400	Density 2400
Admixtures: for improve workability,   durability, acclerate or retard setting and   hardening   Such admixtures are only introduced in   minute qualities to produce the desired   effect, therefor the degree of control must be   very high.	Admixtures are not necessary for UHPC Navy
Recommended mixer is that which has a   paddle attached to the inside of the drum to   keep the mortar mixing evenly.   The mixer is often referred to as a plaster´s   mixer	Pan pot mixer or shaft mixer
Min. boat size approx. 18 ft	Not known
Hull skin thickness 3/4 in	Hull skin thickness max. 3/4 in
Salary rates for mortar work very high	Labor costs much lower, installation as shotcrete, casting and mortar possible. UHPC Navy material is self-compacting.
No serial production possible	Series production easily possible

 

 

 

 

 

 

WPE DK International

Phone: 0049 176 601 73146
E-mail: info@wpe-dk.dk
Homepage: www.wpe-dk.com

Unusual material with unusual residental solutions for unusual residential areas

Unusual material

With our UHPC binder + desert sand + very little water we can produce a concrete with a compressive strength of up to 100 MPa. So better than many standard concrete qualities. UHPC desert sand concrete is completely waterproof, corrosion-resistant and rot-proof. Desert sand concrete can be easily made with most desert sands. Desert sand is currently free.

Unusual living solution

The stone system is a building system for small children. With this fantastic system, you can intuitively build without having special knowledge, that is already shown by our children.
If you enlarge this system and the stones made of UHPC desert sand concrete, you can easily build simple and, if necessary, complicated constructions quickly without blueprint and remove again. With standard concrete such stone systems are not possible because they are not sustainable enough. With the high strength UHPC desert sand concrete, even very thin-walled load-bearing stones are possible. For the production of the stones only a few different cast forms are necessary.

Unusual residential areas
UHPC building block systems can be used without any problem in all areas of the world. Due to the

large cavity volume of the stones they are extremely well insulated against cold as well as against heat. They can be used in the desert, in the damp jungle and in extremely cold environments.

UHPC Desert sand binder - Local Concrete for Africa

Almost four years ago we developed a UHPC Desert cement binder to process desert sand into a concrete with very high strength values. Only cement binders, water and desert sand are necessary for this. For mixing a standard concrete mixer is needed. The focus of binder development two years ago was on the professional construction industry.

In discussions with architects and organizations operating in Africa we were asked, if we could develop a simple, not so high-quality version of this binder that can support the traditional simple
constructions of the rural population. After some
discussion, a list of requirements for this new
binder was created with which we now work in
our lab. UHPC binders were originally developed
with the aim of achieving an extremely high level
of strength. Then we discovered with our UHPC
binder the incredible combination possibilities
with a variety of natural materials.


Our UHPC binders can perfectly support or
replace wood, straw, loam and clay constructions in terms of their strength and resistance to high
UHPC can also be easily combined with recycled material. It can be made of furniture and sanitary equipment. UHPC concrete is not flammable, which contributes to the safety of the accommodation.

The aim of our current binder development is to
drastically reduce binder costs, to keep the
mixing procedure as simple as possible, to
drastically reduce the proportion of binder in the
overall mix, to reduce possible material transports,
to enable new material combinations with local
raw materials and to preserve as many
properties of UHPC as possible, temperatures and high solar radiation. UHPC binders are completely waterproof, even in very thin layers, do not rot and provide safe protection against termites.

There is also the possibility to use local cement for the production of UHPC Desert Sand Binder in addition to the local desert sand. For this we would have to test local cements for their suitability for our UHPC binder.

Comparison of UHPC and concrete during processing to precast concrete elements

The first UHPC Ultra High Performance Binder
was developed more than 30 years ago. Since
then they have been continuously developed.
The UHPC binders have been improved or new
ones have been developed and produced in
accordance with the requirements due to their
experience in a wide variety of application areas
and industries worldwide. From the beginning,
our UHPC binders were produced as mortar,
castable and shotcrete.

UHPC castables are inexplicably used to a much
lesser extent in the production of precast concrete
than standard concrete. These UHPC materials
could offer enormous advantages for manufacturing
as well as in the use of precast concrete parts.
Here are some applications and their advantages
compared to standard concrete:

 - Light weight of the UHPC elements. Due to the
    extremely high strength, smaller component cross
    sections can be selected, which leads to lower
    individual weights.
 - More elements can be loaded per truck, which leads

   to fewer loads.
 - Due to the lower individual weights, lower crane
    capacities are required.
 - The raw material requirement is drastically reduced
    due to the smaller component cross-section.
 - UHPC materials develop high strength values ​​in a
    short time. Our UHPC materials reach 70% of their
    nominal strength after 48 hours.
 - Shorter production times per element, higher cycle
    times - higher quantities per unit of time compared
    to standard concrete - lower unit costs.
 - Shorter delivery times.

UHPC binders are based on nanotechnology and 
are extremely fine.
Advantage:
It is possible to produce much more precise shapes.
Joints, edges do not require reworking. The more
precise the mold, the more precise the UHPC
element.
UHPC concretes do not form pores and are usually
self-compacting. This means that surface structures
can be achieved that cannot be achieved with standard concrete.

UHPC concrete is extremely resistant to most 
environmental influences
Advantage:
UHPC concretes are extremely resistant to
corrosion, de-icing salt and frost, which leads to a
much longer life expectancy than standard concrete
UHPC many times exceeds concrete, marble,
limestone, sandstone and many other natural stones.


www.hhbc-consulting.de
info@hhbc-consulting.de

Aggregate, fibers and reinforcements for UHPC

Over the course of more than 25 years, we have combined and applied a large number of materials with our UHPC materials. The material combination was used as wear protection material, offshore material, floor material, building material (for buildings, bridges, halls, etc.), safety technology, shipbuilding, tunnel construction, etc.

We would like to show a small selection of aggregates, fibers and reinforcements, which we have used. The aim of our development work in the combination of UHPC with other materials is the possibility to create country-specific materials with UHPC.

For each of these aggregates, fibers and reinforcements, there is a little story why we chose the combination, how we processed it and the results. if you are interested write us and we will send you this collection of little stories.

Further information on the aggregates, fibers and reinforcements


www.hhbc-consulting.de
info@hhbc-consulting.de

Concrete of very high quality cement and desert sand, it works

It is possible to use desert sand as a building sand. Many will cry out and say that will not work. There are so many ancient arguments that are not and of course the international building standards. 

But what can we say, we took a new developed UHPC cement binder into the desert including a few bottles of water and a commercial mixer. We mixed our cement binder with nature desert sand (not cleanded not sieved) and water and after 24 hours we had a strength of 40 MPa and after 28 days more than 70 MPa. We are sorry dear experts and standards. Now we are working on the second generation of desert sand binders, which will become even more effective in terms of technical quaility and flexibility of handling.

Desert sand concrete could be used in many areas such as harbor construction, road construction,

airport construction, architectur and design.

In the construction of the Burji Khalifa approximately 257,500 qqm of sand were used, which corresponds to a weight of 396,000 tons.
This amount of sand could have been taken from the desert and it would have cost - nothing.

Some Arab states are showing great interest in this special UHPC cement binder. It can be very beneficial in helping to rebuild some Arab states or provide new architectural solutions.

If we find the right partners, the UHPC desert sand binders should be producible in every state with desert. Especially in states that have problems with the procurement of river sand but have a desert connection should be the desert sand binder an advantage. The local nature would thus be protected from considerable damage.

See also our UHPC desert concrete presentation

UHPC® Architecture on the sea coast

The big cities on the coasts and rivers have

big problems for the future. A problem is the 
lack of natural space for the permanent 
expansion of cities. Building ever higher 
skyscrapers is not a solution in the long run. 
One solution is to expand the construction 
site by adding fillings in the coastal area, 
as we see in Dubai and Singapore, among 
others. Another solution to the problem is 
the very old traditional construction of pile 
dwellings and houseboats, as they have 
always done in Asia.

Modern architecture has been thinking 
about its designs for a long time with interesting 
designs and projects about future life in coastal 
and river areas. Here, the old living concepts 
are reinterpreted. New materials such as 
UHPC® concretes can easily incorporate 
existing local living concepts and constructions 
and implement them in permanent concepts. 
UHPC® offers absolute seawater resistance with 
extremely high strength. Light, thin but 
high-strength constructions can be combined 
with local traditional materials such as bamboo.

Floating residential and industrial concepts can 
also be realized with UHPC®, and not just above 
water. The first underwater concepts have 
already been implemented worldwide with new 
hotel concepts. Recent plans also include 
entire artificial islands on which hospitals, 
workshops, hotels, kindergartens, residential 
complexes including leisure facilities are built.
Some international architecture firms are 
interested in using UHPC® Ultra High 
Performance Concrete in their living concepts, 
because the advantages of this material are 
unique in their variety and quality.

UHPC® offshore constructions are already in 
use in areas with extreme environmental 
conditions. UHPC® is very wear-resistant, 
among other things, moving ice masses is 
not a real problem for a UHPC® construction. 
UHPC® materials have no pores, are therefore 
extremely corrosion-resistant and offer an 
extremely long repair-free service life.


www.hhbc-consulting.de
info@hhbc-consulting.de

The world of UHPC in the past, today and in the future

In this blog we want to share our experiences
with UHPC material. It is astonishing that
UHPC technology was developed almost 30
years ago and yet the knowledge among
architects, designers, constructors, engineers
and concrete specialists is extremely low and
is not available in many parts of the world.
UHPC offers so many possibilities for everyone.

With this blog we hope to bring a little more
information about UHPC to everyone
involved in concrete. It is not a magical,
difficult material, it is a very well thought-
out concrete that can be processed by any
fitter.

The UHPC products we report here are our
own product development.
My Team which support me and I have run a
lot of practical projects in the international
industry in the last 25 years.

We invite everyone to ask us questions about UHPC.

Here's a selection of industries where we had
done UHPC projects. In the further course of
the blog we will go into detail about these
projects and the associated experience.

- Cement industry
- Power industry
- Automobil industry
- Security industry
- Offshore oil and gas production
- Offshore wind turbines
- Industrial floors
- Road construction
- Civil construction
- Design
- Architecture
- Food industry
- Steel industry
- Mining industry
- Marine Industry
- Airports
- Habours 

WPE DK International

Phone: 0049 176 601 73146
E-mail: info@wpe-dk.dk
Homepage: www.wpe-dk.com