Scott Baker, TSM, Florida, submitted the projects, and Jeremy Swinyer, Business Development Manager, assisted with the collection of American Bridge data.
Argos customer, Superior Paving was selected to receive a 2021 SCA Sustainable Concrete Project of the Year award for the category of Infrastructure for the State Road 52 Realignment project. This award recognizes projects that used slag cement in the construction of infrastructure projects, including, but not limited to, pavements, highways, transit projects, bridges, dams, mining, airports, etc.
Superior’s Concrete Paving Division batched and placed nearly 54,000 cubic yards of concrete using a company-owned batch plant. Several mix designs were used on this project, but the two most used included cementitious slag components. One mix design used a 30/70 slag to Portland-Limestone Cement IL (PLC) cement ratio, while the other a 40/60. Results using slag cement were successful in terms of long-term stability, consistency, and visual appearance. Data consistently proved higher compressive strengths at 28 days than cement-only mixes. Argos cement provided the PLC from our Newberry plant and slag from our Tampa facility for this project.
Argos customer, American Bridge’s SR 679 Pinellas Bayway Bridge – Structure E Replacement project, was selected to receive a 2021 Slag Cement in Sustainable Concrete Project of the Year award in the category of durability. This award recognizes projects that used slag cement in concrete structures designed to resist various conditions in its environment.
The design-build project for the Florida Department of Transportation includes replacing the existing two-lane bascule bridge with a two-lane, high-level, fixed bridge with 10’ shoulders and a sidewalk and shared-use path for bicyclists and pedestrians. Over the three years of construction, just under 18,000 CY of concrete has been placed total on the project. As part of the design-build proposal, all structural elements were to be at least Class IV 5500 psi to help extend the lifespan of the new bridge.
Slag cement was used in a variety of applications. Workability and early strength on the decks allowed spans to remain plastic throughout the whole concrete pour while allowing full loading within five days. Aesthetic appeal and early set times were the key to successful placements of the cast-in-place dolphin wall. The footings, columns, and caps all had pours that fell under the category of mass concrete, so temperature control was crucial to maintaining the allowable delta. Argos Ready Mix supplied the end use product using PLC and slag cement for this job.
