The breaching of National Aluminium Company (NALCO) ash-pond is

one of the tragedy which occurred in the midnight of December 31,

2000 had caused a serious havoc in the Angul district of Orissa. Around
26 villages of the Talcher and the Angul Tahasils were seriously affected
by water mixed with ash. Settlements, agricultural fields were
submerged with water mixed with ash. Houses were ruined, domestic
animals died, standing crops were buried beneath the ash and people
were left without food, water and shelter'. When breaching occurred
the water mixed with ash spread in the eastern side of the pond causing
severe damage to the 26 villages of the Talcher and the Angul Tahasils.
The Nandira jhor, a tributary of the Brahmani river flowing in the
northern side of the ash-pond carried water mixed with ash to the
Brahmani river.
NALCO has constructed two main ash-ponds in the northern side of the
Captive Power Plant covering around 311.85 ha of land. The ash-ponds
are used as a dumping ground for the ash and other residues of the
plant. The by-products of the plant are transported to the ash-pond
area through the pipe lines. Because of breaching of the one of the
ashponds, the water mixed with ash was suddenly flooded the area
and many innocent lives were fallen prey.
• The Ash Pond-1 had been completely filled up and the Compartment
B of the Ash pond-2 was found in an unserviceable state.
• The pond-3, used as an overflow pond, was also filled up with ash and
weeds.
• Seepage collected through garland drains was being released into the
Nadia river without any treatment.
• The existing ash slurry pipelines ruptured at frequent intervals
• Almost a decade after the breaching of the National Aluminium Company Ltd’s
[Nalco] ash-pond a serious havoc in 26 villages in Angul district, India’s leading
producer and exporter of alumina and aluminium has commissioned latest eco-
friendly High Concentration Slurry Disposal [HCSD] System in its 1080 MW captive
power plant [CPP] at a cost of Rs 50 crore.
• The HCSD System will take care of fly ash disposal from three units i.e unit 7 to 10
of CPP.
• This system reduces ash pollution in the atmosphere, as there will not be fine ash
dust in the ash pond, which gets blown off during wind. The other advantage of
this system is that the fine ash in the form of lumps is discharged to the ash pond.
Since the ash discharge is in the lump form, it occupies lesser space in the ash
pond compared to the same volume of slurry ash in the ash pond, resulting in
extension of the useful life of the ash pond
• Coming under serious criticism from Orissa Pollution Control Board and
civil society, Nalco raised the dykes of ash ponds from 104 Meter Reduced
Level (MRL) to 107 MRL to increase the life of the ponds. For ash disposal
into abandoned coal mines of Mahanadi Coalfields Limited(MCL), Nalco
also obtained provisional clearance from MCL management to transport
ash to Bharatpur (South) abandoned coal mines, Talcher Coal Field, Angul.
• Besides, the company acquired additional 46 acre of land adjacent to ash
pond 2 for disposal of ash by high concentration slurry disposal mode at a
later date. It also developed infrastructure to dispose ash on the existing
ash pond of CPP by HCSD system for the new units No. 7 to 10 to
accommodate more ash per unit land area, over the above the disposal of
ash by lean slurry method.
• According to Mr. A. Ray, General Manager, CPP, one of major
problems that they are encountering is the law and order situation
around the plant and the public perception about fly ash products
which are yet to be accepted as suitable alternatives to buil ding
materials.
• Nalco has been promoting R&D activities in the field of fly ash
utilisation, focused towards development of use ful value-added
products based on fly ash as a major component. But it has not met
with much success as far as developing a market for these products is
concerned because of the lack of support from the Government.
• As per the Government policy, with a view to helping promote
industrial units for manufacture of fly ash-based products, it has been
notified that dry\wet fly ash shall be supplied by the power stations
free of cost to entrepreneurs for a period of 20 ye ars, to start with,
from the day the unit goes into fly ash-based production.
• Although Nalco is implementing a Rs. 1.5-crore dry fly ash handling
and storage plant to provide it to prospective entrepreneurs, there
are no takers because of resistance by the local truck mafia.
• Then, of course, comes the popularisation of fly ash-based ceramic
products, granite tiles and bricks/blocks. There is inhibition on the
part of the society to accept fly ash products, in particular bricks, as a
replacement for conventional red bricks wi th which they are familiar.
FLY ASH BASED INNOVATIVE & COMMONLY PRODUCED BUILDING PRODUCTS BY
NALCO

Cellular Light Weight Concrete (CLC) Blocks

Portland Pozzolana Cement (Fly Ash based)
Fly Ash- Sand-Lime-Gypsum (/Cement) Bricks /Blocks
DURABILITY OF FLY ASH BASED PRODUCTS
• Reduced heat of hydration
• Improved workability & Ease of pumping
• Superior microstructure leading to lower permeability
• Higher long term strength
• Better performance in aggressive environment (Sulphates, Chlorides
etc.)
• Reduced risk of alkali silica reaction
• Higher Electrical Resistively leading to lesser chances of
reinforcement corrosion