UltraTech Concrete, a division of UltraTech Cement Limited, and India’s largest manufacturer of ready-mix concrete recently supplied white-topping concrete for the Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprise (NICE) Road in Bangalore, Karnataka. The 9.5 km link road and 4 km peripheral road will connect to the proposed 111 km Bangalore Mysore Industrial Corridor (BMIC) expressway, which is expected to reduce the 3-hour drive between the two cities to an hour.
White-topping is the covering of an existing asphalt road with a layer of Portland cement concrete. It can be used on road surfaces where traditional asphalt surfaces have failed due to rutting or general deterioration. White-topping concrete is known to improve the performance, durability and ride quality of road surfaces.
While the lifespan of ordinary bitumen roads is 5 – 10 years, the designed service life of white-topping concrete surfaces is around 25 – 30 years and includes minimum maintenance cost. It ensures faster moving traffic due to improved ride quality and skid resistance. White-topping is considered energy efficient as it is more reflective, saving 20 – 30% energy required for illumination due to better reflectivity. This characteristic also helps to reduce accidents, especially at night. Further, it is 100% recyclable after its service life, making it a green choice.
“White-topping concrete represents an important potential application area from a sustainability perspective. With non-renewable resources such as fossil fuels and quarry-aggregates decreasing in availability, it is important to begin making decisions based on sustainability rather than on a first cost basis. White topping concrete overlays/pavements are a cost-effective, sustainable choice for urban roads, state and national highways, and other pavement applications,” says Mr O. P. Puranmalka, whole-time director, UltraTech Cement Ltd, who has been elected the new President of the Cement Manufacturers’ Association.
For more information visit www.ultratechcement.com.
Adapted from press release by Katherine Guenioui