Innovation: Coldrock Aggregate Cooling System

The Coldrock Aggregate Cooling System is the green game changer when it comes to temperature-controlled concrete. The Coldrock system was developed for use as an aggregate cooling system for temperature-controlled concrete (ready-mixed concrete, precast concrete or concrete for massive components, including dam projects). In such dam projects, concrete mixes are generally used that have to cope with very low total water contents (requirements for the maximum w/c ratio or consistency requirements). This in turn limits the concrete manufacturer in the use of crushed ice or plate ice for cooling concrete to comply with the maximum concrete placement temperature, as only as much ice may be added to the concrete as the maximum amount of water according to the mix design.

Coldrock has therefore focused on cooling the coarse aggregate (2–150 mm). The coarse aggregate accounts for approx. 60% of the total aggregate and approx. 40% of the concrete volume. Added to this is the proportion of the total mixing water of approx. 120 litres, approx. 12% of the concrete volume. The Coldrock system therefore cools approx. 50-60% of the concrete volume compared to the use of ice (usual dosage of approx. 60-80 kg, max. 120 kg per m³ of concrete, approx. 6-12% of the concrete volume).

This means that the Coldrock system is 4-5 times more effective than cooling with ice. The use of cold water and the guided circulation of the coarse aggregate in the HydroSpiral to cool the aggregate ensures a very fast (6-12 min), targeted, controlled cooling process, at the end of which a uniformly water-saturated and cooled aggregate is available for concrete production. These parameters can be controlled by an automatic plant control system so that only as much energy as is needed to reach the desired target temperature is used.

The use of water-saturated aggregate simplifies consistency control, thereby reducing the risk of non-standard quality fresh concrete and rejection at the construction site. This results in a significantly lower number of faulty batches and thus concrete waste that has to be disposed of at great expense.

The advantages of the Coldrock Aggregate Cooling System at a glance:

Significantly lower investment costs with the same or better cooling performance

Much lower (higher) fresh concrete temperatures can be achieved due to the significantly higher temperature transfer potential of water as a medium.

Up to 70% energy savings compared to cooling with ice

Up to 20% savings in additives through the use of water-saturated GK

Up to 50% lower service and operating costs

Modular system, plug and play

Space requirement for a 40“ container, HydroSpiral and chiller are stacked on top of each other

No special foundations required, very easy and quick to assemble and disassemble

The required cooling water is recycled or cooled again and reused in a circulation process (no additional water is required beyond that already used in the concrete production process)

Can also be used for heating or warming concrete in winter, so only one system is necessary

Hot water can be produced using a heat pump, so no oil or gas is required, only green electricity, which further improves the CO_2.

If there are any questions, suggestions or would like to discuss our innovative, energy-saving and modular fresh concrete cooling concept, please do not hesitate to contact us, even if you are not participating in this competition.