Out of the ashes
One person’s trash becomes a builder’s treasure. Houston’s Brixx Technology is underway on a repurposing project in Toronto, Ohio that will produce double the benefit for the community and the environment. Brixx is renovating the decommissioned W.H. Sammis Power Plant and integrating their proprietary process for converting coal combustion waste into durable, non-toxic bricks and blocks. By 2025, Brixx will recycle the entire 20-million ton repository of fly ash at site into LEED-certified building materials. Brixx is the first company to receive a beneficial fly ash reuse permit from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency. PRISM worked with Randy Stremmel, CEO of Brixx, to develop the renderings needed to explain the project to city officials and environmental groups.
Once operational, the facility will be the first of its kind in the United States. Traditional brick and concrete production generates a high amount of CO2. The patented Brixx process uses 70% less energy and produces 80% less CO2. The fly ash is mixed with two binding agents, pressed into a mold, then cured under high pressure and steam. The 230-acre site has a fly ash pit that is 150 feet deep in place. Fly ash contains potential cancer-causing heavy metals like chromium and selenium that can leach into groundwater. Brixx will start operations by processing 80,000 tons of fly ash before ramping up to 200,000 tons. The company plans to add a second, larger processing facility that can handle 1 million tons. At that capacity, Brixx will have the site cleaned and closed before the end of 2025. The Ohio EPA awarded Brixx a $200,000 Market Development Grant to bring this groundbreaking technology to the state.
