Bhubaneswar, Aug. 29: Hazardous red mud - a waste product generated in the industrial production of aluminium - could become an integral part of the construction industry, thanks to students of IIT, Bhubaneswar.

A team of institute researchers has developed self-compacting concrete (SCC) using two industrial waste products - fly ash and red mud - and are currently in the process of patenting the technology.

The bricks made out of this combination could replace traditional ones in construction. As an alternative to traditional raw materials used in brick production, using red mud will not only reduce the cost, but also have great environmental significance, said institute director R.V. Raja Kumar. Red mud was earlier used only to build embankments around water bodies and for road construction.

Made of 80 per cent fly ash and 20 per cent red mud, the model has a strength of around 50 to 60 mega Pascal, which can take a similar kind of load as traditional bricks, Raja Kumar said, adding that the product was now ready for marketing.

The project, sponsored by Nalco, began in 2014 with the initiative of School of Infrastructure professors B. Hanumanta Rao and P. Dinakar.

Industrial discharge of red mud is an environmental hazard because of its alkaline content. With several tonnes of this material produced annually, the disposal of red mud remains a major problem for the mining industry.

"However, the combination of red mud with fly ash is what makes it unique. We are now trying to improve it further," said School of Infrastructure research head R.K. Panda.