Construction of the most modern power plant in Grudziądz, Poland

• Name

  Huge concrete foundation slab from a single casting for new power plant in Poland

• Country

  Poland, 2023

• Fields of Expertise

  Readymix

• Categories

  Concrete Goods

• Products

  Centrament N 9

In the city of Grudziądz around 120 km south of Gdansk, the ORLEN Group is currently building the most modern gas and steam turbine power plant, which consists of a power plant block, a generator and a wet cooling tower. A special feature of this prestigious project is the 44 m high and almost 3,000 t heavy waste heat boiler, which even uses the waste heat of energy generation and thus improves the energy efficiency of the plant. A huge concrete foundation slab had to be poured for the safety and stability of the construction of the heavy boiler and the entire additional infrastructure. The area designated for this purpose was previously stabilised with about 200 piles, which were sunk about 10 m deep into the ground.

Developing the optimum concrete mix

The general contractor is a consortium consisting of Siemens Energy Global GmbH & Co KG, Siemens Energy Sp. z o.o. and Mytilineos S.A. on behalf of ENERGA Grupa ORLEN. The concrete supplier was Thomas Beton Sp. z o.o., which brought MC-Bauchemie on board. Together, Thomas Beton and MC developed a suitable concrete mix for this mammoth task, as the huge foundation slab had to be concreted in one go. In order to ensure the required consistency of the concrete throughout the entire process, from transport and pouring to curing, MC's concrete experts recommended a combination of the concrete plasticiser Centrament N 9 and the superplasticiser MC-PowerFlow evo 508 for the selected CEM III cement.

Modern MC concrete admixtures for a mammoth task

While the concrete plasticiser Centrament N 9 ensures better dispersion of the cement and improved workability of the concrete, as well as a slight retarding effect, MC-PowerFlow evo ensures effective plastification and long consistency maintenance even under difficult conditions. The admixture is based on the latest MC polymer technology and offers confidence in the production of robust and rheologically optimised concretes with significantly reduced viscosity, improved pumpability and pump stability, and excellent compaction properties. The combination of the two admixtures fully met expectations, both in the fresh mix and in the hardened concrete. As the concrete was produced in four local Thomas Beton plants in Grudziądz, Chelmno, Lubicz and Kwidzyn, located at different distances from the site, it was also necessary to ensure that the concrete mixes from each plant arrived at the site with the same parameters. This, too, was achieved brilliantly.

Concrete delivery in 200 trips

Pouring of the concrete for the boiler foundation took place on 7th June from 3 am to 7 pm. A total of 1,609 m³ of concrete had been delivered to the site in 200 trips from the four concrete plants and had been poured into the foundation,. A masterpiece of logistics and concrete technology! Construction is progressing according to plan and the Grudziądz power station is due to be connected to the grid in 2025. It will be one of the largest and most modern power plants in Poland.