Environmentally responsible insulating construction blocks and structures constructed primarily of recycled materials are disclosed. The environmentally friendly construction blocks and structures comprise shredded rubber tire pieces coated with silica fume, slag cement and cement, which are then mixed with water and formed in a mold. A layer of grout or a fireproof material may be disposed on one side of the environmentally responsible insulating construction block. The environmentally responsible insulating construction blocks provide high insulation as well as strength for applications such as green roofing, wall construction and green roofing decks. Environmentally friendly structures can be built by pouring the coated shredded rubber tire pieces into molds to form walls, and then to pour a layer of the coated shredded rubber tire pieces as a roof deck, thereby creating a self-supporting structure in a monolithic pour.

The present invention relates to a method of enhancing the latent hydraulic and/or pozzolanic reactivity of materials, especially of waste and by-products, comprising the steps: providing a starting material containing sources for CaO and at least one of SiO.sub.2 and AI.sub.2O.sub.3 mixing the starting material with water at a water/solids ratio from 0.1 to 100 hydrothermal treating of the starting material mixed with water in an autoclave at a temperature of 100 to 300 C. and a residence time from 0.1 to 24 hours to provide an autoclaved product suitable as supplementary cementitious material.

The present invention relates to a method of enhancing the latent hydraulic and/or pozzolanic reactivity of materials, especially of waste and by-products, comprising the steps: providing a starting material containing sources for CaO and at least one of SiO.sub.2 and AI.sub.2O.sub.3 mixing the starting material with water at a water/solids ratio from 0.1 to 100 hydrothermal treating of the starting material mixed with water in an autoclave at a temperature of 100 to 300 C. and a residence time from 0.1 to 24 hours to provide an autoclaved product suitable as supplementary cementitious material.

There is provided a method of manufacturing a concrete product. A composition including a slag-based binder, an aggregate, water and an additive selected from the group consisting of calcium chloride, ground eggshells, sodium carbonate, sodium bicarbonate, sodium hydroxide, fine calcium carbonate, calcium oxide, borax, ammonium chloride and combinations thereof, is mixed to obtain a concrete mixture. The concrete mixture is formed into a desired shape to obtain a formed concrete, the formed concrete having a first water-to-binder ratio. The formed concrete is dried to obtain a dried concrete having a second water-to-binder ratio less than the first water-to-binder ratio. The concrete mixture is carbon cured to obtain the concrete product.

A system and method for applying a construction material is provided. The method may include mixing blast furnace slag material, geopolymer material, alkali-based powder, and sand at a batching and mixing device to generate a non-Portland cement-based material. The method may also include transporting the non-Portland cement-based material from the mixing device, through a conduit to a nozzle and combining the transported non-Portland cement-based material with liquid at the nozzle to generate a partially liquefied non-Portland cement-based material. The method may further include pneumatically applying the partially liquefied non-Portland cement-based material to a surface.

A system and method for applying a construction material is provided. The method may include mixing blast furnace slag material, geopolymer material, alkali-based powder, and sand at a batching and mixing device to generate a non-Portland cement-based material. The method may also include transporting the non-Portland cement-based material from the mixing device, through a conduit to a nozzle and combining the transported non-Portland cement-based material with liquid at the nozzle to generate a partially liquefied non-Portland cement-based material. The method may further include pneumatically applying the partially liquefied non-Portland cement-based material to a surface.

A system and method for applying a construction material is provided. The method may include mixing blast furnace slag material, geopolymer material, alkali-based powder, and sand at a batching and mixing device to generate a non-Portland cement-based material. The method may also include transporting the non-Portland cement-based material from the mixing device, through a conduit to a nozzle and combining the transported non-Portland cement-based material with liquid at the nozzle to generate a partially liquefied non-Portland cement-based material. The method may further include pneumatically applying the partially liquefied non-Portland cement-based material to a surface.

A system and method for applying a construction material is provided. The method may include mixing blast furnace slag material, geopolymer material, alkali-based powder, and sand at a batching and mixing device to generate a non-Portland cement-based material. The method may also include transporting the non-Portland cement-based material from the mixing device, through a conduit to a nozzle and combining the transported non-Portland cement-based material with liquid at the nozzle to generate a partially liquefied non-Portland cement-based material. The method may further include pneumatically applying the partially liquefied non-Portland cement-based material to a surface.

A system and method for applying a construction material is provided. The method may include mixing blast furnace slag material, geopolymer material, alkali-based powder, and sand at a mixing device to generate a non-Portland cement-based material. The method may also include transporting the non-Portland cement-based material from the mixing device, through a conduit to a nozzle and combining the transported non-Portland cement-based material with water at the nozzle to generate a partially liquefied non-Portland cement-based material. The method may further include pneumatically applying the partially liquefied non-Portland cement-based material to a surface.

A system and method for applying a construction material is provided. The method may include mixing blast furnace slag material, geopolymer material, alkali-based powder, and sand at a mixing device to generate a non-Portland cement-based material. The method may also include transporting the non-Portland cement-based material from the mixing device, through a conduit to a nozzle and combining the transported non-Portland cement-based material with water at the nozzle to generate a partially liquefied non-Portland cement-based material. The method may further include pneumatically applying the partially liquefied non-Portland cement-based material to a surface.