Does the chromium VI directive for cement effect PFA in anyway?
The EU Directive, 2003/53/EC, restricts the marketing and use of cement and cement-based preparations, where they contain when hydrated, more than 0.0002 % (2 ppm) chromium VI of the dry weight of cement. It is the responsibility of the cement producer to ensure this limit is adhered to by testing their products and adding an appropriate reducing agent. The cement industry have full details about Chromium VI, see the British Cement Association web site, including the timetable of implementation and advice on reducing agents. The chromium VI content of PFA is generally very low, though occasional samples are found with values close to the 0.0002% limit. We have published a Position Paper on this issue which outlines some of the problems found with the EU Directive.
