Use of waste gypsum to replace natural gypsum as set retarders in portland cement

The present study is focused on clarifying the influence of waste gypsum (WG) in replacing natural gypsum (NG) in the production of ordinary Portland cement (OPC). WG taken from slip casting moulds in a ceramic factory was formed from the hydration of plaster of paris. Clinker and 3–5 wt% of WG was ground in a laboratory ball mill to produce cement waste gypsum (CMWG). The same procedure was repeated with NG to substitute WG to prepare cement natural gypsum (CMNG). The properties of NG and WG were investigated via X-ray Diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC)/thermogravimetric (TG) to evaluate the properties of CMNG and CMWG. The mechanical properties of cement were tested in terms of setting time, flexural and compressive strength. The XRD result of NG revealed the presence of dihydrate while WG contained dihydrate and hemihydrate. The content of dihydrate and hemihydrates were obtained via DSC/TG, and the results showed that WG and NG contained 12.45% and 1.61% of hemihydrate, respectively. Furthermore, CMWG was found to set faster than CMNG, an average of 15.29% and 13.67% faster for the initial and final setting times, respectively. This was due to the presence of hemihydrate in WG. However, the values obtained for flexural and compressive strength were relatively the same for CMNG and CMWG. Therefore, this result provides evidence that WG can be used as an alternative material to NG in the production of OPC.     

An alternative method for the treatment of waste produced at a dye and a metal-plating industry using natural and/or waste materials.

The aim of this study was to develop cost-effective, appropriate solidification technologies for treating hazardous industrial wastes that are currently disposed of in ways that may threaten the quality of local groundwater. One major objective was to use materials other than cement, and preferably materials that are themselves wastes, as the solidification additives, namely using wastes to treat wastes or locally available natural material. This research examines the cement-based and lime-based stabilization/solidification (S/S) techniques applied for waste generated at a metal-plating industry and a dye industry. For the lime-based S/S process the following binder mixtures were used: cement kiln dust/ lime, bentonite/lime and gypsum/lime. For the cement-based S/S process three binder mixtures were used: cement kiln dust/cement, bentonite/cement and gypsum/cement. The leachability of the wastes was evaluated using the toxicity characteristic leaching procedure. The applicability and optimum weight ratio of the binder mixtures were estimated using the unconfined compressive strength test. The optimum ratio mixtures were mixed with waste samples in different ratios and cured for 28 days in order to find the S/S products with the highest strength and lowest leachability at the same time. The results of this work showed that the cement-and lime-based S/S process, using cement kiln dust and bentonite as additives can be effectively used in order to treat industrial waste.     

Performance evaluation of cement stabilized fly ash-GBFS mixes as a highway construction material

Fly ash and granulated blast furnace slag (GBFS) are major by-products of thermal and steel plants, respectively. These materials often cause disposal problems and environmental pollution. Detailed laboratory investigations were carried out on cement stabilized fly ash-(GBFS) mixes in order to find out its suitability for road embankments, and for base and sub-base courses of highway pavements. Proctor compaction test, unconfined compressive strength (UCS) test and California Bearing Ratio (CBR) test were conducted on cement stabilized fly ash-GBFS mixes as per the Indian Standard Code of Practice. Cement content in the mix was varied from 0% to 8% at 2% intervals, whereas the slag content was varied as 0%, 10%, 20%, 30% and 40%. Test results show that an increase of either cement or GBFS content in the mixture, results in increase of maximum dry density (MDD) and decrease of optimum moisture content (OMC) of the compacted mixture. The MDD of the cement stabilized fly ash-GBFS mixture is comparably lower than that of similarly graded natural inorganic soil of sand to silt size. This is advantageous in constructing lightweight embankments over soft, compressible soils. An increase in percentage of cement in the fly ash-GBFS mix increases enormously the CBR value. Also an increase of the amount of GBFS in the fly ash sample with fixed cement content improves the CBR value of the stabilized mix. In the present study, the maximum CBR value of compacted fly ash-GBFS-cement (52:40:8) mixture obtained was 105%, indicating its suitability for use in base and sub-base courses in highway pavements with proper combinations of raw materials.     

Geoenvironmental behavior of foundry sand amended mixtures for highway subbases

The high cost of landfilling and the potential uses of waste foundry sands have prompted research into their beneficial reuse. Roadways have a high potential for large volume usage of the foundry sands. A laboratory testing program was conducted on soil-foundry sand mixtures amended with cement and lime to assess their applicability as highway subbase materials. The mixtures were compacted in the laboratory at a variety of moisture contents and compactive efforts and subjected to unconfined compression, California bearing ratio, and hydraulic conductivity tests. The environmental suitability of the prepared mixtures was evaluated by analyzing the effluent collected during hydraulic conductivity tests. Finally, required subbase thicknesses were calculated using the laboratory-based strength parameters. The results of the study show that the strength of a mixture is highly dependent on the curing period, compactive energy, lime or cement presence, and water content at compaction. The resistance of foundry sand-based specimens to winter conditions is generally better than that of a typical subbase reference material. Laboratory leaching tests indicated that if these mixtures later come in contact with water that has been discharged directly to the environment (e.g., drainage through asphalt pavement), the quality of water will not be affected.     

Assessment of the leaching of metallic elements in the technology of solidification in aqueous solution

Results are presented of experiments performed to optimize the solidification/stabilization system for metallic elements in aqueous solution. This system involves mixing cement and a solution of metallic elements in a conventional mixer: the paste thus obtained is transferred drop by drop into a recipient filled with an aqueous solution of NaOH at 20% by weight, in which it solidifies immediately. The separate use of chloride solutions of Li+, Cr3+, Pb2+ and Zn2+ makes it possible to obtain granules displaying various levels of compressive strength. Three different inertization matrices were used in the experiments, the first consisting solely of Portland cement, the second of Portland cement and a superplasticizer additive, and the third of Portland cement partially replaced with silica-fume and superplasticizer. The results of the tests performed showed a very low level of leaching into the alkaline solidification solution for Cr3+, the quantity leached being under 2% as against higher levels for the other metallic elements. For all the considered elements, the best results were obtained by using silica-fume in the inertization matrix.     

Recycling of electrolytic manganese solid waste in autoclaved bricks preparation in China

China has played a dominant role in global electrolytic manganese metal (EMM) production, accounting for over 98 % of the total world capacity since 2008. However, with the rapid development of the EMM industry and depletion of mineral ores, electrolytic manganese solid waste (EMSW) is piling up, so more large-scale landfills are needed. The environmental problems generated by EMSW pose severe threats to soil and ground water, and have become the hot issues in society. The aim is to consume and recycle EMSW, and the primary route is to make autoclaved bricks. However, less attention has been given to the procedure and strength-forming mechanism of EMSW bricks, not to mention the production line of the brick. On the basis of physical and chemical property analysis, the pretreatment process of EMSW was indispensable to solidify/stabilize the heavy metals, such as Mn, Zn, Cd, Pb, etc.. This paper expatiated on the procedure of making EMSW autoclaved bricks, analyzed in detail the strength formed by different cementitious materials with cement properties, and introduced the practical engineering of EMSW autoclaved bricks. The results showed that the pretreatment process with quicklime was effective in solidifying/stabilizing the heavy metals. The compressive strength of EMSW bricks reached 10.05 MPa when quicklime 9 % (w/w) added. Cement may be an ideal cementitious material to create EMSW bricks of high strength in experiments and on the production line. Quicklime and cement used simultaneously produced a lower strength than that when adding cement alone because the gypsum from EMSW and an alkali could generate deleterious effects, e.g., expansion or burst. In the production line of EMSW bricks, an appropriate mix proportion to make high-quality autoclaved bricks was determined: EMSW 30–40 %, cement 10–20 %, and aggregates 40–60 %. The low content of heavy metals tested by toxicity leaching may deduce that the EMSW autoclaved bricks have low environmental risk. However, long-term environmental risk evaluation will be needed, requiring more tests and leaching modeling. Employing EMSW to make high-quality autoclaved bricks may be a promising waste-to-resource strategy.     

Incorporation of gypsum waste in ceramic block production: Proposal for a minimal battery of tests to evaluate technical and environmental viability of this recycling process

Civil engineering-related construction and demolition debris is an important source of waste disposed of in municipal solid waste landfills. After clay materials, gypsum waste is the second largest contributor to the residential construction waste stream. As demand for sustainable building practices grows, interest in recovering gypsum waste from construction and demolition debris is increasing, but there is a lack of standardized tests to evaluate the technical and environmental viability of this solid waste recycling process. By recycling gypsum waste, natural deposits of gypsum might be conserved and high amounts of the waste by-product could be reused in the civil construction industry. In this context, this paper investigates a physical property (i.e., resistance to axial compression), the chemical composition and the ecotoxicological potential of ceramic blocks constructed with different proportions of clay, cement and gypsum waste, and assesses the feasibility of using a minimal battery of tests to evaluate the viability of this recycling process. Consideration of the results for the resistance to axial compression tests together with production costs revealed that the best formulation was 35% of plastic clay, 35% of non-plastic clay, 10% of Portland cement and 20% of gypsum waste, which showed a mean resistance of 4.64 MPa. Energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry showed calcium and sulfur to be the main elements, while quartz, gypsum, ettringite and nacrite were the main crystalline compounds found in this formulation. Ecotoxicity tests showed that leachate from this formulation is weakly toxic toward daphnids and bacteria (EC_20% = 69.0 and 75.0, respectively), while for algae and fish the leachate samples were not toxic at the EC_50% level. Overall, these results show that the addition of 20% of gypsum waste to the ceramic blocks could provide a viable substitute for clay in the ceramics industry and the tests applied in this study proved to be a useful tool for the technical and environmental evaluation of this recycling process, bacterial and daphnid tests being more sensitive than algae and fish tests.     

Laboratory and field testing for utilization of an excavated soil as landfill liner material

This study investigates the feasibility of using a silty soil excavated in highway construction as landfill liner material. The tests were conducted both at laboratory and in situ scales, and the soil was tested in pure and lime treated forms. Different levels of compaction energy were used. For the field study, a test pad was constructed and in situ hydraulic conductivity experiments were conducted by sealed double ring infiltrometers (SDRI). Laboratory testing revealed that while lime treatment improved the shear strength, it resulted in higher hydraulic conductivity values compared to pure soil. It was observed that leachate permeation did not change the hydraulic conductivity of the pure and lime treated samples. Laboratory hydraulic conductivities were on the order of 10(-9) m/s and met the 1.0E-08 m/s criterion in the Turkish regulations, which is one order of magnitude higher than the value allowed in most developed countries. SDRI testing, which lasted for 6 mo, indicated that lime treatment increased the hydraulic conductivity of pure soil significantly in the field scale tests. In situ hydraulic conductivities were on the order of 1E-08 and 1E-07 m/s, and exceeded the allowable value in the Turkish regulations. Undisturbed samples collected from the test pad were not representative of field hydraulic conductivities. Contrary to laboratory findings, higher compaction efforts did not result in lower hydraulic conductivities in field scales. The study verified the importance of in situ hydraulic conductivity testing in compacted liners.     

Prediction of unconfined compressive strength of cement paste containing industrial wastes

Neural network analysis was used to construct models of unconfined compressive strength (UCS) as a function of mix composition using existing data from literature studies of Portland cement containing real industrial wastes. The models were able to represent the known non-linear dependency of UCS on curing time and water content, and generalised from the literature data to find relationships between UCS and quantities of five waste types. Substantial decreases in UCS were caused by all wastes; except for EAF dust, the effect was nonlinear with the greatest decrease caused initially by approx. 12% plating sludge, 40% foundry dust, 58% other ash, and 72% MSWI fly ash by mass of dry product. It appears that the maximum waste additions used in modelling may approximate the practical limits of waste additions used in modelling may approximate the practical limits of waste addition to Portland cement, i.e., 50% plating sludge or EAF dust, 64% foundry dust, 92% other ash, and 85% MSWI fly ash by mass of dry product. The laboratory was found to be a key predictive variable and acted as a surrogate for laboratory-specific variables related to cement composition, strength and hardening class, product mixing and preparation details, laboratory conditions, and testing details. While the neural network modelling approach has been shown to be feasible, development of better models would require larger data sets with more complete information regarding laboratory-specific variables and waste composition.     

Odor Control for Land Application of Lime Stabilized Biosolids

Over three million dry metric tons of biosolids produced in the United States are land applied as Class B. Lime stabilization is employed for biosolids treatment at approximately 20% of the wastewater treatment plants because it is a simple and inexpensive process. During lime stabilization, the pH of sewage sludge is raised above 12 for pathogen inactivation and odor reduction. Lime dose and mixing have been found to greatly reduce odor generation from lime stabilized biosolids. A better quality biosolids product is less likely to create public opposition to land application programs. In this study, land application tests using Class B biosolids were conducted in order to determine whether better mixing can reduce odor generation during the land application of lime stabilized biosolids. The mixing quality of a treatment plant’s lime stabilized biosolids was improved by relocating the lime addition point, which prolonged the mixing time and produced a better mixed biosolids product. Based on field observations of land application, the poorly mixed biosolids were more odorous and offensive prior to incorporation. However, once incorporated into the soil, there was no appreciable odor difference between the biosolids. Another land application study was conducted to assess the odor of unincorporated Class A biosolids and compare it with incorporated Class A biosolids with the soil.     

Strength properties of concrete incorporating coal bottom ash and granulated blast furnace slag

Coal bottom ash (CBA) and fly ash (FA) are by-products of thermal power plants. Granulated blast-furnace slag (GBFS) is developed during iron production in iron and steel plants. This research was conducted to evaluate the compressive strength property and some durability characteristics of concrete incorporating FA, CBA, and GBFS. FA is used as an effective partial cement replacement; CBA and GBFS are used as partial replacement for fine aggregate without grinding. Water absorption capacity, unit weight and compressive strengths in 7, 28, and 90-day ages were assessed experimentally. For these experiments, concrete specimens were produced in the laboratory in appropriate shapes. The samples are divided into two main categories: M1, which incorporated CBA and GBFS; and M2, which incorporated FA, CBA, and GBFS. Remarkable decreases are observed in compressive strength and water absorption capacity of the concrete; bulk density of the concrete is also decreased. It can be concluded that if the content of CBA and GBFS is limited to a reasonable amount, the small decreases in strength can be accepted for low strength concrete works.     

Quick monitoring of pozzolanic reactivity of waste ashes

This article proposes a quick method of monitoring for pozzolanic reactivity of waste ashes by investigating the electrical conductivity of the suspension at an elevated temperature. This suspension is obtained by mixing tested pozzolan with an ordinary Portland cement (OPC) solution produced by mixing ordinary Portland cement with water. For comparison, silica fume, metakaolin, rice husk ash and river sand – whose pozzolanic reactivities range from reactive to inert – were used in the experimental investigation. The electrical conductivity of the suspension was continually recorded by using an electrical conductivity meter and stored by using a personal computer for a period of slightly over 1 day. The indicative parameters that can be related to pozzolanic reactivity were discussed and analyzed in detail. It was found that it is possible to determine the pozzolanic reactivity of fly ash within 28 h by using the proposed technique, as compared to 7 or 28 days for the determination of strength activity index according to ASTM. This technique would help concrete technologists to speedily investigate the quality of fly ash for use as a cement replacement in order to alleviate pollution caused by cement production and solve disposal problems of waste ashes.     

Assessment of the recycling potential of fresh concrete waste using a factorial design of experiments

Recycling of industrial wastes and by-products can help reduce the cost of waste treatment prior to disposal and eventually preserve natural resources and energy. To assess the recycling potential of a given waste, it is important to select a tool capable of giving clear indications either way, with the least time and work consumption, as is the case of modelling the system properties using the results obtained from statistical design of experiments. In this work, the aggregate reclaimed from the mud that results from washout and cleaning operations of fresh concrete mixer trucks (fresh concrete waste, FCW) was recycled into new concrete with various water/cement ratios, as replacement of natural fine aggregates. A 3² factorial design of experiments was used to model fresh concrete consistency index and hardened concrete water absorption and 7- and 28-day compressive strength, as functions of FCW content and water/cement ratio, and the resulting regression equations and contour plots were validated with confirmation experiments. The results showed that the fresh concrete workability worsened with the increase in FCW content but the water absorption (5–10 wt.%), 7-day compressive strength (26–36 MPa) and 28-day compressive strength (32–44 MPa) remained within the specified ranges, thus demonstrating that the aggregate reclaimed from FCW can be recycled into new concrete mixtures with lower natural aggregate content.     

Cement based solidification/stabilization of arsenic-contaminated mine tailings

Cement was used to solidify/stabilize the abandoned mine tailings contaminated primarily with arsenic (up to 88 mg/kg) and lead (up to 35 mg/kg). Solidified/stabilized (s/s) forms with a range of cement contents, 5–30 wt%, were evaluated to determine the optimal binder content. Unconfined compression strength test (UCS), Korean standard leaching tests, toxicity characteristic leaching procedures (TCLP), and synthetic precipitation leaching procedure (SPLP) were used for physical and chemical characterization of the s/s forms. Addition of 5% cement was enough for the s/s forms to satisfy the UCS requirements (0.35 MPa). The addition of 7.5% cement remarkably reduced the leachability of arsenic in tailings. However, that of lead tends to increase slightly with increase of cement content due to its amphoteric nature. The discussions were made for determination of optimal binder content and for results from different evaluation procedures.     

Application of recycled aggregate porous concrete pile (RAPP) to improve soft ground

In this study, a series of laboratory chamber tests was carried out to evaluate the applicability of a porous concrete pile fabricated with recycled aggregates for soft ground improvement. The recycled aggregate porous concrete pile (RAPP) has been developed to replace natural aggregates and to overcome technical problems associated with the conventional compaction piling systems. The laboratory chamber tests for evaluating the performance of RAPP were carried out with a cylindrical mold of 280?mm in internal diameter and 580?mm in height. A replacement area ratio of 5?% and three different loading steps were applied in the chamber tests. The experimental results of the surface settlement, excess pore pressure and vertical stress distribution versus time were compared with those of the sand compaction pile (SCP) reinforced composite ground under the same experimental condition. In addition, the experimental results were compared with the numerical simulation using ABAQUS. The current study shows that the settlement reduction in the RAPP-reinforced system is?significantly enhanced due to load transfer from the soil formation to the RAPP. Furthermore, the comparison of consolidation rates shows that the RAPP can also accelerate the consolidation of soft clay formation because the RAPP behaves as a vertical drain.     

Sulfur polymer solidification/stabilization of elemental mercury waste

Elemental mercury, contaminated with radionuclides, presents a waste disposal problem throughout the Department of Energy complex. In this paper we describe a new process to immobilize elemental mercury wastes, including those contaminated with radionuclides, in a form that is non-dispersible, will meet EPA leaching criteria, and has low mercury vapor pressure. In this stabilization and solidification process, elemental mercury is combined with an excess of powdered sulfur polymer cement (SPC) and sulfide additives in a mixing vessel and heated to approximately 40 degrees C for several hours, until all of the mercury is converted into mercuric sulfide (HgS). Additional SPC is then added and the temperature of the mixture raised to 135 degrees C, resulting in a molten liquid which is poured into a mold where it cools and solidifies. The final treated waste was characterized by powder X-ray diffraction and found to be a mixture of the hexagonal and orthorhombic forms of mercuric sulfide. The Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure was used to assess mercury releases, which for the optimized process averaged 25.8 microg/l, with some samples being well below the new EPA Universal Treatment Standard of 25 microg/l. Longer term leach tests were also conducted, indicating that the leaching process was dominated by diffusion. Values for the effective diffusion coefficient averaged 7.6x10(-18) cm2/s. Concentrations of mercury vapor from treated waste in equilibrium static headspace tests averaged 0.6 mg/m3.     

Use of waste ash from palm oil industry in concrete

Palm oil fuel ash (POFA), a by-product from the palm oil industry, is disposed of as waste in landfills. In this study, POFA was utilized as a pozzolan in concrete. The original size POFA (termed OP) was ground until the median particle sizes were 15.9 microm (termed MP) and 7.4 microm (termed SP). Portland cement Type I was replaced by OP, MP, and SP of 10%, 20%, 30%, and 40% by weight of binder. The properties of concrete, such as setting time, compressive strength, and expansion due to magnesium sulfate attack were investigated. The results revealed that the use of POFA in concretes caused delay in both initial and final setting times, depending on the fineness and degree of replacement of POFA. The compressive strength of concrete containing OP was much lower than that of Portland cement Type I concrete. Thus, OP is not suitable to be used as a pozzolanic material in concrete. However, the replacement of Portland cement Type I by 10% of MP and 20% of SP gave the compressive strengths of concrete at 90 days higher than that of concrete made from Portland cement Type I. After being immersed in 5% of magnesium sulfate solution for 364 days, the concrete bar mixed with 30% of SP had the same expansion level as that of the concrete bar made from Portland cement Type V. The above results suggest that ground POFA is an excellent pozzolanic material and can be used as a cement replacement in concrete. It is recommended that the optimum replacement levels of Portland cement Type I by MP and SP are 20% and 30%, respectively.     

Reuse of municipal solid wastes incineration fly ashes in concrete mixtures

This study is aimed at assessing the feasibility of concrete production using stabilized m.s.w. (municipal solid waste) incineration fly ashes in addition to natural aggregates. The tested fly ashes were washed and milled, then stabilized by a cement-lime process and finally were reused as a "recycled aggregate" for cement mixture production, in substitution of a natural aggregate (with dosage of 200-400 kg m(-3)). These mixtures, after curing, were characterized with conventional physical-mechanical tests (compression, traction, flexure, modulus of elasticity, shrinkage). In samples containing 200 kg(waste) m(-3)(concrete), a good compressive strength was achieved after 28 days of curing. Furthermore, concrete leaching behavior was evaluated by means of different leaching tests, both on milled and on monolithic samples. Experimental results showed a remarkable reduction of metal leaching in comparison with raw waste. In some cases, similar behavior was observed in "natural" concrete (produced with natural aggregates) and in "waste containing" concrete.     

Utilization of waste glass in ECO-cement: strength properties and microstructural observations

Waste glass creates a serious environmental problem, mainly because of the inconsistency of the waste glass streams. The use of waste glass as a finely ground mineral additive (FGMA) in cement is a promising direction for recycling. Based on the method of mechano-chemical activation, a new group of ECO-cements was developed. In ECO-cement, relatively large amounts (up to 70%) of portland cement clinker can be replaced with waste glass. This report examines the effect of waste glass on the microstructure and strength of ECO-cement based materials. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) investigations were used to observe the changes in the cement hydrates and interface between the cement matrix and waste glass particles. According to the research results, the developed ECO-cement with 50% of waste glass possessed compressive strength properties at a level similar to normal portland cement.