Effect of alkali cation type on compressive strength and thermal performance of the alkali-activated omphacite tailing

Ordinary Portland Cement is the most widely used binder in the construction sector; however, a very high carbon footprint is associated with its production process. Consequently, more sustainable alternative construction materials are being investigated, namely, one-part alkali activated materials (AAMs). In this work, waste-based one-part AAMs binders were developed using only a blast furnace slag, as the solid precursor, and sodium metasilicate, as the solid activator. For the first time, mortars in which the commercial sand was replaced by two exhausted sands from biomass boilers (CA and CT) were developed. Firstly, the characterization of the slag and sands (aggregates) was performed. After, the AAMs fresh and hardened state properties were evaluated, being the characterization complemented by FTIR and microstructural analysis. The binder and the mortars prepared with commercial sand presented high compressive strength values after 28 days of curing-56 MPa and 79 MPa, respectively. The mortars developed with exhausted sands exhibit outstanding compressive strength values, 86 and 70 MPa for CT and CA, respectively, and the other material’s properties were not affected. Consequently, this work proved that high compressive strength waste-based one-part AAMs mortars can be produced and that it is feasible to use another waste as aggregate in the mortar’s formulations: the exhausted sands from biomass boilers.

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Soft Computing Techniques for the Prediction and Analysis of Compressive Strength of Alkali-Activated Alumino-Silicate Based Strain-Hardening Geopolymer Composites

Silicon ◽

10.1007/s12633-021-00988-7 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

K. K. Yaswanth ◽

J. Revathy ◽

P. Gajalakshmi

Keyword(s):

Compressive Strength ◽

Strain Hardening ◽

Soft Computing ◽

Soft Computing Techniques ◽

Alumino Silicate ◽

Alkali Activated ◽

Geopolymer Composites

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The Effect of Different Types of Internal Curing Liquid on the Properties of Alkali-Activated Slag (AAS) Mortar

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13042407 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (4) ◽

pp. 2407

Author(s):

Guang-Zhu Zhang ◽

Xiao-Yong Wang ◽

Tae-Wan Kim ◽

Jong-Yeon Lim ◽

Yi Han

Keyword(s):

Mechanical Properties ◽

Compressive Strength ◽

Deionized Water ◽

Internal Curing ◽

Control Group ◽

Alkali Activated Slag ◽

Different Types ◽

Naoh Solution ◽

Activated Slag ◽

Alkali Activated

This study shows the effect of different types of internal curing liquid on the properties of alkali-activated slag (AAS) mortar. NaOH solution and deionized water were used as the liquid internal curing agents and zeolite sand was the internal curing agent that replaced the standard sand at 15% and 30%, respectively. Experiments on the mechanical properties, hydration kinetics, autogenous shrinkage (AS), internal temperature, internal relative humidity, surface electrical resistivity, ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV), and setting time were performed. The conclusions are as follows: (1) the setting times of AAS mortars with internal curing by water were longer than those of internal curing by NaOH solution. (2) NaOH solution more effectively reduces the AS of AAS mortars than water when used as an internal curing liquid. (3) The cumulative heat of the AAS mortar when using water for internal curing is substantially reduced compared to the control group. (4) For the AAS mortars with NaOH solution as an internal curing liquid, compared with the control specimen, the compressive strength results are increased. However, a decrease in compressive strength values occurs when water is used as an internal curing liquid in the AAS mortar. (5) The UPV decreases as the content of zeolite sand that replaces the standard sand increases. (6) When internal curing is carried out with water as the internal curing liquid, the surface resistivity values of the AAS mortar are higher than when the alkali solution is used as the internal curing liquid. To sum up, both NaOH and deionized water are effective as internal curing liquids, but the NaOH solution shows a better performance in terms of reducing shrinkage and improving mechanical properties than deionized water.

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Enhancing Density-Based Mining Waste Alkali-Activated Foamed Materials Incorporating Expanded Cork

CivilEng ◽

10.3390/civileng2020029 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 2 (2) ◽

pp. 523-540

Author(s):

Imed Beghoura ◽

Joao Castro-Gomes

Keyword(s):

Mechanical Properties ◽

Compressive Strength ◽

Pore Size ◽

Physical And Mechanical Properties ◽

Critical Parameters ◽

Porous Structures ◽

Foaming Agent ◽

Al Powder ◽

Highly Porous ◽

Alkali Activated

This study focuses on the development of an alkali-activated lightweight foamed material (AA-LFM) with enhanced density. Several mixes of tungsten waste mud (TWM), grounded waste glass (WG), and metakaolin (MK) were produced. Al powder as a foaming agent was added, varying from 0.009 w.% to 0.05 w.% of precursor weight. Expanded granulated cork (EGC) particles were incorporated (10% to 40% of the total volume of precursors). The physical and mechanical properties of the foamed materials obtained, the effects of the amount of the foaming agent and the percentage of cork particles added varying from 10 vol.% to 40% are presented and discussed. Highly porous structures were obtained, Pore size and cork particles distribution are critical parameters in determining the density and strength of the foams. The compressive strength results with different densities of AA-LFM obtained by modifying the foaming agent and cork particles are also presented and discussed. Mechanical properties of the cured structure are adequate for lightweight prefabricated building elements and components.

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Machine Learning Approaches for Prediction of the Compressive Strength of Alkali Activated Termite Mound Soil

Applied Sciences ◽

10.3390/app11114754 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (11) ◽

pp. 4754

Author(s):

Assia Aboubakar Mahamat ◽

Moussa Mahamat Boukar ◽

Nurudeen Mahmud Ibrahim ◽

Tido Tiwa Stanislas ◽

Numfor Linda Bih ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Compressive Strength ◽

Construction Materials ◽

Curing Temperature ◽

Sustainable Construction ◽

Support Vector ◽

Learning Approaches ◽

Artificial Neural Network Ann ◽

Curing Regime ◽

Alkali Activated

Earth-based materials have shown promise in the development of ecofriendly and sustainable construction materials. However, their unconventional usage in the construction field makes the estimation of their properties difficult and inaccurate. Often, the determination of their properties is conducted based on a conventional materials procedure. Hence, there is inaccuracy in understanding the properties of the unconventional materials. To obtain more accurate properties, a support vector machine (SVM), artificial neural network (ANN) and linear regression (LR) were used to predict the compressive strength of the alkali-activated termite soil. In this study, factors such as activator concentration, Si/Al, initial curing temperature, water absorption, weight and curing regime were used as input parameters due to their significant effect in the compressive strength. The experimental results depict that SVM outperforms ANN and LR in terms of R2 score and root mean square error (RMSE).

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Alkali-Activated Zeolite 4A Granules—Characterization and Suitability Assessment for the Application of Adsorption

Crystals ◽

10.3390/cryst11040360 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (4) ◽

pp. 360

Author(s):

Pauls P. Argalis ◽

Laura Vitola ◽

Diana Bajare ◽

Kristine Vegere

Keyword(s):

Compressive Strength ◽

Raw Materials ◽

Physical And Mechanical Properties ◽

Morphological Properties ◽

Solid Ratio ◽

Suitability Assessment ◽

Bet Analysis ◽

Zeolite 4A ◽

Compressive Strength Test ◽

Alkali Activated

A major problem in the field of adsorbents is that binders (kaolin clay, bentonite) introduced to bind zeolites and ensure the needed mechanical strength, are not able to sorb gases like CO2 and N2, and decrease the overall adsorption capacity. To solve this problem, one of the pathways is to introduce a binder able to sorb such gases. Thus, in this study, the physical and mechanical properties of a novel binder based on metakaolin and its composite with zeolite 4A in the granular form were studied. Metakaolin was used as a precursor for alkali-activated binder, which was synthesized using an 8M NaOH activation solution. Raw materials were characterized using granulometry, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and differential thermal analysis (DTA); and final products were characterized using density measurements, a compressive strength test, XRD, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) analysis, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Alkali-activated metakaolin was found to be efficient as a binding material when data for morphological properties were analyzed. A relationship was observed—by increasing the liquid-to-solid ratio (L/S), compressive strength decreased. Zeolite granule attrition was higher than expected: 2.42% and 4.55% for ZG-0.8, 3.64% and 5.76% for ZG-1.0, and 2.73% and 4.85% for ZG-1.2, measured at 4 and 5 atmospheres, respectively.

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Grinding Kinetics of Slag and Effect of Final Particle Size on the Compressive Strength of Alkali Activated Materials

Minerals ◽

10.3390/min9110714 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (11) ◽

pp. 714 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Evangelos Petrakis ◽

Vasiliki Karmali ◽

Georgios Bartzas ◽

Konstantinos Komnitsas

Keyword(s):

Particle Size ◽

Compressive Strength ◽

Particle Size Distribution ◽

Size Distribution ◽

Ageing Time ◽

Reduction Rate ◽

Curing Temperature ◽

Alkali Activation ◽

Final Particle ◽

Alkali Activated

This study aims to model grinding of a Polish ferronickel slag and evaluate the particle size distributions (PSDs) of the products obtained after different grinding times. Then, selected products were alkali activated in order to investigate the effect of particle size on the compressive strength of the produced alkali activated materials (AAMs). Other parameters affecting alkali activation, i.e., temperature, curing, and ageing time were also examined. Among the different mathematical models used to simulate the particle size distribution, Rosin–Rammler (RR) was found to be the most suitable. When piecewise regression analysis was applied to experimental data it was found that the particle size distribution of the slag products exhibits multifractal character. In addition, grinding of slag exhibits non-first-order behavior and the reduction rate of each size is time dependent. The grinding rate and consequently the grinding efficiency increases when the particle size increases, but drops sharply near zero after prolonged grinding periods. Regarding alkali activation, it is deduced that among the parameters studied, particle size (and the respective specific surface area) of the raw slag product and curing temperature have the most noticeable impact on the compressive strength of the produced AAMs.

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Process Design for a Production of Sustainable Materials from Post-Production Clay

Materials ◽

10.3390/ma14040953 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 (4) ◽

pp. 953

Author(s):

Michał Łach ◽

Reda A. Gado ◽

Joanna Marczyk ◽

Celina Ziejewska ◽

Neslihan Doğan-Sağlamtimur ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mechanical Properties ◽

Compressive Strength ◽

Waste Production ◽

Sustainable Materials ◽

Post Production ◽

Rich Material ◽

Jurassic Limestone ◽

By Products ◽

Alkali Activated

Alkali activated cement (AAC) can be manufactured from industrial by-products to achieve goals of “zero-waste” production. We discuss in detail the AAC production process from (waste) post-production clay, which serves as the calcium-rich material. The effect of different parameters on the changes in properties of the final product, including morphology, phase formation, compressive strength, resistance to the high temperature, and long-term curing is presented. The drying and grinding of clay are required, even if both processes are energy-intensive; the reduction of particle size and the increase of specific surface area is crucial. Furthermore, calcination at 750 °C ensure approximately 20% higher compressive strength of final AAC in comparison to calcination performed at 700 °C. It resulted from the different ratio of phases: Calcite, mullite, quartz, gehlenite, and wollastonite in the final AAC. The type of activators (NaOH, NaOH:KOH mixtures, KOH) affected AAC mechanical properties, significantly. Sodium activators enabled obtaining higher values of strength. However, if KOH is required, the supplementation of initial materials with fly ash or metakaolin could improve the mechanical properties and durability of AAC, even c.a. 28%. The presented results confirm the possibility of recycling post-production clay from the Raciszyn II Jurassic limestone deposit.

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