An Experimental Study on Thermal Properties of Sustainable Bricks Made from Local Industrial Waste

Rapid development around the globe, increase of population and construction with the latest and megastructures have escalated the demand for energy. The increasing of ambient outdoor temperature requires mechanical air conditioners to maintain a comfortable environment within the building, this contributes to high energy consumption. Building with good thermal conductivity properties passively reduces energy consumption. This experimental work focuses on four (4) brick systems which are Laterite Clay (LC), Solid Waste Fly Ash (SWFA) Bricks, Laterite SWFA (LS) Brick, and Laterite SWFA Paint Sludge (LSP) Bricks. Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC), Hydrate Lime (HL), and Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBS) were used as stabiliser. Higher thermal conductivity was recorded for all bricks systems that stabilised with HL. Thermal conductivity was significantly reduced when GGBS was incorporated as a blended stabiliser. SWFA bricks system recorded the lowest thermal conductivity of all bricks systems investigated. A lower thermal conductivity value indicates better thermal properties. In all brick-wall systems, the thermal conductivity was found to increase linearly with density.

Investigating the reduction of BTEX in automotive paint sludge combined with biological sludge by vermicomposting process using Eisenia fetida

Background: Due to the fact that in the process of car painting in the automotive industry, sludge containing dangerous compounds of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylene which cannot be released into the environment without purification, is inevitably produced, this study was conducted to investigate the feasibility of removing BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene) from the paint sludge of Saipa Automotive Company using Eisenia fetida worms. Methods: This is an experimental study. First, mixtures with different proportions of sludge were prepared and loaded in suitable boxes. After preparing the desired sludge, their quantitative and qualitative characteristics were determined in terms of type and amount of BTEX, volatile materials, moisture content, and C/N ratio. Then, to check the changes in BTEX, sampling was performed on different days during 90 days. BTEX measurements were performed using GC-MS method (NIOSH Method 1501). Results: The results showed that in the best mixing ratio of sludge, the amount of benzene decreased from 3 mg to less than 0.01 mg in 30 days, toluene decreased from 1.5 mg to zero over a 45-day period, ethyl benzene was reduced from 7 mg to zero mg over 70 days, and xylene decreased from 18 mg to 0.9 mg over 90 days. In addition, in the same optimal mixing ratio, the amount of volatile organic matter, pH, and C/N ratio also had a decreasing trend in the vermicomposting process. Conclusion: According to the results, E. fetida worms are able to work in mixed sludge and have the ability to break down BTEX.

Development of Sustainable LSP-Bricks Using Local Industrial Wastes

Uncontrolled infrastructure development may produce excessive carbon emission and scarcity of natural resources. The reuse of waste materials in general promotes material ecology and the cradle-to-cradle concept. The utilisation of industrial waste in the development of advanced materials promoting the extensive research on sustainable building components. The main objective of this research is to investigate the potential of utilising local industrial waste, Solid Waste Fly Ash (SwFA) and Paint Sludge (PS) as target material in replacing laterite soil that is non-renewable natural resources. Standard industrial size bricks were fabricated consist the combination of Laterite Clay, SwFA and PS (LSP) at 50:25:25 ratios. The results for engineering and environmental properties were within the acceptable of engineering standards and performances. This test result suggests potential used of SwFA and Paint Sludge as substitute to clay for unfired brick. This will certainly contribute to the recycling of SwFA and industrial sludge (Paint Sludge andpossibly others) and hence to minimise the impact of these by-product to the environment if send to landfill. The manufacture of unfired bricks can exploit locally available waste materials and can be used in certain applications of low load bearing situation. This research also suggests innovation and enhanced waste management and contribution towards the concept of green building components. Keywords: Industrial waste, eco-bricks, durability, thermal, acoustic

Conversion of automotive paint sludge to activated carbon via microwave pyrolysis technique for supercapacitor application

Conversion of waste to wealth has been one of the ways to reduce the volume of industrial waste to disposal site, hence reducing the impact to the environment. In this work, paint sludge from an automotive industry (APS) was converted into activated carbon through chemical activation (potassium hydroxide (KOH)) using microwave pyrolysis technique. The effect of power and radiation time on the produced activated carbon were investigated and characterised (carbon content, surface area, and pore volume) to identify the possibility of application as a supercapacitor. Potassium hydroxide activation of the APS char via microwave pyrolysis has shown that power level and radiation time has influenced the yield of the APS activated carbon. A longer radiation time and higher power supply has produced activated carbon having higher carbon contents, lower impurities, higher surface area and higher pore volume. Thus, the APS activated carbon obtained via microwave pyrolysis at power supply 1000 W and 45 minutes radiation time had produced the highest surface area and total pore volume of 434.3 m2/g and 0.2901 cm3/g, respectively. However, the produced activated carbon is not suitable for the supercapacitor application as the minimum surface area requirement must be more than 1000 m2/g. The pore size of the activated APS char produced in this study was in the range of mesopores size which was also considered very poor for supercapacitor application. The outcome of this research has shown that the produced activated carbon could otherwise be used for other application than a supercapacitor.