Effect of Waste Ceramic Powder on Properties of Alkali-Activated Blast Furnace Slag Paste and Mortar

Abstract

Every year, ceramic tile factories and the iron smelting industry produce huge amounts of waste ceramic tiles and blast furnace slag (BFS), respectively. In the field of construction materials, this waste can be used as a raw material for binders, thus reducing landfill waste and mitigating environmental pollution. The purpose of this study was to mix waste ceramic powder (WCP) into BFS paste and mortar activated by sodium silicate and sodium hydroxide to study its effect on performance. BFS was partially replaced by WCP at the rate of 10–30% by weight. Some experimental studies were conducted on, for example, the fluidity, heat of hydration, compressive strength testing, ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), electrical resistivity, sulfuric acid attack, and chloride ion diffusion coefficient. Based on the results of these experiments, the conclusions are: (1) increasing the amount of waste ceramic powder in the mixture can improve the fluidity of the alkali-activated paste; (2) adding waste ceramic powder to the alkali-activated mortar can improve the resistance of the mortar to sulfuric acid; (3) adding waste ceramic powder to the alkali-activated mortar can increase the diffusion coefficient of chloride ions; (4) the early strength of alkali-activated mortar is affected by the Ca/Si ratio, while the later strength is affected by the change in the Si/Al ratio.