Effect of Fly Ash on the Properties of Ceramics Prepared from Steel Slag

• Main Authors: Yanbing Zong, Xuedong Zhang, Emile Mukiza, Xiaoxiong Xu, Fei Li
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2018-07-01
• Series: Applied Sciences
• Subjects: steel slag; fly ash; ceramics; crystalline phase; microstructures
• Online Access: http://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/8/7/1187

In this study, SiO2–Al2O3–CaO–MgO steel slag ceramics containing 5 wt % MgO were used for the preparation of ceramic bodies, with the replacement of 5–20 wt % quartz and feldspar by fly ash. The effect of the addition of fly ash on the sintering shrinkage, water absorption, sintering range, and flexural strength of the steel slag ceramic was studied. Furthermore, the crystalline phase transitions and microstructures of the sintered samples were investigated by XRD, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), and SEM. The results showed that the addition of fly ash affected the crystalline phases of the sintered ceramic samples. The main crystal phases of the base steel slag ceramic sample without fly ash were quartz, diopside, and augite. With increasing fly ash content, the quartz diffraction peak decreased gradually, while the diffraction peak intensity of anorthite became stronger. The mechanical properties of the samples decreased with the increasing amount of fly ash. The addition of fly ash (0–20 wt %) affected the optimum sintering temperature (1130–1160 °C) and widened the sintering range. The maximum addition amount of fly ash should be 15 wt %, for which the optimum sintering temperature was 1145 °C, water absorption was 0.03%, and flexural strength was 43.37 MPa higher than the Chinese national standard GBT 4100-2015 requirements.