Volume Deformation and Hydration Behavior of Ordinary Portland Cement/Calcium Sulfoaluminate Cement Blends.

Blends of ordinary Portland cement (OPC) and calcium sulfoaluminate (CSA) cement can be used to adjust the properties of cement for specific applications. In this study, CSA cement was used as a shrinkage-compensating admixture to improve the hydration behavior and performance (compressive strength and drying shrinkage) of OPC; the expansion behavior of the blended cement mortar was evaluate based on the saturation index of ettringite. The experimental results showed that incorporating CSA cement resulted in a delayed effect on the hydration of C3S, shortened the induction periods of the blended cement and decreased the setting time. The CSA cement also improved the early compressive strength and drying shrinkage of the OPC due to its compact microstructure. The drying shrinkage of the OPC mortar decreased by 27.8% when 6% CSA cement was used, but the formation of microcracks due to expansion could negatively impact its late compressive strength development and associated pore structures of the blends when the replacement content of CSA cement exceeded 6 wt.%. The results relevant to the expansion behavior of the CSA cements could induce crystallization stress, enhancing its resistance against shrinkage cracking.

Effect of alkaline washing treatment on leaching behavior of municipal solid waste incineration bottom ash.

This study aimed to find an effective, inexpensive, and safe washing treatment for municipal solid waste incineration bottom ash (MSWIBA) in order to reduce its potential harmful effects in disposal and recycling. The washing solutions, namely tap water (TW), saturated lime water (SLW), and wastewater from concrete batching plant (WW) were used to wash MSWIBA at different liquid-solid (L/S) ratios and for different durations. Leaching behavior of some heavy metals, chloride, and sulfate from MSWIBA was tested and evaluated. From the TCLP leaching test, when the L/S ratio was above 5, WW was the most effective solution in reducing As, Cd, Se, and Sb emissions from MSWIBA. The calcium and iron ions present in the WW were essential for controlling the leaching of As, Cd, and Sb from MSWIBA due to the formation of stable crystalline pharmacosiderite, cadmium hydroxide sulfate, and hydromeite during the washing process. Using WW showed the best effect in removing sulfate from MSWIBA. At a L/S ratio of 10, about 83% of the sulfate could be removed from MSWIBA after 20 min of washing. The L/S ratio was most influential in removing chloride from MSWIBA. The three washing treatments chosen were effective in reducing the chloride level in MSWIBA to below the level of hazardous waste. Nevertheless, there were still substantial amounts of chloride remaining in the treated MSWIBA. Under the Dutch Building Materials Decree, the treated MSWIBA may be used as a building material in parts which allow isolation, control, and monitoring (ICM).

Improving the Mechanical Properties of Sulfoaluminate Cement-Based Grouting Material by Incorporating Limestone Powder for a Double Fluid System.

To improve the hardening performance of sulfoaluminate cement-based grouting material (SCGM) and reduce its cost, limestone powder was adopted to replace anhydrite in the control SCGM. The influence of the replacement rate of limestone powder on the hydration, hardening strength, expansion, and microstructure evolution of the SCGM was systematically researched. The results indicated that replacing anhydrite with limestone powder in SCGM can improve the flowability, shorten the setting time, and enhance the compressive strength at early and late stages. When the replacement rate of limestone powder was 20%, the compressive strength of SCGM for 6 h and 28 days increased by 146.41% and 22.33%, respectively. These enhancements were attributed to the fact that fine limestone powder can accelerate the early hydration reaction rate and promote the formation of ettringite due to its nucleation effect. Moreover, due to the presence of limestone powder, mono-carbonate (Mc) can be formed, which would densify the microstructure and refine the pore structure of the hardened SCGM.

Immobilization of hazardous municipal solid waste incineration fly ash by novel alternative binders derived from cementitious waste.

This work aims to immobilize hazardous municipal solid waste incineration fly ash (IFA) using alternative binders recycled from cementitious waste (CW) that was dehydrated. The dehydration temperature of CW applied was 200 °C, 500 °C and 800 °C, and the resulted binder was labelled as DCW2, DCW5 and DCW8, respectively. Thermal treatment increased the rehydration capacity of DCWs. Higher temperatures at 500 °C) can increase the amount of dehydrated phases, and contribute to a higher 28-day strength of DCW pastes. The DCW5 paste had the highest 28-day strength which was 18.74 MPa. The dicalcium silicate phase can be formed in DCW8, which resulted in its slow strength development and a lower 28-day strength compared to the DCW5 paste (about 50 % lower). Chloride contained in IFA can take part in the DCW hydration and contribute to the strength development of the binder-IFA pastes. The use of DCWs as binders had better immobilization efficiency of Pb compared to OPC. Furthermore, the CO2 emission for preparing DCW2, DCW5, and DCW8 was 94 %, 86 % and 65 % lower than that of OPC, respectively. The DCWs can be considered as alternative binders regarding the recycling and immobilization of IFA.

Use of CO2 curing to enhance the properties of cold bonded lightweight aggregates (CBLAs) produced with concrete slurry waste (CSW) and fine incineration bottom ash (IBA).

In this study, concrete slurry waste (CSW) obtained from ready-mixed concrete plants was recycled as a fresh cementitious binder and used together with municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) fine bottom ash (IBA) from waste-to-energy plants to produce cold bonded lightweight aggregates (CBLAs) by using a pelletizing technique. The influence of different curing methods on the properties of the produced CBLAs were experimentally investigated, including moist curing, steam curing, and accelerated CO2 curing at 0.1 bar and flow-through CO2 curing under ambient pressure. The results showed that CBLAs obtained by steam curing at 60 °C had the highest pellet strength, and the CO2 cured samples had the lowest water absorption values. CO2 curing with a pressure of 0.1 bar promoted a better pellet strength. The CO2 curing method can sequestrate 3.5-4.1% (by mass of pellets) of CO2, which can serve as a sustainable CO2 sequestration process to produce CBLAs.

Valorization of concrete slurry waste (CSW) and fine incineration bottom ash (IBA) into cold bonded lightweight aggregates (CBLAs): Feasibility and influence of binder types.

In this study, concrete slurry waste (CSW) and fine incineration bottom ash (IBA) (<2.36 mm) were innovatively valorized to produce cold bonded lightweight aggregates (CBLAs) through a pelletizing method. The contribution of CSW to CBLAs as a fresh recycled cementitious paste was investigated and the influences of adding various binders (OPC, GGBS, lime, silica fume) on the properties of CBLAs were explored. Meanwhile, the leaching behaviours of the produced CBLAs were further assessed. The experimental results showed that CSW and IBA had a good compatibility to produce CBLAs by the pelletizing method. The use of fresh and workable CSW collected from ready-mixed concrete plants as a recycled cementitious paste could effectively bond the IBA particles. Due to the residual hydration behaviour of CSW, the produced CBLAs, even without additional binders, had good mechanical properties. The use of small percentages of cement and GGBS as additional binders could significantly increase the strength of CBLAs, while the use of lime and silica fume only showed slight improvement due to the high porosity induced. Moreover, it was found that using GGBS which could react with Ca(OH)2 in CSW to lower the pH benefited the immobilization of heavy metals in CBLAs.

Removal of metallic Al and Al/Zn alloys in MSWI bottom ash by alkaline treatment.

In order to reduce the leaching of pollutants and remove the Al and Zn/Al alloy from municipal solid waste incineration bottom ash (MSWIBA), an optimized alkaline pre-treatment procedure was developed in this study. The influences of alkaline conditions on the removal rate of Al and Zn/Al alloy were investigated, including [OH]- concentration, temperature, particle size, liquid/solid ratio and treatment duration. The experimental results showed that the optimized alkaline pre-treatment conditions to efficiently remove the Al and Zn/Al alloy was by using a minimum of 1.0mol/l [OH]-, at 55°C and with a minimal liquid/solid ratio of 5. The removal rate of Al and Zn/Al alloy followed an S-shape curve, in which the slow beginning stage was attributed to the protection of the oxidation layer and the quenched product around the Al and Al/Zn alloy. After 3h of the optimized alkaline pre-treatment, the leaching of Cr, Cu, Pb and Zn of the treated MSWIBA was reduced by more than 90% of that of the original MSWIBA. The alkali-silica reaction test further indicated that the expansion of concrete prepared with the pre-treated MSWIBA was significantly reduced and there was no macro-crack or spalling damage on the surface of the tested specimens.

Sustainable management and utilisation of concrete slurry waste: A case study in Hong Kong.

With the promotion of environmental protection in the construction industry, the mission to achieve more sustainable use of resources during the production process of concrete is also becoming important. This study was conducted to assess the environmental sustainability of concrete slurry waste (CSW) management by life cycle assessment (LCA) techniques, with the aim of identifying a resource-efficient solution for utilisation of CSW in the production of partition wall blocks. CSW is the dewatered solid residues deposited in the sedimentation tank after washing out over-ordered/rejected fresh concrete and concrete trucks in concrete batching plants. The reuse of CSW as recycled aggregates or a cementitious binder for producing partition wall blocks, and the life cycle environmental impact of the blocks were assessed and compared with the conventional one designed with natural materials. The LCA results showed that the partition wall blocks prepared with fresh CSW and recycled concrete aggregates achieved higher sustainability as it consumed 59% lower energy, emitted 66% lower greenhouse gases, and produced lesser amount of other environmental impacts than that of the conventional one. When the mineral carbonation technology was further adopted for blocks curing using CO2, the global warming potential of the corresponding blocks production process was negligible, and hence the carbonated blocks may be considered as carbon neutral eco-product.

Innovative reuse of concrete slurry waste from ready-mixed concrete plants in construction products.

Concrete slurry waste (CSW) is generated from ready-mixed concrete plants during concrete production and is classified as a corrosive hazardous material. If it is disposed of at landfills, it would cause detrimental effects for our surrounding environment and ecosystems due to its high pH value as well as heavy metal contamination and accumulation. A new method in this study has been introduced to effectively reuse CSW in new construction products. In this method, the calcium-silicate rich CSW in the fresh state was considered as a cementitious paste as well as a CO2 capture medium. The experimental results showed that the pH values of the collected CSWs stored for 28 days ranged from 12.5 to 13.0 and a drastic decrease of pH value was detected after accelerated mineral carbonation. The theoretically calculated CO2 sequestration extent of CSWs was from 27.05% to 31.23%. The practical water to solid ratio in the fresh CSW varied from 0.76 to 1.12, which had a significant impact on the compressive strength of the mixture with CSWs. After subjecting to accelerated mineral carbonation, rapid initial strength development and lower drying shrinkage for the prepared concrete mixture were achieved.