Nawaz, M, Heitor, A orcid.org/0000-0002-2346-8250 and Sivakumar, M (2022) Development and evaluation of a novel geopolymer based on basalt rock waste and ground granulated blast furnace slag. Australian Journal of Civil Engineering, 20 (2). pp. 424-443. ISSN 1448-8353
Abstract
Increase in industrial and construction activities has led to an enormous rise in waste generation and its hazardous impacts on the environment. Quarrying of rocks and manufacturing of artificial sands for civil engineering projects leads to the dumping of rock waste dust, which is a source of landfill problems. Further, excessive energy requirements for cement manufacturing, higher greenhouse gas emissions and rapid depletion of natural resources have focused the research towards the development of environment friendly and sustainable materials such as geopolymers. In this paper, a novel geopolymer has been developed from industrial wastes such as basalt rock fines considering partial replacement with ground granulated blast furnace slag up to 30%. After a detailed mix-design investigation, the optimum molarity (M) of the sodium hydroxide solution was found to be 8 M whereas the optimum ratio (R) of sodium silicate to sodium hydroxide solution as 0.75. Unconfined compressive strength evaluation showed 7-day strengths up to 34 MPa, comparable to geopolymers based on conventional precursor materials. The scanning electron microscopy imaging of the specimens revealed a dense geopolymer gel formation resulting in a homogeneous microstructure. As a result, this innovative material produced can be used as an alternative, sustainable and cost-effective construction material.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
---|---|
Authors/Creators: |
|
Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2021, Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis group. This is an author produced version of a paper published in Australian Journal of Civil Engineering. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Keywords: | basalt rock waste; blast furnace slag; Geopolymers; microstructure; unconfined strength |
Dates: |
|
Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Engineering & Physical Sciences (Leeds) > School of Civil Engineering (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 18 Oct 2021 13:08 |
Last Modified: | 20 Dec 2022 12:14 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Taylor and Francis |
Identification Number: | 10.1080/14488353.2021.1995132 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:179291 |