Evaluation of copper slag and stainless steel slag as replacements for blast furnace slag in binary and ternary alkali-activated cements

Commonly used alkali activation precursors such as blast furnace slag and fly ash will soon become less available due to resource competition, and may cease to be produced in certain regions. This limitation in future supply is a main driving force for the investigation of alternative precursor sources, such as non-blast furnace slags and non-ferrous slags, to produce alkali-activated binders. The current study investigates the incorporation of copper slag (CS) and stainless steel slag resulting from electric arc furnace operations (EAFSS) as partial replacements for ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) in producing alkali-activated materials (AAMs), at paste level. Five binary alkali-activated mixtures with different replacement levels of GGBFS with CS, and three ternary mixtures with both CS and EAFSS as partial and total replacements for GGBFS, are activated by a sodium silicate solution. Replacing GGBFS with CS and EAFSS retards the reaction kinetics, resulting in improved fresh-state properties of the investigated AAMs, better retention of workability and longer setting times. The reaction of alkali-activated 100% CS shows minimal initial exothermic activity until 3.5 h, when a single intense peak appears, representing delayed dissolution and subsequent polycondensation. X-ray diffraction (XRD) data indicate that the main crystalline phases of CS and EAFSS are stable in these alkaline systems; it is the glassy components that react. The use of CS and EAFSS in blended AAMs causes a minor increase in porosity of ~ 1–3% with respect to GGBFS only, and a small reduction in compressive and flexural strengths, although these reach 80 MPa and 8 MPa, respectively, after 28 days, even at a replacement level over 65 wt. %. Conversely, the 100% CS mixture exhibits a one-day compressive strength of 23 MPa, with a negligible increase thereafter. This result agrees with both FTIR and SEM analysis which highlight only minor changes in binder development after two days. It is believed that the unusual behaviour of CS in the investigated mixtures is related to the low availability of calcium in this precursor material.