Alkali-activated refractory wastes exposed to high temperatures: development and characterization

The feasibility to prepare alkali-activated materials starting from refractory wastes and their properties after exposure to high temperatures (800, 1000, 1200 and 1400 °C) were investigated. Two different aluminosilicate wastes were used: chamotte (CH, mainly composed of corundum, mullite and andalusite) and alumina-zirconia-silica (AZS, composed by baddeleyite, corundum and amorphous silica). Very high mechanical properties were achieved in both cases (28-days compressive strength of approx. 70 and 60 MPa for CH- and AZS-based pastes, respectively). Then, alkali-activated pastes were exposed to high temperatures. For both kinds of samples, a sharp increase of mechanical properties was obtained after exposure to 800 and 1000 °C thanks to the matrix densification. Above 1000 °C viscous sintering occurs leading to a further increase of mechanical properties. AZS-based materials were able to withstand high temperatures up to 1400 °C while CH-based pastes mechanical properties decrease at 1400 °C due to andalusite decomposition.