Advancing Phosphate-Based Geopolymeric Materials: A Comparative Study and Sensitivity Analysis of Compaction and Heating Approaches
摘要
This study presents a novel approach for developing phosphate-based geopolymeric materials, emphasizing the replacement of conventional casted geopolymeric paste with a compaction technique for a slightly damp geopolymeric powder mixture, eliminating the heating process during elaboration. Three distinct elaboration methods were compared to assess the impact of this new approach. The investigation revealed significant outcomes: geopolymeric materials subjected to compaction exhibited accelerated consolidation within minutes, compared to the few hours required for casted-heated geopolymers. Additionally, the compaction method resulted in improved mechanical strength, achieving three times greater strength in 14 days with a value of 7.2 MPa according to the Brazilian test measurements. These materials also demonstrated exceptional durability, with only a 5% mechanical resistance drop after 24 h of water immersion, and improved dimensional stability compared to conventional casted-based geopolymers. Furthermore, compaction led to materials with reduced open porosity while retaining closed porosity, resulting in a final material with 28% of porosity. The research confirmed the formation of nearly identical geopolymeric materials regardless of the synthesis approach employed. However, the compaction-based method enhanced precursor reactivity and polycondensation kinetics. Sensitivity analyses demonstrated that increasing applied pressure and decreasing compaction speed significantly improved mechanical strength, with optimal values of 60 MPa pressure and 0.2 mm/min compaction speed. Conversely, for casted-based geopolymeric materials, increasing curing temperature to the range of 60–80 °C and extending the heating duration to 1–3 days significantly enhanced mechanical strength. Exceeding these values, however, could abruptly degrade the mechanical properties.