Sustainable Cements for Metal Contamination Reduction
摘要
The search for environmentally friend materials in our industrial activity constitutes an existing challenge to preserve our habitat. This work focuses in the synthesis of sulfobelitic clinkers lead-zinc mining tailings and red mud sludge from bauxite extraction. For the first tests, sulfobelitic clinkers were produced by using lead and zinc mine wastes. After addition of high grade alumina and calcite, sintered trialuminate sulfate (C4A3Š), belite (C2S), and ferrite (C4AF) crystalline phases was detected in the desirable amounts as predicted by the phase diagram. After a curing period of 28 days, the best uniaxial compressive strength 25 MPa was achieved by the clinker with suitable particle size distribution calcined at 1350 °C. The red mud sludge generated in the bauxite extraction process was recycled as iron oxide source in the formulation of alternative clinkers. After 7 days curing, the compressive strength was evaluated, having obtained promising values of about 13 MPa. For both derived clinkers, immobilization of harmful metals from the raw materials was achieved. Leaching results showed a high contaminants’ immobilization rate; up to 95% of Pb in formulated clinkers, presenting no hazardous threats to the environment.