Research Article Open Access

Optimization of Alkali Activated Grog/Ceramic Wastes Geopolymer Bricks

Abstract

In recent years there has been a great deal of interest and support worldwide in using construction and demolition waste as ceramic as well as clay brick wastes (grog) for production of aggregate material which can then be reused for road base courses or construction backfill materials, and other engineering applications. However, they can also be employed as supplementary cementitious materials or even as raw material for alkali-activated binder for producing more valuable binders that can be applied in various building applications. Geopolymer bricks prepared by partial binder substitution of ceramic by clay brick wastes in the ratio from 0 up to 100 %, while the used fine sand was in the ratio of 15% from the total weight, also sodium hydroxide activator was used in the ratio of 8% of the total eight. The properties of the produced geopolymer bricks have been studied through measurement of compressive strength, water absorption, FTIR, XRD and SEM imaging. Results demonstrate the possibility of using alkali activated ceramic and grog materials in producing heavy duty building with compressive strength values more than 35 MPa up to 20% grog increase, however further increase results in lowering strength values as a result of increase of crystalline content and sufficiency of the used activator to dissolve all the crystalline fractures.

H. M. Khater, Abdeen M. El Nagar, M. Ezzat

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