Sustainable evaluation - concept to assess the applicability of secondary aggregates in concrete
(2012)
Der Einsatz von Sekundärrohstoffen im Betonbau kann einen wesentlichen Beitrag zu einer nachhaltigen Ressourcenwirtschaft im Bauwesen leisten. Sekundärrohstoffe (Recycling-Baustoffe, RC-Baustoffe) finden bereits Anwendung als Roh- bzw. Brennstoffe in der Portlandzementklinkerherstellung, als Zementbestandteile, als Betonzusatzstoffe sowie als sekundäre Gesteinskörnungen in Beton. In einem Teilprojekt des DAfStb/BMBF-Verbundforschungsvorhabens 'Nachhaltig Bauen mit Beton' wurde das Einsatzpotenzial von Sekundärrohstoffen in Beton untersucht. Hierbei spielen sowohl technische als auch ökologische und ökonomische Fragestellungen eine wichtige Rolle. Vor diesem Hintergrund wurde eine Bewertungsgrundlage mit ganzheitlicher Betrachtung von Nachhaltigkeitsaspekten (Technik, Ökologie, Ökonomie) ausgearbeitet. Dieses Bewertungskonzept umfasst die vier Bewertungsschritte: I. Grundsätzliche Überlegungen, II. Vorteile für das nachhaltige Bauen, III. Alternative Bewertungswege und IV. Sensitivitätsanalysen. Das Bewertungskonzept wurde am Beispiel der bereits im Betonbau eingesetzten rezyklierten Gesteinskörnungen entwickelt.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nowadays there are several applications of secondary mineral materials and residues. In the framework of the German research project 'Sustainable Building with Concrete', a concept to assess the applicability of already used and new secondary materials in concrete has been developed. It considers sustainability aspects and includes the following four assessment steps: I. Basic considerations, II. Advantages for sustainable construction, III. Alternative paths of application, and IV. Sensitivity analysis. Depending on changing technical, ecological and economic aspects, the assessment has to be performed for changed technical, ecological and economic conditions as necessity arises.
Nowadays there are several applications of mineral recycling materials and residues. At present an assessment method for the use of secondary raw materials, which considers sustainability aspects, does not exist. In the framework of the German DAfStb/BMBF research project 'Sustainable Building with Concrete' an assessment concept was developed. It includes the following four assessment steps: I. Basic considerations, II. Advantages for sustainable construction, III. Alternative paths for application, and IV. Sensitivity analysis. The concept was developed on the basis of recycled concrete aggregates, which are already used according to German standards. Afterwards, it was applied and verified by the evaluation of the utilisation of municipal solid waste incinerator bottom ashes.
The interaction of municipal solid waste incinerator bottom ash (MSWI bottom ash), when utilized as an aggregate in concrete, with the cement matrix was investigated. The most prominent reaction observed in lab and field concrete was the formation of aluminium hydroxide and the release of hydrogen gas from aluminium grains reacting in the alkaline environment. The expansive aluminium reaction was identified as a main cause of extensive spalling on the concrete surface. Due to the higher content of bottle glass as part of the ash, in all samples, reaction products of an alkali-silica reaction (ASR) could be observed as well. However, damage due to ASR were less severe than those caused by the aluminium reaction. The expansion rates were low and only a few of the lab samples showed cracking. Microstructural analysis of the samples indicated clearly that a large quantity of the alkali-silica gel which was formed was accommodated in the pores and voids without exerting any strain on the material.
Interactions between waste paper sludge ashes and superplasticizers based on polycarboxylates
(2016)
In many industrial nations, about two third of the paper demand is covered by recovered paper. A major process step within the treatment of waste paper is the de-inking. It is a floating process yielding paper sludge as a waste product. About 50 % of this residue is used as a fuel. In several cases it is burnt at temperature of about 850 °C and thereafter the accrued ashes are collected in the flue gas filter. During the combustion, kaolinite and calcium oxide generate gehlenite and larnite. Calcite is the main component of waste paper sludge ash (PA).The chemical and mineralogical composition of PA suggests using it as a supplementary cementitious material.
In modern construction materials technology, workability aspects gain importance, since for most modern materials the rheology and compaction ability are relevant for the operation at a hardened state. It was observed that PA significantly increases the water demand of powder systems, which can cause serious problems during the casting of mineral binder systems containing PA. It is therefore obvious that binder systems containing PA might demand for the use of superplasticizers. Superplasticizers are polymers with anionic backbone that cause electrostatic and steric repulsion effects upon adsorption on surfaces of particles and hydration phases.
In this paper interactions between superplasticizers and waste paper sludge ashes are discussed and analysed. Based on observations of changes in the zeta potential and the dispersion of the particle system, the influence of the charge density of superplasticizers is observed and time dependent effects are demonstrated.
Today modern reprocessing techniques lead to materials, which bear the potential to be used as aggregates or additives in mineral building materials. Because of highly sophisticated reprocessing techniques residues with relatively stable composition over a certain range and relatively defined properties can be produced. At the same time, new German and European regulations demand a waste management to decrease waste volume stored at landfills to save natural resources and to enhance sustainable development by recycling of diverse residues. This paper shows the activities of the working group 'Saving Resources by Material Recycling'.
As a result of their chemical and mineralogical characteristics, bottom ashes from municipal solid waste incinerators can, in principle, be used as aggregates in the production of normal strength concrete. However, because the ashes contain concrete-damaging components, such as chlorides, sulphates and organic compounds, or excessive quantities of fines, aluminium and waste glass, recycling becomes problematic. In particular, inclusions of aluminium in the ash particles and a glass content of about 15% cause considerable cracks and spalling in concrete specimens within a very short time. The harmful substances can be reduced or removed by additional treatments, such as upstream sieving and washing, waste glass separation, and lye treatment with sodium hydroxide solution. Tests on concretes with 232 mm bottom ash as coarse aggregates indicate that the quality of the ash is actually improved by the additional processing. Thus concretes with a compressive strength of C20/25 can easily be produced. Similar to concretes made with recycled aggregates, these concretes exhibit 15% lower compressive strength and E-modulus but twice the porosity of control specimens containing exclusively natural sand and gravel. However, only those concretes that were made with ash with a low aluminium content as a result of lye treatment remained free of damage.