Materials Science Forum, Vol.439, 176-179, 2003
Characterization of glass abrasive sludge and its reutilization as a cement admixture
Currently, industrial waste of glass abrasive sludge is produced 250,000 tons in amount yearly, and the amount of the waste is expected to increase continuously as demand of glass product increases. Reutilization and its environmentally benign treatment of the industrial waste are of major concern. In this study, as a program of reutilization in glass abrasive sludge, a possibility of reuse as an admixture for cement is investigated through the chemical characterization of glass abrasive sludge. Chemical analysis shows that glass abrasive sludge is mainly composed of SiO2 and Al2O3. XRD data confirms that the crystalline phase is Albite, Feldspar, Muscovite, corundum and Hematite of which typical abrasive materials are. In the respect that glass generally consists of amorphous material and bimodal distribution of particle size, glass abrasive sludge is considered to be a mixture of glass and abrasive material during the abrasive process. From the analysis for potential hydraulic property, it is concluded that the glass abrasive sludge has high possibility to reutilize as cement admixture.