Influence of Sintering Time and Sintering Temperature on Crystalline Structure of Cordierite Synthesized from Waste Aluminum Sludge

The influence of sintering time and sintering temperature on the crystalline structure of cordierite synthesized from waste aluminum sludge was studied in this paper. The sludge was obtained from treating the surface of Al finishing plant. After dewatering its main component is -AlOOH which is the coexistence of both crystal and amorphous states. -AlOOH has high activity which can decrease the sintering temperature and help form cordierite. The results show that the amount of cordierite increases with the increase of sintering temperature, and consequently the crystalline and unit cell parameters are changed. The best sintering tem- perature and sintering time are determined to be 1350 ℃ and 5 h, respectively. Under such conditions, the amount of cordierite phase is the largest.