Utilization of discarded foundry sand (DFS) and inorganic waste from cellulose and paper industry for the manufacture of glass-ceramic materials

Abstract Recycling has been pointed out as an alternative to the disposal of waste materials in industrial landfills. In the present study, the transformation of residues (discarded foundry sand - DFS, grits, and lime mud) in glass-ceramic materials is shown. The glasses were obtained by the melting/cooling method. The precursor materials, glasses, and glass-ceramics were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), and differential scanning calorimetry/thermal gravimetric analysis (DSC/TGA). The glassy materials were milled, pelleted, and thermally treated at the crystallization temperatures given by DSC data to obtain the glass-ceramics (885, 961, and 1090 ºC). The main formed phases were cristobalite, α-wollastonite (parawollastonite), and β-wollastonite (pseudowollastonite). The glass-ceramics showed very low water absorption and apparent porosity (0.26 to 0.88 wt% and 0.66 to 1.77 vol%, respectively). The results confirmed that the studied residues can be used as raw materials for the manufacture of vitreous and glass-ceramic materials.