Characteristics of wastepaper sludge ash and its potential applications in concrete

The rapid deterioration of the global environment forces people to increasingly take into consideration. Nowadays, concrete is the most extensively-used construction material in the world. Cement, the dominant material for manufacturing concrete, has been largely used in the past few decades. It has also been generally considered as an environmentally hazardous material, mainly due to CO2 emissions during the production process. Thus, many industrial by-products have been used to partially substitute cement in order to generate more economic and durable concrete. Among these by-products, fly ash generated during combustion of coal has been successfully used in concrete for many years. Unlike traditional fly ash, a new type of ash may also be used. It is obtained by combustion of de-inking sludge, bark and residues of woods in a fluidized-bed system from Brompton Mill located near Sherbrooke, Canada. However, the properties and the applications of this new by-product are not well known. An investigation was carried out to characterize this new material and examine its performance as an alternative material in the production of concrete. Firstly, the chemical, physical, mineralogical, and morphological characteristics of WSA were analyzed and were compared with traditional ash. In addition, the rheological properties of pastes and mortars mixed with WSA were evaluated by tests such as the calorimeter, mini-slump, marsh cone, and compressive strength of mortar cubes. In addition, the optimum ratio of cement replaced by WSA was examined by the compressive strength of concrete at the age of 1, 7, 28 and 91 days. Herein, two different water-to-binder ratios are considered: 0.4 and 0.55. Finally, the comprehensive properties of WSA concrete applying to the optimum ratio was carried out in different aspects such as fresh, mechanical properties, volume-change, and durability.The results show that it is possible to use WSA as a new cementitious material in concrete. According to the experimental results, a high-range water-reducing agent was required, even at a higher water-to-binder ratio (WSA showed a high degree of water demand). It study also revealed that WSA concrete had low permeability, and resisted freezing and thawing compared to the control mixture. In addition, the high CaO content in WSA substantially increased the expansion of concrete, early in the process. This greatly compensated the autogenous shrinkage that was developed in concrete with a low water-to-binder ratio. However, WSA is not recommended for use in environments containing a high quantity of sulphate, because its higher lime phase may cause the damage to constructions