Mechanically treated fly ash from fluidized bed combustion of peat, wood, and wastes in concrete

Abstract Fly ash generation in fluidized bed combustion (FBC) is a critical issue in many countries due to its disposal is becoming increasingly restricted and expensive. Because of this, there is a demand for applications in which these types of fly ashes could be utilized efficiently. One promising use for FBC fly ashes is as a cement replacement material in mortar and concrete. The current concrete regulations do not allow the use FBC fly ash as a supplementary cementitious material, but it can be expected to be included in the standards in the future. The properties of FBC fly ashes typically do not fulfill the values set in the standards as such. This study aimed to establish whether the properties of fly ashes from FBC of peat, wood, and wastes can be modified by mechanical classification and grinding so that they meet the requirements of the standards. The sulfate and chloride content, the sum of the main components (Si, Al, Fe), and the fineness of material were analyzed before and after the classification and grinding processes. In addition, the mortar specimens were prepared by using the processed fly ash as a cement replacement material. It was found that air jet classification is an effective fractionating method for fly ashes that effectively removes sulfate and chloride into fine fraction. Classified and ground fly ashes are potential alternative cement replacement materials. It is possible to achieve 80% of the control sample’s compressive strength and 90% of the control sample’s flexural strength for mortars containing 20% of classified and ground FBC fly ashes