Upcycling combustion derived solid wastes into high-strength foam glass-ceramics: Adjusting basicity and heavy metal fate
Li K. Deng J. Zhang J. Wen Q. Shen H. Zhang X. Ji Y. Zhang D. Liu B.
2026Korean Society of Industrial Engineering Chemistry
Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry
2026
By-products from power plants, particularly municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) fly ash, and coal fly ash (CFA)), pose significant challenges because of their large annual output and potential contamination. This study developed an innovative co-sintering process to transform MSWI fly ash and CFA into high-strength foam glass-ceramics. Based on SiO2-Al2O3-CaO-Na2O phase, liquid phase content and melting point, identifying a 1:1 mass ratio of MSWI fly ash to CFA with 5 wt% borax as a flux, sintered at 1140°C. CaCO3 simultaneously acted as a foaming agent and basicity regulator. At a basicity of 1.01, the foam glass-ceramics exhibited a uniform pore structure with an average pore size of 0.49 mm and well-developed internal dendritic crystallization, corresponding to the compressive strength of 103.61 ± 9.92 MPa, a porosity of 46.62% and the bulk density of 2.14 g/cm3. Excessive basicity (1.37) promoted the formation of high-melting-point akermanite, increasing melt viscosity and leading to interconnected, non-uniform pores. The process achieved significant heavy metal removal, with efficiencies of 99.81% for Pb, 93.44% for Cd, 79.09% for Cu, and 32.00% for Zn. First-principles calculations and thermodynamic analysis revealed that the lower removal of Zn was attributed to its preferential chemical incorporation into gehlenite and akermanite crystalline phases.
Coal fly ash , Foam glass-ceramics , Heavy metal , MSWI fly ash , Thermal treatment
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Institute for Advanced Materials and Technology, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing, China
Shunde Innovation School, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Foshan, China
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, School of Engineering and Digital Sciences, Nazarbayev University, Astana, Kazakhstan
Institute for Advanced Materials and Technology
Shunde Innovation School
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
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Книга Публикация научной статьи Волощук 2026 Book Publication of a scientific article 2026