VALUATION OF SWTP AS RAW MATERIAL FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF EXPANDED CLAY

Abstract

With the increase in the consumption of non-renewable resources, ways of reusing and recycling have been studied in search of alternatives for the management of solid waste with potential for use as raw material in the production of new materials. In this context, this study aims to develop a method, which allows the manufacture of expanded clay from the replacement of conventional raw material (clay) with waste of Sludge from Water Treatment Plant (SWTP) and inorganic waste from the cellulose industry (Calcium Carbonate Mud - CCM). For that, analyzes of the characterization of waste and clay were carried out. After that formulations were defined containing different percentages of substitution (in mass) of clay by SWTP with and without CCM coverage. Three operating conditions were analyzed for the development of material expansion, with heating ramp and controlled levels, as well as the maximum operating temperature. The results obtained showed that it is possible to replace the clay by up to 20% with SWTP using the same operating conditions (ramp: 20ºC/min; maximum temperature: 1200ºC in a total cycle of 6 hours) to produce a light aggregate with diameter, mass and shape similar to the light reference aggregate.