Utilizing Iron Tailing, Sludge and Fly Ash to Prepare Ceramsites

Background: The deposits of iron tailing will pose a great risk of environmental pollution and serious landscape impact which will affect the quality of life of humans. Therefore, it is urgent to utilize iron tailing to produce valuable products. Methods: The tailing ceramsites were analysed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The roles of the tailing content, sintering temperature and duration time in the performance of the tailing ceramsites were analysed and the optimal sintering parameters were determined. Results: The bulk density, apparent density and cylinder compressive strength of the tailing ceramsites increase considerably with the increase of the sintering temperature and duration time. The cylinder compressive strength of the tailing ceramsites increases with increasing the tailing content. The optimal sintering parameter is 1100°C for 40 min. The cylinder compressive strength of the tailing ceramsites obtained at 1100°C for 40 min reaches 10.1 MPa. XRD analysis shows that the tailing ceramsites mainly consist of CaSiO3, Al2SiO5, MgSiO3, Ca7Si2P2O16, CaAl2Si2O8, Ca2Fe2O5 and SiO2 phases when the sintering temperature and duration time were increased to 1100°C and 40 min, respectively. Conclusion: The tailing ceramsites were obtained from iron tailing, sludge and fly ash as the raw materials at 1100°C for 40 min. The obtained ceramsites exhibited high mechanical performance.