Sodium

Engineering

Metallurgy

Materials science

Sodium hydroxide

Mineralogy

Silicate

Chemical engineering

Alkali–silica reaction

Mortar

Waste management

Organic chemistry

Portland cement

Glass production

Cement

Alkali metal

Environmental science

Fly ash

Composite material

Sodium silicate

Chemistry

Fineness

Glass recycling

Compressive strength

Cement and Concrete Research

A simple process to produce sodium silicate powder from glass cullet has been developed. A mixture of glass powder, sodium hydroxide powder, and water was heated at temperatures of 150 to 330 °C. The effects of glass to NaOH ratio, temperature and duration, inclusion of water and fineness of NaOH were investigated. Fly ash and fly ash/GGBS blends were the precursors for alkali activated binder (AAB) mortars produced with this sodium silicate. Compressive strengths were similar to or better than those obtained with commercially available sodium silicate and sodium hydroxide solutions. FT-IR tests suggested that the reactivity of the glass derived sodium silicate powder was related to the number of non-bridging oxygen atoms in the silicate structure. Cost comparison between AAB and Portland cement concretes gave similar results for normal strength concretes (35 MPa). AAB concretes with higher strengths (50 and 70 MPa) can be cheaper than equivalent traditional concrete.

Production of sodium silicate powder from waste glass cullet for alkali activation of alternative binders