Abstract
Abstract
Microwave sintering has shown significant advantages in recent years against conventional sintering procedures, emerging as an innovative method for sintering a variety of materials. Efficiency of microwave-assisted sintering is significantly impacted by the volume of fly ash samples treated in a microwave reactor. In this study, fly ash from a municipal solid waste incinerator (MSWI) was treated with microwave sintering. Four different additives (Al2O3 powder, γ-Al2O3, SiO2, and Kaolin) were used to evaluate their effects on microwave sintering. Weight ratios of the fly ash/additive mixtures are recommended: compositions of the sintered products ranged from 99:1 to 4:1 for the FA/A and FA/γA samples, and from 99:1 to 1:1 for the FA/S and FA/K samples. Leaching tests of heavy metals in the glass–ceramics showed that samples that contained aluminosilicates as the main crystal immobilized heavy metal ions effectively. The obtained products were demonstrated to constitute an alternative to natural materials. In general, this study was exploratory in nature and was also performed on a laboratory scale; however, results give encouraging results when microwave sintering is compared to more conventional technology. This research will provide the underpinning science of the fundamental interactions within these processes for scaling-up for the pilot or industrial plant.
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