Latent Hydraulic Reactivity of Blended Cement Incorporating Slag Made from Municipal Solid Waste Incinerator Fly Ash

Abstract

The reactivity of cement pastes made by blending Portland cement with slag from municipal solid waste incinerator (MSWI) fly ash was investigated to assess the potential of recycling MSWI fly ash slag. The slag, prepared by melting MSWI fly ash at 1400 °C for 30 min, was pulverized and ground, then blended with ordinary Portland cement (OPC), using various substitution levels to make slag-blended cement (SBC). The pozzolanic reactivity of the ecocement was then characterized by determining variations in the compressive strength, degree of hydration, microstructure, speciation, and mineralogical crystalline phases. The results suggest that the strength of the pastes at an early age decreased with increasing substitution levels, whereas the strength at a later age of the tested pastes (with substitution levels less than 10%) outperformed OPC paste because of typical SBC properties. The development of strength at a later age was also confirmed by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy techniques. This implies that active silica (Si) and alumina (Al) react with the hydration product, calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)₂), to form calcium silicate hydrate (C-S-H), which contributed to strength development at a later age by the filling up of pores in the SBC pastes. The pozzolanic activity of the SBC pastes indicates that it is suitable for use as a substitute for OPC in blended cement.