Rice husk ash as a source of silica in alkali-activated fly ash and granulated blast furnace slag systems

Abstract

This study assesses the viability of using an agro-industrial by-product, rice husk ash (RHA) from a Colombian rice company’s combustion facility, as a total replacement for the commercial sodium silicate ordinarily used in alkaliactivated binders. Fly ash (FA), granulated blast furnace slag (GBFS) and binary 50FA:50GBFS blended pastes were activated with a mix of sodium hydroxide and either sodium silicate or one of two types of RHA. The pastes were characterised for strength, mineralogy and microstructure. The findings showed that the agro-industrial by-product can be used to yield alkali-activated materials with 7-day mechanical strengths on the order of 42 MPa. The study confirmed that both amorphous silica and part of the crystalline silica present in RHA participate in the alkaline activation process, providing the alkalinity is suitably adjusted.

Keywords

• alkaline cements
• rice husk ash
• waterglass
• mechanical strength
• microstructure