Preparation and characterization of foam glass from waste container glasses and water glass for application in thermal insulations

Glass foams are modern developed building materials which are now favorably competing with conventional materials for applications in thermal insulation. In this study, glass foams are synthesized solely from waste container glasses of mixed colors using sodium silicate (water glass) as foaming agent. Several glass foams of 150 × 150 × 30 mm were prepared from waste glasses of 75 μm, 150 μm and 250 μm size with addition of 15 wt % sodium silicate respectively and pressed uniaxially under a pressure of 10 MPa. The prepared glass foams were then sintered at temperatures of 800 °C and 850 °C respectively. Tests such as bulk density, estimated porosity, flexural strength, compressive strength and microstructure evaluation were used to assess the performance of the developed glass foams. The results showed that with increasing temperature and grain sizes, the percent porosity of the developed foams increased while the bulk density decreased. The microstructure evaluation showed that the finer the grain sizes used, the more homogenized are the pores formed and the higher the temperature, the larger the pores but are mostly closed. Both compressive and flexural strength were found to decrease with grain sizes and higher temperatures. The thermal conductivities of all the developed foam glasses satisfy the standard requirement to be used as an insulating material as their thermal conductivities did not exceed 0.25 W/m.K.     

A novel fabrication method for glass foams with small pore size and controllable pore structure

In this paper, a novel fabrication method for glass foams has been introduced based on colloidal suspension foaming method using waste glass as starting materials. It is demonstrated for the first time that foam stabilization via in‐situ hydrophobization of waste glass particles is possible. The fabrication conditions for stable glass particle‐stabilized foams are optimized by investigating the influences of pH value, concentration of propyl gallate and ball milling time, respectively. It is demonstrated that this is a versatile method for fabrication of stable foamed glass suspension and final glass foams with small pore size of dozens of microns, which is much smaller than that of most glass foams in previous literatures. This novel method enables both closed pore structure and open pore structure simply by tailoring solid loading of glass suspension. A “sieve‐like” hierarchical pore structure can be achieved by adjusting sintering temperature. The glass foams with controllable structure could be applied in thermal insulation fields for closed pores, and in catalyst loading, filtration, and separation fields for open pores and hierarchical pore structure.     

Effect of calcium carbonate on the preparation of glass ceramic foams from water-quenched titanium-bearing blast furnace slag and waste glass

ABSTRACT

Glass ceramic foams were fabricated with powder sintering technology at a low temperature (900°C), using water-quenched titanium-bearing blast furnace slag (WTS) and waste glass as the primary raw materials. Additionally, calcium carbonate, sodium borate and sodium phosphate were chosen as sintering aids to form excellent performance products. The effects of calcium carbonate additions on foaming process, crystal content, morphology and properties of the prepared samples were systematically researched. The research indicates that increasing the calcium carbonate content made the foaming process harder and the pore size got more uniform. Consequently, the compressive strength and bulk density increased, while the porosity and water absorption decreased. The homogenous porous structures and optimal comprehensive properties were achieved with 5–7?wt-% CaCO₃ addition, including a bulk density of 0.79–0.82?g?cm^–3, porosity of 73.13–75.28%, water absorption of 3.29–3.75% and compressive strength of 13.13–13.85?MPa.     

Micro- and macro-cellular sintered glass-ceramics from wastes

Glass obtained from melting a mixture of industrial wastes (panel glass from dismantled cathode ray tubes, mining residues from feldspar excavation and lime from fume abatement systems of the glass industry) has been employed for manufacturing micro- and macro-cellular sintered glass-ceramics. Micro-cellular glass-ceramics, with a closed porosity, were prepared by the direct foaming of the glass mass, determined by viscous flow sintering of fine powders (<37 μm), due to addition of a SiC-based waste (from the polishing of glass articles). The surface crystallization of glass, upon sintering, limited the porosity (being about 50%), but imparted a remarkable crushing strength to the products (up to about 80 MPa), useful for construction applications. Micro- and macro-cellular glass-ceramics, with an open porosity and very low relative density (from 40 to less than 10%), were prepared by the sintering of fine glass powders mixed with sacrificial poly-methyl methacrylate microbeads or deposited on sacrificial poly-urethane sponges. The crystallization, besides imparting a good mechanical strength, allowed the maintenance of the open-celled morphology, useful for filtering applications.     

粉煤灰泡沫玻璃的试验研究

以粉煤灰和玻璃粉为主要原料,添加适量的发泡剂、稳泡剂等助剂,可制得粉煤灰泡沫玻璃。通过对制品体积密度、表观密度、开口孔孔隙率、吸水率等性能的测定,分析了发泡剂、粉煤灰掺量对泡沫玻璃性能的影响。实验表明,适量添加粉煤灰和玻璃粉,可制得性能较好的粉煤灰泡沫玻璃。     

Preparation and microstructure evolution of novel ultra-low thermal conductivity calcium silicate-based ceramic foams

In this study, municipal solid waste incineration fly ash (MSWI FA) was used as a new raw material for the ceramics industry and a novel ultra-low thermal conductivity calcium silicate-based foams (CSFs) was prepared by the direct foaming method. The effects of the addition of foam and borax on the sintering behavior and microstructural evolution of the CSFs were investigated. With the optimal amount of foam, the CSFs had an apparent porosity of 63.43%–67.49%, bulk density of 0.75–0.84 g/cm³, compressive strength of 1.83–3.21 MPa, and room-temperature thermal conductivity of 0.213–0.235 W/(m·K). Notably, the whisker morphology, pore structure, and sintering behavior of the samples can be controlled by changing the amount of borax. The prepared ceramic foams can be applied in the fields of thermal insulation, filtration, and catalyst carriers.     

High porosity glass foams from waste glass and compound blowing agent

The foaming behavior of waste glass green spheres mixed with carbonate was investigated at the temperatures of 680–800 °C. Effects of carbonate on the foaming process, microstructures and properties of the obtained glass foams were evaluated. Both the organic compounds and carbonate act as blowing agents during the foaming process. The results show that the carbonate effectively promotes the foaming process in the temperature range of 680–800 °C. The obtained glass foams show uniform microstructure, with bulk density, porosity and compressive strength values of 0.117–0.209 g/cm³, 91.7–95.4 % and 0.52–3.93 MPa, respectively. The high porosity glass foams have potential applications in many areas such as thermal insulation materials and sound absorption materials.     

Preparation of ultra-light ceramic foams from waste glass and fly ash

Ultra-light ceramic foams were successfully prepared by a green spheres technique, which used waste glass powder and fly ash as the main material. Besides, borax and SiC were introduced as fluxing agent and foaming agent, respectively. The effects of fly ash content, borax content and sintering temperature on the microstructures and properties of ceramic foams were systematically investigated. The optimum composition is 30?wt-% fly ash, 70?wt-% waste glass, 15?wt-% borax and 0.5?wt-% SiC. Ultra-light ceramic foams sintered at 680–780°C possess bulk density of 0.14–0.41?g?cm^?3, porosity of 82.9–94.1%, compressive strength of 0.91–6.37?MPa and thermal conductivity of 0.070–0.121?W?m^?1?K^?1, respectively. This method is convenient, low-cost and environment friendly, which makes it a promising way for recycling solid wastes.     

Fabrication of highly insulating foam glass made from CRT panel glass

We prepared low-density foam glasses from cathode-ray-tube panel glass using carbon and MnO₂ as the foaming agents. We investigated the influence of the carbon and MnO₂ concentrations, the glass-powder preparation and the foaming conditions on the density and homogeneity of the pore structure and the dependence of the thermal conductivity on the foam density. The results show that the moderate foaming effect of the carbon is greatly improved by the addition of MnO₂. A density as low as 131 kg m⁻³ can be achieved with fine glass powder. The foam density has a slight dependence on the carbon and MnO₂ concentrations, but it is mainly affected by the foaming temperature and the time. The thermal conductivity of the foam-glass samples is lower than that of commercial foam glasses with the same density. The lowest value was determined to be 42 mW m⁻¹ K⁻¹ for a foam glass with a density of 131 kg m⁻³. A further improvement in the closed porosity could potentially decrease the thermal conductivity even further, and thus our approach has great potential in terms of a thermal insulation material.     

Influence of the glass–calcium carbonate mixture's characteristics on the foaming process and the properties of the foam glass

We prepared foam glasses from cathode-ray-tube panel glass and CaCO₃ as a foaming agent. We investigated the influences of powder preparation, CaCO₃ concentration and foaming temperature and time on the density, porosity and homogeneity of the foam glasses. The results show that the decomposition kinetics of CaCO₃ has a strong influence on the foaming process. The decomposition temperature can be modified by varying the milling time of the glass–CaCO₃ mixture and thus for a specific CaCO₃ concentration an optimum milling time exists, at which a minimum in density and a homogeneous closed porosity are obtained. Under the optimum preparation conditions the samples exhibit a density of 260 kg/m³. The thermal conductivity of the foam glass was measured to be 50–53 mW/(m K). The observed dependence of the foaming process on the decomposition kinetics of the foaming agent can be applied as a universal rule for foaming processes based on thermal decomposition.     

Preparation of Si3N4 ceramic foams by simultaneously using egg white protein and fish collagen

Fish collagen, a kind of fibrous protein, and egg white protein were selected as foaming agent to prepare ceramic foams by protein foaming method. Ceramic foams with open porosity of 84.8–86.9%, average pore size of 216–266 μm and compressive strength of 8.7–13.7 MPa were fabricated. Studies of fish collagen addition on the influence of open porosity, pore size distribution and mechanical property of ceramic foams were investigated. In comparison with single addition of 8 wt% egg white protein, the combinational addition of 2 wt% fish collagen and 6 wt% egg white protein results in 23% increase in average pore size. In addition, the introduction of fish collagen decreases the count of small pores. Moreover, with the introduction of fish collagen, pores become regular in shape.     

Preparation and characterization of foams from sheet glass and fly ash using carbonates as foaming agents

Glass foams were produced using sheet glass cullet and fly ashes from thermal power plant with added carbonates (commercial dolomite- and calcite-based sludges) as foaming agents. The influence of type and amount of carbonates as well as of the sintering temperature on the apparent density, compressive strength, microstructure and crystalline phases was evaluated. The experimental results showed that homogenous microstructures of large pores could be obtained by adding just 1–2 wt.% carbonates and using low sintering temperature (850 °C), leading to foams presenting apparent density and compressive strength values of about 0.36–0.41 g/cm³ and 2.40–2.80 MPa, respectively. Good correlations between compressive strength, apparent density and microstructure (pore size, struts’ thickness and internal porosity) were observed.     

Foam glass obtained through high‐pressure sintering

Foam glasses are usually prepared through a chemical approach, that is, by mixing glass powder with foaming agents, and heating the mixture to a temperature above the softening point (10^6.6 Pa s) of the glass. The foaming agents release gas, enabling expansion of the sintered glass. Here, we use a physical foaming approach to prepare foam glass. First, closed pores filled with inert gases (He, Ar, or N₂) are physically introduced into a glass body by sintering cathode ray tube (CRT) panel glass powder at high gas pressure (5‐25 MPa) at 640°C and, then cooled to room temperature. The sintered bodies are subjected to a second heat treatment above the glass transition temperature at atmospheric pressure. This heat treatment causes expansion of the pores due to high internal gas pressure. We found that the foaming ability strongly depends on the gas pressure applied during sintering, and on the kinetic diameters of the gases. The pressure for attaining maximum expansion, that is, lowest density and highest porosity, is found to be around 20 MPa.     

Porous alkali-activated material from hypergolic coal gangue by microwave foaming for methylene blue removal

Overall, 100% hypergolic coal gangue (HCG)-based geopolymer foams were produced by a novel saponification-microwave foaming combined route. Microwave foaming with and without expired vegetable oil was first used to produce CG-based geopolymer foams. Macropores were mainly generated by microwave foaming, and mesopores were mainly obtained by the addition of expired soybean oil that underwent a saponification reaction. The effects of the oil content on the density, porosity, pore morphology, compression strength, and methylene blue adsorption properties were studied. High total porosity (85.9–89.0 vol%) and acceptable compression strength (0.46–1.1 MPa) HCG-based geopolymer foams were produced. Foams with 12.59 wt% oil exhibited the best adsorption properties, with an adsorption capacity up to 9.4 mg/g and high removal efficiency of about 95.3%. These solid-waste-based porous components are promising monolithic adsorbents for wastewater treatment.     

Porosity effect on microstructure,mechanical, and fluid dynamic properties of Ti2AlC by direct foaming and gel‐casting

In this study, Ti₂AlC foams were fabricated by direct foaming and gel‐casting using agarose as gelling agent. Slurry viscosity, determined by the agarose content (at a fixed solids loading), as well as surfactant concentration and foaming time were the key parameters employed for controlling the foaming yield, and hence the foam porosity after sintering process. Fabricated foams having total porosity in the 62.5‐84.4 vol% range were systematically characterized to determine their pore size and morphology. The effect of the foam porosity on the room‐temperature compression strength and elastic modulus was also determined. Depending on the amount of porosity, the compression strength and Young's modulus were found to be in the range of 9‐91 MPa and 7‐52 GPa, respectively. Permeability to air flow at temperatures up to 700°C was investigated. Darcian (k₁) and non‐Darcian (k₂) permeability coefficients displayed values in the range 0.30‐93.44 × 10^?11 m² and 0.39‐345.54 × 10^?7 m, respectively. The amount of porosity is therefore a very useful microstructural parameter for tuning the mechanical and fluid dynamic properties of Ti₂AlC foams.     

Particle-stabilized ultra-low density zirconia toughened alumina foams

Zirconia toughened alumina (ZTA) is one of the leading engineering ceramics; it is used in a wide range of components and products in applications for which high strength, high toughness, and high temperature stability are needed. The particle-stabilized direct foaming method has lately become a subject of particular interest. Nevertheless only a few studies on combining ZTA ceramics and particle-stabilized direct foaming have been reported. Therefore, in this study, ultra-low density ZTA foams having single strut wall thickness, cell size ranging from 80 μm to 200 μm, and above 90% porosity were successfully fabricated via the particle-stabilized direct foaming method. Valeric acid was used as particle surface modifier to render the particles partially hydrophobic, which stabilized the air/water interface of the ZTA foams. The sintered foams maintained compressive strength up to 8 MPa with porosity of 90%.     

以硼砂为助熔剂使用含钛高炉渣制备发泡陶瓷

以紫色页岩、含钛高炉渣为原料,硼砂为助熔剂,碳化硅为发泡剂制备发泡陶瓷,通过对气孔率、闭孔率、孔径分布、表观密度、抗压强度、导热系数进行测量,研究了原料配比和硼砂添加量对发泡陶瓷气孔结构和物理性能的影响。结果显示:当原料中含钛高炉渣比例增加时,试样的平均孔径增加,气孔均匀性下降;硼砂的加入会使试样抗压强度降低,孔隙率增大,导热系数变小。当发泡陶瓷原料配比(质量分数)为高炉渣30%,页岩70%,添加4%的硼砂和0.2%的碳化硅时,制备出的发泡陶瓷的表观密度为0.374 g·cm^-3,导热系数为0.121 W·m^-1·K^-1,抗压强度为2.59 MPa,满足建筑外墙保温发泡陶瓷的要求。发泡陶瓷主要晶相为斜长石,同时伴有部分透辉石、石英和少量的铁板钛矿。     

Glass foam of macroporosity using glass waste and sodium hydroxide as the foaming agent

Glass foams using float glass waste and sodium hydroxide were produced. The influence of the sodium hydroxide amount in the foam formulation was studied. Titanium dioxide was used as a strengthening agent. The variations of temperature, heating rate and sintering time were investigated during the synthesis process. Open porosity was estimated using mercury porosimetry. The morphology of the glass foams was evaluated using scanning electron microscopy, phase formation was studied using X-ray diffraction, and chemical composition was estimated using X-ray fluorescence. As a result, glass foams with macroporosity were obtained. Since the glass foams used glass waste as reactant, the results suggest the development of an alternative route for glass recycling.     

Production of alumino-borosilicate foamed glass body from waste LCD glass

A foaming process for waste LCD glass is presented, in which waste LCD glass is recycled to produce alumino-borosilicate foamed glass, which can eventually be used as a heat-insulating material, a light-weight aggregate for civil engineering applications, or a carrier for sewage treatment. The effects on waste LCD glass foaming of a variety of carbon foaming agents, metal salt foaming agents, and bonding agents are examined, as well as other factors such as chemical composition, foaming temperature, and grain size of the raw materials from the waste LCD glass. After examining all the variables that influence the foaming process, it was confirmed that the waste LCD glass is suitable as a raw material for producing alumino-borosilicate foamed glass. The alumino-borosilicate foamed glass has excellent physical properties, with density less than 0.14 g/cm³, heat conductivity less than 0.054 W/(mK) @20 °C, bending strength more than 35 N/cm², compressive strength more than 39 N/cm² and a coefficient of linear thermal expansion less than 4.5 × 10^?6 m/m °C. This clearly shows that the lightweight alumino-borosilicate foamed glass could be useful for various applications.     

Hierarchically structured glass monoliths based on polyurethane foams as template

Hierarchically porous glass foams were prepared via a combination of a replication technique and a phase separation of sodium borosilicate glasses. Open-pore polyurethane foams were impregnated with a slurry containing sodium borosilicate glass powder, binders, solvents and stabilizers. The composite was calcinated and sintered whereupon the organic polymer was decomposed and the monolith was compacted. A phase separation was initiated by an additional thermal treatment. The sodium-rich borate phase in the phase separated glass was removed with hydrochloric acid. Finally, the secondary silica species within the pores generated by the acid treatment were removed with sodium hydroxide solution. The monoliths were characterized by electron microscopy, nitrogen sorption, μ-CT and mercury porosimetry. Pore diameters – obtained from the template structure – were achieved in a range of 0.4–1.0 mm. The following phase separation and the coupled acid-alkaline leaching lead to an additional pore system within the glass framework.