Solid State Reaction Yielding a Mineral Utilizing Silica Obtained from an Agricultural Waste

Wollastonite, a mineral of wide industrial applications was synthesised from rice husk ash silica and limestone. A number of raw batches consisting of these starting materials, in 1:1 molar ratio, were heat treated to produce it through solid state reaction from 900℃ to 1300℃. The conducted reaction was monitored by XRD step by step. Amount of Wollastonite formed at every temperature was also studied to some extent. Analyses of the obtained data indicated that the target mineral formation was quite effective and almost proportional to a rise in temperature up to 1200℃. The results from both, XRD and chemical analysis were found in fair agreement with one another.