Ecotoxicity of concretes with granulated slag from gray iron pilot production as filler

Abstract

This paper focuses on research concerning the ecotoxicological properties of granulated slag from the pilot production of gray iron with red mud addition and concrete composites with the application of this slag. Red mud is a hazardous waste generated in the production of aluminium oxide. Negative ecotoxicological tests are, therefore, one of the basic prerequisites for the ability to use granulated slag from gray iron pilot production. Granulated slag and concrete composite samples with various ratios of granulated slag have been subject to ecotoxicity tests: determining root growth inhibition in the highly-cultivated plant Sinapis alba, and determining acute toxicity in Daphnia magna. The results of ecotoxicological testing of granulated slag from gray iron standard production and gray iron pilot production with the additive were, according to the standard (STN 83 8303), negative. Additionally, the results of ecotoxicological tests of concrete composites were negative, with the exception of a 50% substitution of fine aggregate with slag from gray iron pilot production.