A Feasibility Study on Textile Sludge as a Raw Material for Sintering Lightweight Aggregates and Its Application in Concrete

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the feasibility of textile sludge as a raw material for sintering lightweight aggregates (LWAs) and its application in concrete. Three samples of different components were taken from the textile sludge, which came from different textile factories in Taiwan. The analysis of the chemical composition of the sludge shows that the total content of SiO2, Al2O3, and Fe2O3 in the textile sludge was far lower than the recommended value in the literature, and that glassy melt could not be produced and sintered into LWAs alone. Therefore, the water purification sludge obtained from a water purification plant owned by the Taiwan Water Supply Company was used as the main raw material, and the textile sludge was used as the auxiliary raw material in addition amounts of 7.5%, 15.0%, and 22.5%. The test results showed that the LWAs sintered by adding textile sludge to water purification sludge could reach the particle density that is generally required for LWAs (between 0.2 and 1.8 g/cm3). The 14-day compressive strength of the lightweight aggregate concrete made from textile-sludge-based LWAs was between 20 and 25 MPa. This means that textile-sludge-based LWAs can be used in secondary structural concrete.