Characterization of bottom ashes from coal pulverized power plants to determine their potential use feasibility

Abstract

The disposal of coal by products represents environmental and economical problems around the world. Therefore, the reuse and valorisation of this waste has become an important issue in the last decades. While high-value construction products containing fly ash were developed and its use is actually totally accepted as an addition to cement, the use of the bottom ash as supplementary cementitious material has not been allow. This paper examines the chemical and physical properties of fly ashes and bottom ashes from two different coal power plants in order to compare them and analyse the potential feasibility of bottom ash as cement replacement. The mechanical properties of cement mortars made with different percentages of both ashes were also study. The results obtained showed similar chemical composition of both kinds of ashes. The compressive strength values of mortars with 10 % and 25 % of cement replacement (at 28 days) were above the limits established in European standards and there were not significant differences between fly ash and bottom ash from both origins.