This research synthesized the geopolymer from calcined kaolin (600°C for 2 h in a muffle furnace) using sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and potassium hydroxide (KOH) as alkali activators. Calcium phosphate (CP) and heat treatment were introduced to study their effects on the unconfined compressive strength (USC) and crystalline phases formation of kaolin-based geopolymer. Results showed that the highest USC strength at 28 days of geopolymer was obtained from 0.4 moles of Na2O/SiO2 and K2O/SiO2 and gave strength of 12.95 and 11.56 MPa, respectively. The USC of geopolymer was observed to decrease with the addition of CP. The amounts of 5 wt.% of CP gave a 28-day strength of kaolin-based geopolymer containing NaOH and KOH activators at 9.95 and 8.88 MPa, respectively. The CP-doped geopolymers were then heated at temperatures of 500, 600, and 700°C for 2 h Results indicated that heat treatment at 600°C gave the highest USC of CP-doped geopolymer containing NaOH and KOH equal to 7.61 and 4.61 MPa, respectively with the appearance of hydroxyapatite, muscovite, and quartz in the XRD diffractograms.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.