Brick manufacture with fly ash from Illinois coals. Quarterly technical report, September 1, 1994--November 30, 1994

Abstract

This investigation seeks to utilize fly ash in fired-clay products such as building and patio bricks, ceramic blocks, field and sewer tile, and flower pots. This goal is accomplished by 1) one or more plant-scale, 5000-brick tests with fly ash mixed with brick clays at the 20% or higher level;2) a laboratory-scale study to measure the firing reactions of a range of compositions of clay and fly ash mixtures; 3) a technical and economic study to evaluate the potential environmental and economic benefits of brick manufacture with fly ash. Bricks and feed materials will be tested for compliance with market specifications and for leachability of pollutants derived from fly ash.The laboratory study will combine ISGS databases, ICCI-supported characterization methods, and published information to improve predictions of the firing characteristics of Illinois fly ash and brick clay mixtures. Because identical methods are\used to test clay firing and coal ash fusion, and because melting mechanisms are the same, improved coal ash fusion predictions are an expected result of this research. If successful, this project should convert an environmental problem (fly ash) into valuable products-bricks.During this quarter we set up the manufacturing run at Colonial Brick Co., provided an expanded NEPA questionnaire for DOE, made preliminary arrangements for. a larger brick manufacturing run at Marseilles Brick Co., revised our laboratory procedures for selective dissolution analysis, and began our characterization of brick clays that could be mixed with fly ash for fired-clay products.U. S. DOE Patent Clearance is NOT required prior to the publication of this document.. EXECUTIVE SUMMARYThe proposed effort seeks methods for the efficient disposal or utilization of coal combustion wastes. This project precisely meets this purpose by examining the use of Illinois tly ash in the manufacture of bricks and similar fired-clay products. The project is composed of three parts: 1) one or more plant-level manufacturing runs, and 2) a set of laboratory-scale experiments designed to predict the firing properties of mixtures of a range of compositions of fly ashes with clays and shales that represent the range of compositions typical of mines in Illinois; 3) a technical and economic investigation of the potential environmental and economic benefits of brick manufacture with fly ash. The completion of these two program elements will provide strategies for maximizing the use of fly ash in bricks and related products.The first task in this project is to obtain approximately 20 tons of fly ash from Illinois Power Co.'s Wood River Plant and ship it to Colonial Brick Company in Cayuga, Indiana, where in-plant tests of mixtures of Colonial's brick clays and 1.P.k fly ash will be made at the 20% or higher level. Colonial Brick will add progressively higher levels of fly ash until the bricks approach established specifications on water absorption. A single plant-scale run will probably be 5,000-10,000 bricks with fly ash, with pre-and post-fly ...