Investigations on mineralogical characteristics and feasibility of coal gangue as a concrete aggregate from guizhou province, China

Abstract Coal gangue (CG) is an industrial solid waste produced by coal mining and separation that is considered to have a significant effect on the soil or water environment when exposed to the air, exacerbating ecological pollution. The comprehensive utilization of CG has always been a difficult p...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Xianhai Li, Yongqing Zhao, Yunping Luo, Chengmei Ding, Biao Hu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2024-12-01
Series:Scientific Reports
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-82593-3
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1846101135611396096
author Xianhai Li
Yongqing Zhao
Yunping Luo
Chengmei Ding
Biao Hu
author_facet Xianhai Li
Yongqing Zhao
Yunping Luo
Chengmei Ding
Biao Hu
author_sort Xianhai Li
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Coal gangue (CG) is an industrial solid waste produced by coal mining and separation that is considered to have a significant effect on the soil or water environment when exposed to the air, exacerbating ecological pollution. The comprehensive utilization of CG has always been a difficult problem due to the complex mineralogical characteristics. Producing concrete aggregates with CG is an effective strategy for utilising CG resources synthetically. This work studied the mineralogical characteristics of CG discharged from a coal mine in Guizhou Province, China, and the feasibility of producing concrete coarse aggregate by using CG particles. The results indicated that some CGs were mainly composed of coal particles, whereas others were mainly composed of noncoal particles. Based on their apparent characteristics, texture, and cross-sectional characteristics, the CG samples at this sampling point could be divided into 8 categories, and the mass ratio suitable for concrete aggregate production was less than 50%. The average pore size of CG was 5.5 nm smaller than that of the industrial (IS) aggregate, but its porosity and total pore area were 2.31% and 4.5 m2/g greater than those of the IS aggregate, respectively. CG aggregate concrete achieved a compressive grade of C40 at the appropriate mix ratio, but the mechanical properties of CG aggregate concrete were lower than those of IS aggregate concrete. The compressive strength of the concrete with the addition of coarse aggregate decreased by 17.26% at 7 days (7 d) of curing and 29.16% at 28 days (28 d) of curing compared with that of the concrete with the addition of the IS coarse aggregate. In addition, roasting at 500 °C for 2 h could increase the microhardness of this CG 40.06% higher than that without roasting. The separation of raw CG was a prerequisite for the preparation of concrete aggregate with CG, and also a direction to realize the comprehensive utilization of CG resources efficiently. Moreover, the roasting modification of this CG was an effective way to improve the mechanical performance of CG particles as concrete aggregates.
format Article
id doaj-art-a8f8ee880e4d461286b495df968b1a9f
institution Kabale University
issn 2045-2322
language English
publishDate 2024-12-01
publisher Nature Portfolio
record_format Article
series Scientific Reports
spelling doaj-art-a8f8ee880e4d461286b495df968b1a9f2024-12-29T12:32:24ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222024-12-0114111510.1038/s41598-024-82593-3Investigations on mineralogical characteristics and feasibility of coal gangue as a concrete aggregate from guizhou province, ChinaXianhai Li0Yongqing Zhao1Yunping Luo2Chengmei Ding3Biao Hu4Mining College, Guizhou UniversityMining College, Guizhou UniversityMining College, Guizhou UniversityMining College, Guizhou UniversityMining College, Guizhou UniversityAbstract Coal gangue (CG) is an industrial solid waste produced by coal mining and separation that is considered to have a significant effect on the soil or water environment when exposed to the air, exacerbating ecological pollution. The comprehensive utilization of CG has always been a difficult problem due to the complex mineralogical characteristics. Producing concrete aggregates with CG is an effective strategy for utilising CG resources synthetically. This work studied the mineralogical characteristics of CG discharged from a coal mine in Guizhou Province, China, and the feasibility of producing concrete coarse aggregate by using CG particles. The results indicated that some CGs were mainly composed of coal particles, whereas others were mainly composed of noncoal particles. Based on their apparent characteristics, texture, and cross-sectional characteristics, the CG samples at this sampling point could be divided into 8 categories, and the mass ratio suitable for concrete aggregate production was less than 50%. The average pore size of CG was 5.5 nm smaller than that of the industrial (IS) aggregate, but its porosity and total pore area were 2.31% and 4.5 m2/g greater than those of the IS aggregate, respectively. CG aggregate concrete achieved a compressive grade of C40 at the appropriate mix ratio, but the mechanical properties of CG aggregate concrete were lower than those of IS aggregate concrete. The compressive strength of the concrete with the addition of coarse aggregate decreased by 17.26% at 7 days (7 d) of curing and 29.16% at 28 days (28 d) of curing compared with that of the concrete with the addition of the IS coarse aggregate. In addition, roasting at 500 °C for 2 h could increase the microhardness of this CG 40.06% higher than that without roasting. The separation of raw CG was a prerequisite for the preparation of concrete aggregate with CG, and also a direction to realize the comprehensive utilization of CG resources efficiently. Moreover, the roasting modification of this CG was an effective way to improve the mechanical performance of CG particles as concrete aggregates.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-82593-3CGMineralogical characteristicsAggregatesPore structureRoasting modification
spellingShingle Xianhai Li
Yongqing Zhao
Yunping Luo
Chengmei Ding
Biao Hu
Investigations on mineralogical characteristics and feasibility of coal gangue as a concrete aggregate from guizhou province, China
Scientific Reports
CG
Mineralogical characteristics
Aggregates
Pore structure
Roasting modification
title Investigations on mineralogical characteristics and feasibility of coal gangue as a concrete aggregate from guizhou province, China
title_full Investigations on mineralogical characteristics and feasibility of coal gangue as a concrete aggregate from guizhou province, China
title_fullStr Investigations on mineralogical characteristics and feasibility of coal gangue as a concrete aggregate from guizhou province, China
title_full_unstemmed Investigations on mineralogical characteristics and feasibility of coal gangue as a concrete aggregate from guizhou province, China
title_short Investigations on mineralogical characteristics and feasibility of coal gangue as a concrete aggregate from guizhou province, China
title_sort investigations on mineralogical characteristics and feasibility of coal gangue as a concrete aggregate from guizhou province china
topic CG
Mineralogical characteristics
Aggregates
Pore structure
Roasting modification
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-82593-3
work_keys_str_mv AT xianhaili investigationsonmineralogicalcharacteristicsandfeasibilityofcoalgangueasaconcreteaggregatefromguizhouprovincechina
AT yongqingzhao investigationsonmineralogicalcharacteristicsandfeasibilityofcoalgangueasaconcreteaggregatefromguizhouprovincechina
AT yunpingluo investigationsonmineralogicalcharacteristicsandfeasibilityofcoalgangueasaconcreteaggregatefromguizhouprovincechina
AT chengmeiding investigationsonmineralogicalcharacteristicsandfeasibilityofcoalgangueasaconcreteaggregatefromguizhouprovincechina
AT biaohu investigationsonmineralogicalcharacteristicsandfeasibilityofcoalgangueasaconcreteaggregatefromguizhouprovincechina