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The construction sector is presently among the most resource-intensive industries, driving a substantial body of research dedicated to the development of more sustainable materials to address these demands. A particularly promising approach within the framework of the circular economy is the repurposing of waste as a principal raw material for the creation of new construction products. Within this context, the primary aim of this study is to engineer ceramic materials for brick production using 100% waste-derived inputs, specifically aggregate washing sludge and manganese mining by-products. To evaluate the potential of these sustainable ceramic materials, an extensive investigation was conducted, encompassing both physical and mechanical testing, as well as a thorough characterisation of the waste inputs. For this purpose, a series of ceramic specimens were fabricated with varying proportions of mining residues and aggregate washing sludge, adhering to the conventional protocols employed in the manufacture of ceramic bricks. The results demonstrate that these sustainable ceramics exhibit a linear shrinkage reduction of up to 5% compared to traditional clay-based ceramics. Furthermore, they show water absorption levels—whether via capillarity, cold water, or hot water absorption—that are up to twice those observed in conventional clay ceramics, while maintaining comparable density values. This increased absorption, however, correlates with a reduction in mechanical strength at higher concentrations of manganese waste, yet the material continues to meet the minimum strength requirements as specified by industry standards for such products. In conclusion, this research introduces a novel, sustainable ceramic material that not only reduces economic and environmental costs but also adheres to the required performance criteria for construction applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The production of building materials is unavoidable if the well-being and development of society are to be maintained. However, in manufacturing these materials, significant greenhouse gas emissions and environmental effects are produced. For this reason, and with the aim of reducing the impact of the manufacture of these materials, this work developed a geopolymeric material made up solely of wastes, brick dust and biomass bottom ashes which replaced the traditional ceramic materials. To evaluate the quality of this sustainable geopolymeric material, different groups of specimens were formed with different percentages of both residues, subsequently determining the physical properties of the new-formed geopolymers and guaranteeing they accomplish the prescriptions of the ceramic regulations for construction. In addition, the results of the geopolymer characterisation tests were statistically analysed using factor analysis, with the sole purpose of establishing connections and interdependence between the variables that influence the geopolymerisation process. Thus, it was possible to demonstrate that the combination of brick dust and biomass bottom ashes produced geopolymers with adequate qualities to replace traditional ceramics, as well as that the different combinations of both residues produced feasible materials to be used as ceramics with various characteristics, with two main factors determined by factorial analysis that governed the physical properties of the geopolymer obtained: the percentage of brick dust and the theoretical porosity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soils contaminated by mining activities are a major environmental concern, and to avoid this type of environmental impact, carrying out high-cost processes is necessary. For this reason, a solution is proposed in this study in order to eliminate the soils contaminated by mining activities and, in turn, prevent the soil's contaminating elements from causing harm. All this is achieved by using contaminated soils as raw materials for the production of ceramics for bricks. For this purpose, the materials were initially characterized physically and chemically, and different ceramic test pieces were manufactured with different percentages of clay and contaminated soil, subsequently determining the physical properties and the leaching of toxic elements. In this way, it was possible to evaluate, via innovative data mining and fuzzy logic techniques, the influence of the contaminated soil's contribution on the properties of ceramics. Based on this, it was possible to affirm that the contaminated soil incorporation negatively affects the physical properties of ceramics as well as the leaching of polluting elements. The ceramic formed by contaminated soil and clay has a lower compressive strength, and it is associated with lower linear shrinkage and lower density, as well as higher porosity and cold-water absorption. However, the addition of different percentages of contaminated soil (up to 70%) to clay created a ceramic that complied with regulation restrictions. Therefore, it was possible to obtain a sustainable material that eliminates environmental problems at a lower cost and that fits within the new circular mining concept thanks to fuzzy logic techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ceramics industry dedicated to the manufacture of building materials is a very significant cause of environmental pollution, and various research projects are being carried out to reduce the associated environmental impact. One of the most important research lines is the generation and development of new materials, from waste, through more sustainable production processes. All of this is framed in circular mining. In this research study, geopolymers were developed with biomass bottom ashes and brick dust in order to replace the traditional ceramics used to construct bricks. For this, different families of test tubes were formed with different percentages of both residues, and their physical and mechanical properties were studied. In this way, the properties of geopolymers could be compared with traditional ceramics. In addition, in order to determine the cause–effect relationships between physical properties and compressive strength, data were processed using fuzzy logic and data mining techniques. The results showed the feasibility of geopolymers generation with biomass bottom ashes and brick dust with acceptable properties to replace conventional ceramics. In addition, the fuzzy logic analysis allowed for establishing clear and objective relationships between the physical properties and the compressive strength of the geopolymers, with the aim of developing the highest quality geopolymer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mining activities are essential for a population's development; however, they also produce negative effects such as the production of waste, an impact on flora and water pollution. On the other hand, construction is one of the sectors which is most demanding of raw materials, with one of the main such materials being water. For this reason, this research evaluates the feasibility of incorporating water contaminated by mining waste into ceramic materials for bricks. In this way, the use of water is reduced and, on the other hand, the contaminating elements of the mining water are encapsulated in the ceramic matrix. To achieve this, the clay used and the contaminated water were first analysed, then different families of samples were conformed with different percentages of contaminated water. These samples were tested to determine their physical and mechanical properties. At the same time, leachate tests were carried out to determine that the ceramic material created did not cause environmental problems. The test results showed that the physical and mechanical properties of the ceramics were not influenced by the addition of contaminated water. On the other hand, the leachate tests showed that encapsulation of most of the potentially toxic elements occurred. However, the use of contaminated water as mixing water for ceramics could only be performed up to 60%, as higher percentages would leach impermissible arsenic concentrations. Accordingly, a new way of reusing water contaminated by mining activities is developed in this study, taking advantage of resources, avoiding environmental pollution and creating economic and environmentally friendly end products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The greater environmental awareness, new environmental regulations and the optimization of resources make possible the development of sustainable materials as substitutes for the traditional materials used in construction. In this work, geopolymers were developed as substitutes to traditional ceramics for brick manufacture, using as raw materials: chamotte, as a source of aluminosilicate, and biomass bottom ashes from the combustion of almond shell and alpeorujo (by-product produced in the extraction of olive oil composed of solid parts of the olive and vegetable fats), as the alkaline activator. For the feasibility study, samples were made of all possible combinations of both residues from 100% chamotte to 100% biomass bottom ash. The tests carried out on these sample families were the usual physical tests for ceramic materials, notably the compression strength test, as well as colorimetric tests. The freezing test was also carried out to study the in-service behavior of the different sample groups. The families with acceptable results were subjected to Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analysis. The results of the previous tests showed that the geopolymer was indeed created for the final families and that acceptable mechanical and aging properties were obtained according to European standards. Therefore, the possibility of creating geopolymers with chamotte and biomass bottom ashes as substitutes for conventional ceramics was confirmed, developing an economical, sustainable material, without major changes in equipment and of similar quality to those traditionally used for bricks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mining activity is essential for the social welfare of the population. However, this activity produces a series of mining waste. These mining wastes, if not properly treated, can produce significant environmental pollution. This study develops the incorporation of tailings from washing plants in ceramic materials for bricks in order to retain the contaminating elements in the ceramic matrix. To this end, firstly, a physical and chemical characterisation of the mining waste is carried out and different groups of samples are conformed with clay and mining waste. These conformed samples with mining waste are evaluated through different physical and mechanical tests typical in the ceramic industry, studying the variation of properties by the incorporation of the waste. In turn, the leachates from the groups of conformed samples are analyzed, confirming the retention of the contaminating elements of the mining waste in the ceramic matrix. The results of these tests showed that ceramics can be made for bricks with up to 90% mining waste, obtaining physical and mechanical properties acceptable regarding the regulations and retaining the contaminating elements in the ceramic matrix, as confirmed by the leachate tests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]