Paper industry slag for the production of building ceramics.

Background: Re‐use of wastes as a part of sustainable development is one of the most important aspects of a healthy human life and environmental protection. This study examines the viability of using paper industry slag for the production of building ceramics. Results: Paper industry slag was used in the production of ceramic bricks as a burnable additive in amounts of 5, 10 and 15 wt%. The slag was introduced without and after three different preparatory operations: dried, dried and ground, granulated and dried. Clay was used as a raw material and quartz sand as a lean additive. The samples were made by plastic molding. Drying was carried out at a temperature of 100 °C. To determine the optimal heat treatment temperature, firing was carried out at 900, 950, 1000 and 1050 °C with holding at the maximum temperature for 30 min, followed by determination of the properties of the samples. Conclusions: It has been established that the samples obtained using the slag have good physical and mechanical properties and comply with current standards. At the same time, the use of slag in the production of ceramic bricks makes it possible to solve the problem of waste management, as well as to obtain a secondary material resource from the slag – a burnable additive, which leads to savings in raw materials and energy resources in the production of ceramic bricks. © 2022 The Authors. Journal of Chemical Technology and Biotechnology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry (SCI). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]