Utilization of coal combustion fly ash in terracotta bodies

Abstract

In this present work, coal combustion fly ash from a power plant in Turkey was used in combination with a traditional raw material in terracotta production with the aim of having a product with improved physico-mechanical properties and lower production cost. Several compositions were prepared by adding different amounts of fly ash (ranging from 0 to 20%) in a yellow firing terracotta formulation and shaped by wet pressing. Following firing at a suitable temperature, some of the physical properties of the resultant tiles were determined as a function of the fly ash content. A combination of XRD, SEM and EDX techniques were also employed to correlate the properties with the phase composition. The results indicated that fly ash could be utilized easily in certain amounts in such an application.