Fired bricks have shown tremendous potential as a construction material due to their properties. However, their use required some specifications in terms of quality, resistance, and durability. In developing countries, the lack of tools to make test specimens leads to many defects in these brick specimens responsible for low durability and weak precision during mechanical tests and shrinkage. In this study, a simple and traditional method of making test bricks is presented. This simple method allows the production of bricks with the required properties. This method is especially efficient for a firm or semi-soft pastes consistency. The handmade pastes do not stick into the walls of the mold like the case of steel molds and it gives specimens with standard shape, smooth surface, and sharp edges. The resulting fired bricks exhibit high mechanical strength comparable and even better than those of conventional methods.
The present work aims to prepare mullite-based ceramics at low temperature mainly from andalusite and marble byproduct by a solid-state interaction method. Marble powder byproduct was used, in the prospect of waste management, as a sintering aid. The influence of marble powder byproduct (5 wt.%) on the phase formation, microstructure-temperature evolution, densification, and mechanical strength was evaluated by means of XRD, TGA-DTA, and SEM. The results revealed that the andalusite remained present with mullite up to 1400 • C, while the addition of 5 wt.% of marble byproduct involved its complete transformation into mullite and a trace of anorthite. The transformation of andalusite into mullite upon the heating in the range 1300-1400 • C involved the densification of the matrix body and a significant increase in mechanical strength from 60 to 170 MPa, which promoted its application for refractory materials.
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