The effects of carbonation and hydration on the mineralogy and microstructure of basic oxygen furnace slag products

Steel Slag Accelerated Carbonation Curing for High-Carbonation Precast Concrete Development

Steel slag as an alkaline industrial solid waste, possesses the inherent capacity to engage in carbonation reactions with carbon dioxide (CO2). Capitalizing on this property, the current research undertakes a systematic investigation into the fabrication of high-carbonation precast concrete (HCPC). This is achieved by substituting a portion of the cementitious materials with steel slag during the carbonation curing process. The study examines the influence of varying water-binder ratios, silica fume dosages, steel slag dosages, and sand content on the compressive strength of HCPC. Findings indicate that adjusting the water-binder ratio to 0.18, adding 8% silica fume, and a sand volume ratio of 40% can significantly enhance the compressive strength of HCPC, which can reach up to 104.9 MPa. Additionally, the robust frost resistance of HCPC is substantiated by appearance damage analysis, mass loss rate, and compressive strength loss rate, after 50 freeze-thaw cycles the mass loss, and the compressive strength loss rate can meet the specification requirements. The study also corroborates the high-temperature stability of HCPC. This study optimized the preparation of HCPC and provided a feasibility for its application in precast concrete.

Carbon dioxide sequestration of iron ore mining waste under low-reaction condition of a direct mineral carbonation process

Mining waste that is rich in iron-, calcium- and magnesium-bearing minerals can be a potential feedstock for sequestering CO₂ by mineral carbonation. This study highlights the utilization of iron ore mining waste in sequestering CO₂ under low-reaction condition of a mineral carbonation process. Alkaline iron mining waste was used as feedstock for aqueous mineral carbonation and was subjected to mineralogical, chemical, and thermal analyses. A carbonation experiment was performed at ambient CO₂ pressure, temperature of 80 °C at 1-h exposure time under the influence of pH (8-12) and particle size (< 38-75 µm). The mine waste contains Fe-oxides of magnetite and hematite, Ca-silicates of anorthite and wollastonite and Ca-Mg-silicates of diopside, which corresponds to 72.62% (Fe₂O₃), 5.82% (CaO), and 2.74% (MgO). Fe and Ca carbonation efficiencies were increased when particle size was reduced to < 38 µm and pH increased to 12. Multi-stage mineral transformation was observed from thermogravimetric analysis between temperature of 30 and 1000 °C. Derivative mass losses of carbonated products were assigned to four stages between 30-150 °C (dehydration), 150-350 °C (iron dehydroxylation), 350-700 °C (Fe carbonate decomposition), and 700-1000 °C (Ca carbonate decomposition). Peaks of mass losses were attributed to ferric iron reduction to magnetite between 662 and 670 °C, siderite decarbonization between 485 and 513 °C, aragonite decarbonization between 753 and 767 °C, and calcite decarbonization between 798 and 943 °C. A 48% higher carbonation rate was observed in carbonated products compared to raw sample. Production of carbonates was evidenced from XRD analysis showing the presence of siderite, aragonite, calcite, and traces of Fe carbonates, and about 33.13-49.81 g CO₂/kg of waste has been sequestered from the process. Therefore, it has been shown that iron mining waste can be a feasible feedstock for mineral carbonation in view of waste restoration and CO₂ emission reduction.

Orthogonal Test Design for the Optimization of Preparation of Steel Slag-Based Carbonated Building Materials with Ultramafic Tailings as Fine Aggregates

The high carbonation potential makes ultramafic tailings ideal aggregates for carbonated building materials. This paper investigates the preparation condition of ultramafic tailings and steel slag through orthogonal experiments. The results show that compressive strength has a positive exponential correlation with the CO2 uptake of the carbonated compacts. The optimized conditions include a slag-tailings ratio of 5:5, a carbonation time of 12 h, a grinding time of 0 min, and a water-solid ratio of 2.5:10, when the compressive strength of the carbonated compacts reaches 29 MPa and the CO2 uptake reaches 66.5 mg CO2/g. The effects on the compressive strength ordered from high to low impact are the slag/tailings ratio, carbonation time, grinding time of steel slag, and water–solid ratio. The effects on the CO2 uptake ordered from high to low impact are the slag–tailings ratio, water–solid ratio, carbonation time, and grinding time of steel slag. A high water–solid ratio hinders the early carbonation reactions, but promotes the long-term carbonation reaction. Steel slag is the main material being carbonated and contributes to the hardening of the compacts through carbonation curing at room temperature. Ultramafic tailings assist steel slag in hardening through minor carbonation and provide fibrous contents. The obtained results lay a solid foundation for the development of tailings-steel slag carbonated materials.

Environmental benefit assessment of steel slag utilization and carbonation: A systematic review

The rapid increase in steel slag generation globally highlights the urgent need to manage the disposal or utilization processes. In addition to conventional landfill disposal, researchers have successfully reused steel slag in the construction, chemical, and agricultural fields. With the large portions of alkaline silicate mineral content, steel slag can also be used as a suitable material for carbon capture to mitigate global warming. This article comprehensively reviews the environmental performance of steel slag utilization, especially emphasizing quantitative evaluation using life cycle assessment. This paper first illustrates the production processes, properties, and applications of steel slag, and then summarizes the key findings of the environmental benefits for steel slag utilization using life cycle assessment from the reviewed literature. This paper also identifies the limitations of quantifying the environmental benefits using life cycle assessment. The results indicate steel slag is largely utilized in pavement concrete and/or block as a substitution for natural aggregates. The associated environmental benefits are mostly attributed to the avoidance of the large amount of cement utilized. The environmental benefits for the substitution of traditional energy-intensive material and carbonation treatment are further discussed in detail. Due to the presence of heavy metals, the potential risks to human and ecological health caused by the manufacturing process and usage stage are examined. Finally, the current challenges and global social implications for steel slag valorization are summarized.

Research status and future challenge for CO2 sequestration by mineral carbonation strategy using iron and steel slag

Mineral carbonation can simultaneously realize the effective treatment of CO₂ and iron and steel slag; thus, it is of great significance for the low carbon and sustainable development of iron and steel industry. In this article, the researches of mineral carbonation process using iron and steel slag as feedstock are reviewed, and the carbonation reaction mechanism and the parameters affecting the reaction rate and carbonation degree are analyzed. Furthermore, the effect of different enforcement approaches, such as ultrasonic enhancement, mixed calcination, microbial enhancement, and cyclic coprocessing on mineral carbonation reaction, is introduced. The additional effects of mineral carbonation, such as solving the problem of poor volume stability of steel slag, weakening the leaching of heavy metal ions, and reducing the pH of the leachate, are also illustrated. Moreover, issues related to mineral carbonation technology that should be emphasized upon soon, such as the production of valuable products, use of industrial wastewater, aqueous phase recycling use, multiparameter coupling analysis, and research on the properties of carbonation residues, are also discussed, which contribute some perspectives to the future development of mineral carbonation of iron and steel slag.

Influencing Factors of the Mineral Carbonation Process of Iron Ore Mining Waste in Sequestering Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide

Mining waste may contain potential minerals that can act as essential feedstock for long-term carbon sequestration through a mineral carbonation process. This study attempts to identify the mineralogical and chemical composition of iron ore mining waste alongside the effects of particle size, temperature, and pH on carbonation efficiency. The samples were found to be alkaline in nature (pH of 6.9–7.5) and contained small-sized particles of clay and silt, thus indicating their suitability for mineral carbonation reactions. Samples were composed of important silicate minerals needed for the formation of carbonates such as wollastonite, anorthite, diopside, perovskite, johannsenite, and magnesium aluminum silicate, and the Fe-bearing mineral magnetite. The presence of Fe2O3 (39.6–62.9%) and CaO (7.2–15.2%) indicated the potential of the waste to sequester carbon dioxide because these oxides are important divalent cations for mineral carbonation. The use of small-sized mine-waste particles enables the enhancement of carbonation efficiency, i.e., particles of <38 µm showed a greater extent of Fe and Ca carbonation efficiency (between 1.6–6.7%) compared to particles of <63 µm (0.9–5.7%) and 75 µm (0.7–6.0%). Increasing the reaction temperature from 80 °C to 150–200 °C resulted in a higher Fe and Ca carbonation efficiency of some samples between 0.9–5.8% and 0.8–4.0%, respectively. The effect of increasing the pH from 8–12 was notably observed in Fe carbonation efficiency of between 0.7–5.9% (pH 12) compared to 0.6–3.3% (pH 8). Ca carbonation efficiency was moderately observed (0.7–5.5%) as with the increasing pH between 8–10. Therefore, it has been evidenced that mineralogical and chemical composition were of great importance for the mineral carbonation process, and that the effects of particle size, pH, and temperature of iron mining waste were influential in determining carbonation efficiency. Findings would be beneficial for sustaining the mining industry while taking into account the issue of waste production in tackling the global carbon emission concerns.

A Review of the Influence of Steel Furnace Slag Type on the Properties of Cementitious Composites

The type of steel furnace slag (SFS), including electric arc furnace (EAF) slag, basic oxygen furnace (BOF) slag, ladle metallurgy furnace (LMF) slag, and argon oxygen decarburization (AOD) slag, can significantly affect the composite properties when used as an aggregate or as a supplementary cementitious material in bound applications, such as concretes, mortars, alkali-activated materials, and stabilized soils. This review seeks to collate the findings from the literature to express the variability in material properties and to attempt to explain the source(s) of the variability. It was found that SFS composition and properties can be highly variable, including different compositions on the exterior and interior of a given SFS particle, which can affect bonding conditions and be one source of variability on composite properties. A suite of tests is proposed to better assess a given SFS stock for potential use in bound applications; at a minimum, the SFS should be evaluated for free CaO content, expansion potential, mineralogical composition, cementitious composite mechanical properties, and chemical composition with secondary tests, including cementitious composite durability properties, microstructural characterization, and free MgO content.

Co-treatment of Waste From Steelmaking Processes: Steel Slag-Based Carbon Capture and Storage by Mineralization

The iron and steel industry is an energy-intensive sector, and large amounts of waste/ by-products are generated during the steelmaking process, such as CO₂, metallurgical slag, and wastewater. Enhancing the development and deployment of treating waste from the steelmaking process will be environment friendly and resource-saving. Capturing CO₂ by steel slag (SS) via mineralization is regarded to be an excellent choice due to the high basicity of the slag. In this paper, recent research on the steel slag-based carbon capture and storage (SS-CCS) by mineralization was summarized. Three routes of SS-CCS are compared including, direct gas-solid carbonation, direct aqueous carbonation, and indirect carbonation, respectively. Furthermore, the challenges and prospects for further development of the SS-CCS were discussed.

Effect of Different Hydration Time on Carbonation Degree and Strength of Steel Slag Specimens Containing Zeolite

Steel slag partially substituted by zeolite (SZ) was beneficial for improving the compressive strength and carbonation degree of SZ specimens after a combined curing (hydration and then carbonation) process due to pozzolanic reaction between them. By previous work results, the zeolitic substitution ratios of 5 wt.% and 15 wt.% in steel slag specimens (SZ5 and SZ15) gained the optimum compressive strength and carbonation degree, respectively, after 1 day hydration and then 2 h carbonation. This study investigated the effect of previous hydration time (1, 3, 7, 14, and 196 days) on carbonation degree and strength of SZ specimens after subsequent carbonation curing. Two zeolitic substitution ratios (5 wt.% and 15 wt.%) were selected and pure steel slag specimens were also prepared as controls. Compressive strength results revealed that the optimum hydration curing time was 1 day and the optimum zeolitic substitution ratio was 5 wt.%. The pozzolanic reaction happened in SZ specimens was divided into early and late pozzolanic reaction. In the late hydration, a new mineral, monocarboaluminate (AFmc) was produced in SZ15 specimens, modifying the carbonation degree and strength further. And the mechanism of pozzolanic reaction in early and late hydration in SZ specimens was explained by several microscopic test methods.