80 research outputs found
Sintesi di Geopolimeri con scarti industriali, Caratterizzazione Chimica e Microstrutturale
Ricerca di nuove tecniche per lo sviluppo di nuovi materiali da costruzione rinnovabili e non inquinanti, attraverso l'utilizzo di rifiuti/sottoprodotti organici e inorganici. Individuazione di materie prime naturali e di recupero, ingegneria di prodotto e di processo, caratterizzazione del prodotto con particolare attenzione all'impatto ambientale.Research of new techniques for the development of new renewable and non-polluting building materials, through the use of organic and inorganic waste/by-product. Identification of natural and recovery raw materials, product and process engineering, product characterization with particular emphasis on the environmental impact
Cork powdery industrial waste in metakaolinâgeopolymer matrix
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Acid attacks on metakaolin based-geopolymers with recycled corundum: A study focused on the role of anions by NMR characterization
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Efficient Addition of Waste Glass in MK-Based Geopolymers: Microstructure, Antibacterial and Cytotoxicity Investigation
Reuse of waste glass can significantly decrease the quantity of waste to be treated or
disposed of in landfills, allowing to both diminish the ecological damage and to reduce the costs of
transportation for removal. Geopolymer mixes with diverse percentages (20, 50 and 60 wt%) and
with different grain size ranges (37 ”m < diam < 53 ”m; 75 ”m < diam < 105 ”m) of waste glass
and the residual part of pure metakaolin were prepared by addition of NaOH and sodium silicate
as alkaline activator solutions. The effect of waste glass on the mechanical and microstructure of
new geopolymers has been explored in this study. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR)
evidenced the reactivity of waste glass in terms of SiâO and SiâOâAl bonds, more evident for the
finer waste glass powder. The consolidation of the materials has been established by reduced weight
loss in water and decreased pH and ionic conductivity of the eluate after 7, 14 and 28 days of curing
at room temperature. The decrease of the mechanical properties with waste glass content was less
evident for the finer glassy powders, yet the value of about 4-5 MPa indicates their potential use as
non-structural materials. The consolidated final materials were tested for their effects on the microbial
growth of Escherichia coli and Enterococcus faecalis after 24 and 48 h, respectively. The samples showed
a very limited and absent inhibition zone, for fine and coarse grain size ranges, respectively. Finally,
the cytotoxicity tests accomplished the ecological valuation of the final consolidated products
Waste Cork in MetakaolinâGeopolymer Matrix: Physico-Mechanical Characterization
Cork powdery waste (CW) from agglomerated cork caps manufacturing is commonly
transported to waste-to-energy plants, although it could be locally exploited for lightweight building
materials. The transformation of CW into a geopolymer formulation to obtain a novel composite
formulation suitable for insulating panels is presented in this contribution. The geopolymer mix
was based on metakaolin added to NaOH and Na silicate solutions, to which 2.4, 4.8 and 9.1 wt%
(calculated upon dry metakaolin) of CW in the form of as-received powdery waste were added.
No pre-treatments were performed on CW and no thermal curing was conducted for the alkaliactivated product that was consolidated at room temperature to improve product sustainability. The
insulating panel presented an apparent density of about 1.521 to 0.990 ± 0.001 g/cm3
, combined
with a total porosity in the range of 35.61 to 56.22 ± 0.003 % for 2.4 to 9.1 wt% of CW, respectively,
and this was dependent upon ageing time. The values of its mechanical properties (compressive
strength ranged from 2.5 to 1.5 MPa at 28 and 90 days of curing time, complying with UNI EN 998-2)
and thermal insulating properties (thermal conductivity around 0.1146 W/mK) indicated that the
highest percentage of CW in the formulations, i.e., 9.1 wt%, was suitable to obtain self-standing
insulating panels
Polyetherimide(PEI)/SiO2 organic/inorganic composite: sol-gel synthesis, structural characterization, surface interactions
Polyetherimide (PEI), an amorphous thermoplastic material is a promising candidate for wide applications due to its high heat stability and its biocompatibility in human tissue. In the present paper, PEI (4 wt%) was added to SiO2 inorganic matrix in order to obtain a novel composite biomaterial through sol-gel route. Structural characterization of the biomaterial was provided by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) that confirmed the presence of both organic and inorganic components in the structure. A theoretical study based on Molecular Mechanics and Molecular Dynamics methods will be useful in order to better understand the intermolecular interaction at the organic/inorganic interface compared with the discussed structural characterization. Concerning the compatibility in the biological system, a study of antibacterial properties was carried out. The effect of PEI/SiO2 composite on gram-negative bacterium Escherichia coli, was analyzed with a marked antimicrobial activity
Recycling of Waste Corundum Abrasive Powder in Mk-Based Geopolymers
Recycling corundum abrasive powder in metakaolin-based geopolymer formulations is proposed to reduce the amount of waste to be treated or disposed of in landfills, allowing to decrease ecological damage as well as to reduce transport costs for removal. The addition of waste corundum, as an important source of Al(2)O(3), has proved to increase the slight ionic conductivity of the leachate solution obtained after immersion in water of samples at 28 d of curing at room temperature. With the same curing conditions, the geopolymerization process has not been disturbed as evidenced by the FT-IR peak shift and XRD patterns. It was recorded a decrease in resistance to compression of the consolidated geopolymers of about 5% with 10 wt% addition and of about 77% with the addition of 20 wt% of waste corundum. In any case, the waste abrasive powder does not release heavy metals when added to a geopolymeric formulation based on MK, NaOH, and Na-silicate, and does not show relevant antibacterial properties, indicating the formation of a stable and safe final product with a ceramic-like appearance
Wear resistant nanocomposites based on biomedical grade UHMWPE paraffin oil and carbon nano-filler: Preliminary biocompatibility and antibacterial activity investigation
Abstract: In the present paper, we investigate the eïŹectiveness of nanocomposites (composed of
ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) mixed with carbon nano-ïŹller (CNF) and
medical grade paraïŹn oil (PO), from the biological point of view. Wear measurements were carried
out without (air) and with lubricant (distilled water, natural, and artiïŹcial lubricant), and antibacterial
activity and cytotoxicity were evaluated. The results highlighted that the presence of CNF is
important in the nanocomposite formulation because it reduces the wear rate and prevents oxidative
degradation during its processing. An amount of 1.0 wt % of CNF is best because it reaches the
optimal distribution within the polymeric matrix, resulting in the best wear resistant, bio-active,
and anti-bacterial nanocomposite among all investigated sample
Characterization of white metakaolin-based geo-polymers doped with synthetic organic dyes
Over the years, many materials have been used to restore buildings, paintings, ceramics, and mosaic pieces exhibiting different types of dyes and colour hues. Recently, geopolymers have been used for restoration purposes owing to their high chemical and mechanical resistance. In this work, white metakaolin was used to obtain white geopolymers, cured at 25 and 40 °C, as bulk materials to be coloured with synthetic organic dyes, i.e., bromothymol blue, cresol red, phenolphthalein, and methyl orange. These dyes were added during the fresh paste preparation to obtain dyed geopolymeric solids. Ionic conductivity and pH measurement confirmed the chemical stability of the consolidated materials, while FT-IR analyses were used to follow the geopolymerisation occurrences at different ageing times (from 7 to 56 days). Finally, the colour hues and properties were assessed in the CIELAB colour space before and after immersion in water
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