Utilization of waste resources is currently a hot research topic in materials science and engineering. In this work, by using tailings of ionabsorption rare earth as the main raw material, supplemented by potassium feldspar, black soil, lithium porcelain stone and talc, together with silicon carbide abrasive waste as foaming agent, lightweight foam ceramics were prepared through high temperature foaming. The effects of sintering temperature on the structure and properties of the foam ceramics were elaborated. It is found that the maximum amount of the rare earth tailings can reach 60 wt.% and the sintering temperatures can be optimized in the range of 1160 ~ 1180 °C. Both density and thermal conductivity of the foam ceramics are reduced with increasing sintering temperature. The main crystal phase in the foam ceramics is quartz, whose content is decreased rapidly with increasing sintering temperature. Specifically, the sample sintered at 1180 °C for 10 min has a bulk density of 0.37 g/cm3 , thermal conductivity of 0.021 W/m·K and compressive strength of 11.2 MPa.Published versio
