Study on the properties improvement of wet quarry sludge made artificial aggregates by using PAM and CaO

The artificial aggregates prepared with high crystalline wet quarry sludge (WQS) by cold-bonded process suffer from low mechanical strength and poor solidification effect. Inspired by the shell, polymer chains were incorporated to enhance the connection among WQS particles. However, traditional polymer modification faces many limitations such as high cost and hydration inhibition. In this work, calcium oxide (CaO) and polyacrylamide (PAM) were co-used to address the above limitations and improve the properties of artificial aggregates. The compressive strength, hydration products and microstructure of modified WQS-aggregates were monitored. The main findings prove that the co-use of CaO and PAM effectively improves the mechanical performance of WQS-aggregates. The compressive strength of aggregates modified by CaO and PAM reach 11.85 MPa, exceeding the control by approximately 46.3 %. This approach mitigates issues like crack generation and poor cement hydration, which will occur when they are added separately. Through metal coordination and promoted carbonation behaviors, the introduction of CaO and PAM promotes the formation of a 3D organic-inorganic network and induces a denser microstructure. The porosities of aggregates reduce from 27.48 % to 24.83 %. The incorporation of CaO and PAM enhances the solidification of heavy metals. The prepared WQS-aggregates meet the requirements of environmental security. It is believed that this work will provide a new solution for the preparation of low carbon artificial construction products with low activity solid wastes.