Synthesis and Characterization of a Wood Biomass Ash-Derived Multipurpose Sustainable Lightweight Geopolymer: A Pilot Study in Wastewater Treatment

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Abstract

This work supports the circular economy and sustainable material by facilitating the creation of low-carbon materials with enhanced elimination of nutrients from wastewater, thereby assisting in preventing eutrophication. Porous geopolymers, owing to their distinctive pore structure and numerous superior properties, including noise reduction and thermal insulation, have a wide range of potential applications in the building sector, chemical industry, and water treatment. Developing low-carbon-footprint porous geopolymer materials is an important step toward creating multipurpose lightweight materials that can serve as structural materials and, at the same time, as adsorbents. In this study, it was revealed that the porous material created during the hydrothermal synthesis of (lime–Portland cement-based aerated composition), by replacement of sand with wood biomass bottom ash (WBA), can be used as porous aggregates (PA) for adsorbent development. PA was produced with an apparent porosity of 65%, a density of 610 kg/m3, and a compressive strength of 2.0 MPa. The effectiveness of employing an air-entraining additive (AEA) and creating PA in geopolymers was tested. A different-molarity activator was used, and wood biomass fly ash (WFA) and metakaolin (MK) waste were used as precursors for the synthesis of porous geopolymers. Using an air-entraining admixture in geopolymers allows for the production of lightweight geopolymers with densities up to 1400 kg/m3, compressive strengths up to 8.0 Mpa, and apparent porosities up to 38.4%. Such properties, together with their low cost, offer good prospects for geopolymers in the construction industry. By utilizing PA in the geopolymer composition, a lightweight geopolymer (GPA) with a density of 985 kg/m3 and a compressive strength of 3.9 Mpa, with 42.0% apparent porosity, was obtained. The materials effectively removed phosphorus from biologically treated wastewater: PA had an efficiency of up to 82.5%, the geopolymer with AEA had an efficiency of up to 88.4%, and GPA had an efficiency of up to 97%. The created GPA enhances the adsorbent’s sorption capacity, resulting in extremely high phosphorus uptake efficiency.

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