Porous materials from Fe-rich slags: Challenges and best practices

R. Murillo Alarcón, T. Hertel, H. Rahier, Y. Pontikes

KU Leuven, Belgium
Department of Materials and Chemistry, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussel, Belgium

E-mail: yiannis.pontikes@kuleuven.be

Fe-rich slags have shown high potential to be used in materials with high-added value.
This work summarises the research carried out to valorise Fe-rich slags into lightweight
porous materials. A combination of alkali-activation (i.e., dissolution of the solid
precursors and further polymerisation within an alkali-medium) and methods to induce
porosity (e.g., chemical expansion or mechanical foaming) have been studied in detail
for the production of these porous materials. Characterisation of their properties
indicates that these materials could be suitable for load-bearing applications, as well as
for thermal and sound insulation. Furthermore, a case study of porous materials from
modified bauxite residue proved to be suitable adsorbers for pollutants from
wastewater.