The Comminution of Chert Gravel by Microwave Irradiation

Mark Tzibulsky and Vladimir Frid ()
Additional contact information
Mark Tzibulsky: Civil Engineering Department, Sami Shamoon College of Engineering, Jabotinsky 84, Ashdod 77245, Israel
Vladimir Frid: Civil Engineering Department, Sami Shamoon College of Engineering, Jabotinsky 84, Ashdod 77245, Israel

Resources, 2024, vol. 13, issue 5, 1-14

Abstract: Chert, a by-product rock of sand quarrying, has historically posed economic challenges for aggregate production, resulting in significant “waste” accumulation in quarries. Our study investigates the effect of microwave irradiation on the mechanical properties of chert gravel, a mineralogically homogenous material composed of fine quartz grains. The results, which demonstrate that increased irradiation time leads to a substantial decrease in chert gravel strength (by a factor of 4–6 for 2.5 min of irradiation), underscore the potential impact of this research on comminution processes. With quenching altering the fractional content of the samples after the crushing test, reducing the Gravel-to-Sand ratio, this study is driven by the promising potential of crushed chert gravel as a pivotal aggregate within the concrete and asphalt industries, offering a practical solution to their material needs. The urgent need to rehabilitate previously utilized quarry areas, offering an environmentally beneficial solution for which we all should be responsible, motivated the present study.

Keywords: microwave irradiation; rock comminution; quartz response; chert gravel; reuse of quarry area (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9276/13/5/63/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9276/13/5/63/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jresou:v:13:y:2024:i:5:p:63-:d:1383372

Access Statistics for this article

Resources is currently edited by Ms. Donchian Ma

More articles in Resources from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().