Evaluating Porcelain Polishing Waste as a Pyro-Expansive Agent in Clay Formulations for Sustainable Lightweight Aggregates

Vitória Silva Martins de Oliveira, José Anselmo da Silva Neto (), Gustavo Lira do Nascimento, Marcos Alyssandro Soares dos Anjos, Ricardo Peixoto Suassuna Dutra and Cinthia Maia Pederneiras ()
Additional contact information
Vitória Silva Martins de Oliveira: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Federal University of Paraíba (UFPB), João Pessoa 58051-900, Brazil
José Anselmo da Silva Neto: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Federal University of Paraíba (UFPB), João Pessoa 58051-900, Brazil
Gustavo Lira do Nascimento: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Federal University of Paraíba (UFPB), João Pessoa 58051-900, Brazil
Marcos Alyssandro Soares dos Anjos: Department of Civil Engineering, Federal Institute of Paraíba (IFPB), João Pessoa 58015-430, Brazil
Ricardo Peixoto Suassuna Dutra: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Federal University of Paraíba (UFPB), João Pessoa 58051-900, Brazil
Cinthia Maia Pederneiras: Buildings Department, National Laboratory for Civil Engineering (LNEC), 1700-066 Lisbon, Portugal

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 16, 1-27

Abstract: This study addresses the use of porcelain polishing waste as a pyro-expansive agent in clay-based formulations for the production of lightweight aggregates, aiming to reduce the consumption of natural resources and mitigate environmental impacts. In line with circular economy principles and sustainable construction goals, this study investigates the potential use of porcelain polishing waste as a pyro-expansive agent in clay-based formulations for producing sustainable lightweight aggregates. Using the Taguchi method and ANOVA, the effects of key processing parameters were evaluated. The results demonstrated a broad range of volumetric changes, from shrinkage of 40.84% to expansion of 91.69%, depending on the formulation and processing conditions. The aggregates exhibited specific mass values ranging from 0.99 g/cm 3 to 2.36 g/cm 3 , water absorption up to 3.29%, and mechanical strength from 4.57 MPa to 39.87 MPa. Notably, nine of the sixteen experimental conditions met the technical standards for classification as LWA, indicating suitability for applications in high-strength, structural, and non-structural lightweight concretes, as well as lightweight mortars. The performance of these materials was directly linked to the chemical and mineralogical characteristics of the precursors and the proportion of pyro-expansive waste used. Overall, the findings suggest that 50% of the produced aggregates are viable for high-performance concrete applications, offering an environmentally responsible alternative to virgin raw materials and contributing to sustainable waste valorization in the ceramic and construction industries.

Keywords: artificial lightweight aggregates; porcelain polishing waste; Taguchi method; pyro-expansive agents (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/16/7385/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/16/7385/ (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:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:16:p:7385-:d:1725250

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

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