Evaluation of properties of alkali-activated material made from biomass ash applied to construction materials

Researchers at the Civil Construction Laboratory at UFOP (Federal University of Ouro Preto, Minas Gerais, Brazil - LCC) seek to develop their research to understand materials activated by alkalis, use of residues in the production of cement and sustainable construction materials. The post-doctorate at LCC is a great opportunity for researchers to develop their academic careers in the field of materials science applied to Civil Construction. The fellow is expected to develop an independent research project on alkali-activated cement from ashes from burnt biomass, developing laboratory practices in the micro, nanostructure, and new building materials, recovering industrial residues, characterizing materials cement, durability properties, the performance of construction materials and publication in top scientific journals.

The LCC promotes a weekly meeting between students and supervisors to present and discuss the results. The laboratory infrastructure includes: universal testing machine, cement, and concrete mixers, silica alkaline reactivity test system, flow table, laser diffraction analysis - particle size, thermal analysis (TG - DTA), furnace (1200°C), ultrasonic testing equipment concrete, scanning electron microscopy - SEM-EDS, X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy - XRF, X-ray diffraction - DRX, microtomography - Micro-CT. FTIR, NMR, and isothermal heat conduction equipment are available from partner laboratories. The researcher will carry out experiments in the building materials laboratory and in Nanolab (nanotechnology laboratory), such as sample preparation, sample characterization, evaluation of material properties (microstructure and mechanical properties), presentation of seminars, writing of manuscripts. The researcher will evaluate the application of fly ash (FA) from burnt biomass (eucalyptus) as the primary precursor material in the production of alkali-activated material (AAM). Glass powder (GP) residue from the glass industry will also be included as a mixing material. Four mixtures of AAM will be produced: one using FA; three mixtures where the FA will be replaced by the GP, with different replacement rates. In addition, three different milling times (" one part mixture") and different amounts of NaOH will be applied. The compressive strength and flexural strength tests will be performed on prismatic samples at 7, 14, 28, and 56 days, and the microstructural analysis of the fragments will be obtained by SEM analysis. The residues and AAM will be characterized by XRF, QXRD (Rietveld and Ponkcs), SEM-EDS, FTIR, and TG-DTA.

Host: Prof. Guilherme Jorge Brigolini Silva

Email address: 

guilhermebrigolini@ufop.edu.br

CV: 

http://lattes.cnpq.br/8755682183778618

Federal University of Ouro Preto

Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto - Federal University of Ouro Preto (UFOP) is a higher education and research institution located in Minas Gerais State, southeastern Brazil. It was founded on August 21st, 1969, as a consolidation of two significant preexisting institutions:

Escola de Farmácia - School of Pharmacy (1839), the first School of Pharmacy in Latin America, and Escola de Minas - School of Mines (1876), founded by the French mineralogist Henry Gorceix and the first Brazilian institution aimed to teach Mining, Metallurgy, and Geology.

In addition to Escola de Minas and the Escola de Farmácia, UFOP covers all areas of knowledge in 13 academic units, distributed across four campi (located in the cities of Ouro Preto, Mariana, and João Monlevade). The main campus is located in Ouro Preto, a multicultural city with a vast calendar with some of the biggest cultural and artistic events in Brazil. It was the first place in Brazil to be considered by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage. UFOP comprises 142 research laboratories (in 2018 its patent number130 was registered), approximately 300 outreach projects (community engagement), 12 libraries (including a rare books library from 18th and 19th centuries), a Center of Arts and Conventions, a Movie Theater, and some museums, as the Museum of Pharmacy and the Museum of Mineralogy.