Ceramics composites from iron ore tailings and blast furnace slag

The search for materials and methods capable of reducing human impacts on the environment is of utmost importance nowadays. This study's primary purpose was to analyze the technical feasibility of ceramic composites production utilizing Fundão Dam's Iron Ore Tailings (IOT), Blast Furnace Slag (BFS) from charcoal, and Foundry Sand (FS) as partial substitutes for the traditional raw materials – sand and clay – for application in building industry materials. The composites were molded in rectangular specimens and fired at temperatures of 900, 950, 1000, 1050, and 1200 °C. The developed materials were analyzed and characterized by X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS), Thermogravimetry (TGA), and Differential Thermal Analysis (DTA). The obtained materials had flexural strength modulus of up to 12.19 MPa, water absorption ranging from 2 to 22%, linear shrinkage ranging from 0.02 to 6.50%, and apparent density ranging from 2.03 to 1.63 g/cm³. The study of the internal structure formation process revealed the formation of amorphous structures in the composites. The results demonstrated that these waste materials may be jointly used in construction materials, contributing to the reduction of natural resource extraction, besides enabling their correct disposal, minimizing environmental impacts, and improving the life quality of the surrounding communities.     

Facile synthesis of black phosphorus directly grown on carbon paper as an efficient OER Electrocatalyst: Role of Interfacial charge transfer and induced local charge distribution

Black phosphorus (BP), as a new 2D material, is normally synthesized by a high-pressure and high-temperature (HPHT) method from white and red phosphorus, which severely hinders the further development of BP for any potential applications and leads to search for other potential applications of BP with big challenge. Herein, we develop a facile and efficient Thermal-Vaporization-Transformation (TVT) approach to prepare a highly active BP directly grown on carbon paper as the electrode for Oxygen evolution reaction (OER), showing a low onset potential of 1.45 V versus RHE. Simultaneously, the current density of BP-CP illustrates the excellent electro-catalysis stability only decreases by 3.4% after continuous operation for 10000 s. Meanwhile, the density functional theory (DFT) calculations further illustrates the P-doped carbon layer in the upper side of BP layer is actually responsible for its enhanced OER property, and the adjacent carbon atoms of the embedded P atoms are actually the active sites due to the induced local change distribution by intramolecular change transfer. Considering the facile, but efficient and scalable, TVT approach can directly synthesize BP-CP with excellent OER performance, which is promising for BP electrocatalysts used for OER in metal-air batteries, fuel cells, water-splitting devices, even other key renewable energy.     

Chromium-promoted preparation of forsterite refractory materials from ferronickel slag by microwave sintering

The chromium-promoted preparation of forsterite refractory materials from ferronickel slag was investigated by microwave sintering of the slag with the additions of sintered magnesia and 0–10 wt% chromium oxide (Cr₂O₃). The thermodynamic calculations revealed that the addition of Cr₂O₃ can promote the formations of spinel and liquid phase and maintain high content of forsterite below 1500 °C. The experimental results showed that there existed a stronger promoting effect of Cr₂O₃ additive on the properties of refractory materials in the microwave field than that in conventional sintering. It was attributed to the preferential formation and growth of spinel with stronger microwave absorption than other phases (e.g., enstatite), the existence of more forsterite, and the enhanced densification in association with the presence of more liquid phase at the same temperature. By microwave sintering of the mixture of ferronickel slag, 25 wt% sintered magnesia, and 4 wt% Cr₂O₃ at 1350 °C for 20 min, a superior refractory material with refractoriness of 1801 °C, thermal shock resistance of 6 times, bulk density of 2.97 g/cm³, apparent porosity of 1.4%, and compressive strength of 197 MPa was obtained. Compared with that prepared by conventional sintering at 1350 °C for 2 h, the refractoriness and thermal shock resistance were increased by 175 °C and 100%, respectively. The present study provided a novel method for preparing high-quality refractory materials from ferronickel slag and relevant industrial wastes.     

Eco-friendly and degradable red phosphorus nanoparticles for rapid microbial sterilization under visible light

Pathogens pose a serious challenge to environmental sanitation and a threat to public health.The frequent use of chemicals for sterilization in recent years has not only caused secondary damage to the environment but also increased pathogen resistance to drugs,which further threatens public health.To address this issue,the use of non-chemical antibacterial means has become a new trend for environmental disinfection.In this study,we developed red phosphorus nanoparticles(RPNPs),a safe and degradable photosensitive material with good photocatalytic and photothermal properties.The red phosphorus nanoparticles were prepared using a template method and ultrasonication.Under the irradiation of simulated sunlight for 20 min,the RPNPs exhibited an efficiency of 99.98%in killing Staphylococcus aureus due to their excellent photocatalytic and photothermal abilities.Transmission electron microscopy and ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy revealed that the RPNPs exhibited degradability within eight weeks.Both the RPNPs and their degradation products were nontoxic to fibroblast cells.Therefore,such RPNPs are expected to be used as a new type of low-cost,efficient,degradable,biocompatible,and eco-friendly photosensitive material for environmental disinfection.     

蒸压建材生产过程中钢渣安定性处理与活性化利用

钢渣安定性处理过程常常造成胶凝活性的损失。为此，本文利用改性助剂消除钢渣水化过程中产生的氢氧化物并生成胶凝产物，在蒸压建材的生产过程中实现钢渣安定性处理和游离氧化物的活性化利用，并避免单独处置钢渣造成的活性物质损失。研究表明，8%秸秆灰和3%磷酸二氢铵作为复合助剂制备的尾矿-钢渣蒸压试块体积稳定，抗压强度达24.0MPa。通过对蒸压样品游离氧化物消解率、化学结合水量及热重、XRD分析，得出钢渣安定性处理与活性化利用机制：硅质材料与钢渣中f-CaO水化生成的Ca(OH)₂结合迅速生成对体系力学强度有益的水化硅酸钙，避免因大量Ca(OH)₂积累造成体积膨胀；磷酸盐中的NH₄⁺、H₂PO₄^-与f-MgO结合生成磷酸铵镁及其他低溶度积复盐类矿物，进而消除因f-MgO水化生成Mg(OH)₂造成体积膨胀的隐患。试样在180℃蒸压4h后，f-CaO及f-MgO消解率分别可达86.28%、89.73%。本文将为利用钢渣大比例取代水泥和石灰生产蒸压建筑材料提供理论基础，对于提高钢渣利用率、减少碳排放具有重要价值。     

水电站大型竖井施工安全风险控制措施研究

竖井是大型水电工程中广泛采用的重要建筑物,但竖井的传统施工方法存在施工程序复杂、人工劳动强度大、施工效率不高等特点,同时还存在较大的安全风险。通过对杨房沟水电站大型竖井施工过程的研究,总结出精细化控制爆破、小溜渣井施工方式,同时也设计了一套用于运输的综合提升系统。采用上述创新方法不仅减少了繁琐的施工程序,降低了安全施工风险,而且大量采用机械化手段进一步提高了施工效率,确保了该工程竖井施工的安全风险可控。相关措施可为类似工程的竖井施工提供较好的借鉴作用。     

钢渣复合取代矿粉、砂和石用作混凝土掺合料与骨料及其性能分析

用风淬渣粉取代矿粉、电炉渣砂取代混合砂、电炉渣石取代碎石制备混凝土，分析了混凝土的内照射指数、外照射指数、f-CaO含量、沸煮膨胀值、比表面积、密度、含水率、容重、含泥量、泥块含量、坍落度、抗压强度及其化学组成、矿物组成与微观形貌，研究了钢渣的安全性与稳定性及风淬渣粉取代矿粉、电炉渣砂取代混合砂、电炉渣石取代碎石与钢渣复合取代矿粉、砂和石对混凝土性能的影响。结果表明，风淬渣粉、电炉渣砂和电炉渣石的安全性与稳定性满足国标要求，可用于混凝土。当风淬渣粉取代20wt%矿粉、电炉渣砂取代10wt%混合砂和电炉渣石取代20wt%碎石时，混凝土的性能最优。钢渣复合取代矿粉、砂和石的比例合适，可改善混凝土的界面结构密实度，尤其能提高混凝土养护后期的强度。     

应用M-MIVM预测含钛渣系组元活度

 在钢铁冶炼过程中,随着护炉钛材料和含钛铁矿石的应用,大量的含钛炉渣被生产出来。由于缺少多元含钛渣系的热力学数据,限制了钛资源综合利用技术的深入发展。因此,应用改进的分子相互作用体积模型(M-MIVM(FII)),预测了基础渣系Al₂O₃-CaO-SiO₂、FeO-MnO-SiO₂和含钛渣系FeO-MnO-TiO₂、FeO-SiO₂-TiO₂、MnO-SiO₂-TiO₂、Al₂O₃-CaO-FeO-TiO₂中各组元活度,并与试验值比较。结果表明,M-MIVM(FII)的预测值与试验值符合较好,6个体系总的平均相对误差为11%,该精度处于Turkdogan提出的30%以内的试验误差范围; M-MIVM(FII)在参数拟合与活度预测能力方面均优于MIVM,该模型对多元含钛熔渣体系组元活度具有更好的预测效果。在此基础上,应用M-MIVM(FII)预测Al₂O₃-CaO-SiO₂-TiO₂熔体中TiO₂活度,并分析其影响因素。结果表明,TiO₂活度预测值与试验值吻合良好,且随炉渣碱度、Al₂O₃含量的增加而降低,该规律与试验规律相一致。M-MIVM(FII)仅通过拟合子二元系活度或者直接由无限稀活度系数就能够预测多元熔体的热力学性质。