Rice husk ash and zeolite-siliceous rock as sources of amorphous silicon dioxide

¹ Kazan National Research Technological University, 68 Karl Marx Street, 4020015 Kazan, Russia
² National Research Centre “Kurchatov Institute”, 1, Akademika Kurchatova pl., 123182 Moscow, Russia
³ National Research Moscow State University of Civil Engineering, 26, Yaroslavskoye shosse, 129337 Moscow, Russia

Abstract

The present article is referred to the study of amorphous analogs of silicon dioxide obtained from raw materials of plant and fossil origin available on the domestic market. Silicate fillers of crystalline structure are less preferrable for filling ceramic and polymer composite materials due to their lower reaction capacity. Rice husk ash, a large-tonnage agricultural waste, and zeolite-siliceous rock of Tatar-Shatrashanskoye deposit were used as sources of amorphous silicon dioxide in the given study. Having analyzed the received experimental data, the authors concluded that application of both industrially produced silicon dioxide derived form the rice husk ash and zeolite-siliceous rock by the solid phase method allows obtaining effective wollastonite- and diopside-containing fillers for composite building materials. The high content of amorphous silicon dioxide in the obtained calcium and magnesium silicates enables to lower the temperature of their synthesis and to increase the industrial output of target wollastonite and diopside, and also to reduce the content of undesirable admixtures in their composition. The availability of large- tonnage alternative silicates can be seen as a sustainable alternative that brings ecological, technical and economic benefits to construction industry.