• Resources Recycling
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.73-81
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• 2016

Geopolymers produced from aluminosilicate materials such as metakaolin and coal ash react with alkali activators and show higher fire resistance than portland cement, due to amorphous inorganic polymer. The percentage of thermal shrinkage of geopolymers ranges from less than 0.5 % to about 3 % until $600^{\circ}C$, and reaches about 5 ~ 7 % before melting. In this study, geopolymers paste having Si/Al = 1.5 and being mixed with carbon nanofibers, silicon carbide, pyrex glass, and vermiculite, and ISO sand were studied in order to understand the compressive strength and the effects of thermal shrinkage of geopolymers. The compressive strength of geopolymers mixed by carbon nanofibers, silicon carbide, pyrex glass, or vermiculite was similar in the range from 35 to 40 MPa. The average compressive strength of a geopolymers mixed with 30 wt.% of ISO sand was lowest of 28 MPa. Thermal shrinkage of geopolymers mixed with ISO sand decreased to about 25 % of paste. This is because the aggregate particles expanded on firing and to compensate the shrinkage of paste. The densification of the geopolymer matrix and the increase of porosity by sintering at $900^{\circ}C$ were observed regardless of fillers.