Construction and Demolition Residuals as Raw Materials for the Production of Novel Geopolymer Building Materials

Abstract

The increasing number of new construction projects requiring high-quality building products, which, in turn, emit enormous amounts of CO2, runs counter to European and global climate goals. The increasing occupation of valuable landfill space is also an ecological problem. To meet these challenges without having to lower living standards, more ecological building materials should be used in the future. Geopolymers or alkali-activated materials, which, unlike conventional building materials, can be produced and used without a prior burning or calcination process, offer a comparatively low-CO2 alternative. Significant CO2 emissions can already be saved by using this technology. The aim of this work is to investigate whether geopolymers can also be produced from construction and demolition residuals generated by the construction industry in order to counteract the problem of the increasing use of landfill space and, at the same time, to further reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the production of building materials. For this purpose, various residual materials from the construction and demolition industry are investigated by means of XRF, XRD, and IR spectroscopy for their setting behavior by alkaline activation. At the same time, the characteristic values of compressive strength, flexural strength, bulk density, and thermal conductivity, which are important for building materials, are determined in order to test the possible applications of the resulting materials as building materials.