Production of Insulations and Construction Materials from Expanded Perlite

Abstract

Today, importance of sustainable development increases the importance of studies on energy efficiency. Residential and industrial fields consume 70% of total energy consumption and constitute the largest portion of it. There is an energy saving potential of 30% in industry and 70% in homes by insulation. The production of low thermal conductivity lightweight insulation materials from domestic resources and diversification of these materials has gained importance. Expanded perlite aggregates which have different particle size were used as a main raw material. Perlite is a lightweight material due to their high open and closed micro pores. Expanded perlite aggregate has porous structure and has hygroscopic properties. In order to prevent these properties, hydrophobic polymer, and organic or mineral acids additives were used to coat the surface by spraying method. Perlite surfaces were coated and become hydrophobic after this process. In the second part of the study, perlite aggregates mixed with certain amount of sodium silicate solution (water glass) and shaped in the mold. The main objective of this study is to production of highly heat isolative construction materials from expanded perlite which is very abundant in Turkey. According to the study, productions of insulation products which have thermal conductivity constant lower than 0.060 W/mK were obtained by using coated expanded perlite.