Material properties of low-cement heat resistant composites containing ceramic powder

The article is focused on the application of ceramic waste powder as a part of blended binder in the production of low-cement heat resistant composites. The idea of cement replacement is commonly employed for Portland cement based concrete. This time the idea of supplementary cementitious materials was taken over to be used in the case of calcium aluminate cement (CAC). The main aim was to design composites suitable for high temperature application, and the CAC is more convenient for such conditions. As a part of the blended binder, also reactive alumina and boehmite powder was utilized. In total six mixtures with varying ratio of mentioned binders were designed and examined. A reference mixture with pure CAC was prepared as well. The experimental program consisted of determination of basic physical and mechanical properties at ambient temperature as well as after exposure to 1400 °C. All designed composites showed better performance compared to the reference mixture. Therefore, it can be concluded that ceramic powder can be used effectively as a part of blended binders for high temperature applications. Taking into account compressive strength, residual compressive strength and ceramic powder dosage, the best result showed the composite with 4.6% of ceramic.