Paula Afonso

Dr. Paula Afonso

orcid

Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

4Years (2023-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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20 December 2023 in Sustainability
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
PAPaula Afonso
Paula Afonso
Vera PiresVera Pires
Vera Pires
PFPaula Faria
Paula Faria
AAAntônio Azzalini
Antônio Azzalini
LLLuis Lopes
Luis Lopes
RMRuben Martins
Ruben Martins
This paper discusses the historical use of natural stone for various purposes and highlights the substantial waste generated by quarries and stone processing plants in modern industrialized production. These waste materials are typically categorized into unused rock and sludges from processing. This accumulation of waste presents a global environmental challenge and a financial burden for the stone industry. In-depth investigation into the development of a binder incorporating carbonated sludge from marble and limestone industries, combined with polyester resin, for building stone composites was performed. This research involved chemical and microstructural characterization of the sludges, preparation of mixtures with polyester resin, stone composites manufacturing, and subsequent testing to determine and validate the optimal binder composition. Given the achieved results, and the demonstrated feasibility of using a binder composed of polyester resin and carbonated sludge for stone composite production, it was concluded that employing carbonated sludge as an economic resource is indeed viable.