This study used liquefied red mud (RM) sludge, an aluminum industry by-product, as a construction material. Accordingly, various methods were examined that used the fabricated liquefied red mud (LRM) as an admixture for concrete, and the mechanical properties of concrete were then evaluated according to the cement type and the amount of LRM. The LRM mixing methods (replacement and addition) were compared, and the slump and compressive strengths of concrete were evaluated for each method. To examine the mechanical properties according to the cement type and the amount of LRM, two types of cement (ordinary Portland cement and slag cement (SC)) were used, and 20 and 40 wt% LRM (with respect to the cement weight) were added. The mechanical properties of the stress–strain curve (SSC), compressive strength, peak strain, and elastic modulus were quantified. When the slump and compressive strength of concrete were considered based on the experimental results, the addition LRM mixing method was recommended as the appropriate method for LRM. As the addition of LRM increased, the mechanical properties of concrete degraded. However, when SC was used, the mechanical properties did not significantly change when different amounts of LRM were added (up to 20%). In addition, the SSC of LRM concrete could be approximated based on the use of the relationship of the compressive strength and peak strain according to the cement type and the amount of LRM.

In this study, the compressive strength and water contact angle of mortar specimens prepared by mixing two types of water repellent with ordinary Portland cement (OPC) and rapid-hardening cement mortar were measured before and after surface abrasion. In addition, the hydration products and chemical bonding of cement mortar with the repellents were examined using X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetry-differential thermal analysis (TG-DTA), and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) to evaluate the performance of these cement mortar mixtures as repair materials. We found that the fast-hardening cement mortar mixture containing the oligomer water repellent showed the best performance with a high compressive strength and large water contact angle. With the oligomer water repellent, the rapid-hardening cement mortar mixture showed contact angles of 131° and 126° even after a 2 mm abrasion, thereby confirming that the water repellent secured hydrophobicity through strong bonding with the entire cement mortar as well as its surface. The compressive strengths were found to be 34.5 MPa at 3 h and 54.8 MPa at 28 days, confirming that hydration occurred well despite the addition of water repellent.

An increasing amount of red mud (RM) is being generated globally due to the growth in aluminum production. To avoid RM pollution, low-cost methods for effectively recycling RM are being investigated. We propose a method for recycling RM as a construction material. Liquefied RM (LRM) was neutralized by nitric acid and added to cement paste, and the hydration heat, compressive strength, and hydration products were investigated. The cement paste with neutralized LRM had a higher compressive strength than that of plain cement paste and cement paste with LRM without neutralization at 1 day of aging; this indicates that nitric acid neutralization increases the early-age strength. Furthermore, the cement paste with 10% neutralized LRM showed 28 days-compressive strength and hydration heating curves similar to the plain mixture, indicating the positive impact of LRM neutralization on the strength. It was noted that a greater quantity of portlandite was produced earlier in cement paste with neutralized LRM than in that without. Therefore, the proposed method of using RM as a concrete additive has the potential to reduce the cost and environmental impact of both construction materials and RM waste management.

Red mud is a highly alkaline waste by-product of the aluminum industry. Although recycling of red mud is being actively researched, a feasible technological solution has not been found yet. In this study, we propose that neutralization of red mud alkalinity could assist in its use as a construction material. Neutralized red mud (LRM + S; pH 6–8) was prepared by adding sulfuric acid to liquefied red mud (LRM; pH 10–12). After adding LRM and LRM + S to cement paste, the heat of hydration, compressive strength, and hydration products were examined. The experiments revealed that the calorific value of the cement paste with LRM was low, and its peak was delayed, when compared with that of plain cement paste (referred to as Plain), whereas the calorific value of the cement paste with LRM + S was similar to that of Plain. At the age of 28 d, the compressive strength of the cement paste with 10% LRM + S was 99% whereas that with 20% LRM was only 55% of the strength of Plain. Thus, our results help to resolve the issue of strength degradation of cementitious materials observed upon the addition of red mud and enable its reuse as a construction material.

In this study, a method was suggested to produce dried powder from red mud (RM) sludge with 40%–60% water content without heating. The RM sludge is discharged from the Bayer process, which is used to produce alumina from bauxite ores. Nonthermally treated RM (NTRM) powder was produced by mixing RM sludge (50%), paper sludge ash (PSA, 35%), and high-calcium fly ash (HCFA, 15%). The physicochemical properties of NTRM were investigated by analyzing its water content, X-ray fluorescence spectra, X-ray diffraction patterns, and particle size. Moreover, to examine the applicability of NTRM as a construction material, slag cement mortar in which 20 wt% of the binder was replaced with NTRM was produced, and the compressive strength, porosity, and water absorption rate of the mortar were evaluated. Results indicated that NTRM of acceptable quality was produced when the water content in RM sludge decreased and CaO contained in PSA and HCFA reacted with moisture and formed portlandite. The NTRM-mixed mortar requires further examination in terms of durability because of the increased capillary voids and high water absorption rate, but its compressive strength is sufficient to enable its use in sidewalks, bike roads, and parking lots.

The purpose of this study was to recycle red mud, an industrial byproduct that generates 300,000 tons per year, into the construction industry. Red mud was prepared as a liquid, neutralized with sulfuric acid, and replaced with cement mortar. The properties of liquefied red mud (LRM) neutralized with sulfuric acid (LRM + S) were investigated as well as its effect on cement mortar’s mechanical and hydration characteristics. The pH of LRM + S stabilized at 7.6; its SO₃ content was ~4.19% higher than that of LRM. Sulfites were contributed by calcium and sodium sulfate. The flows and setting times of the mortars containing LRM and LRM + S decreased as the substitution rate increased. The compressive strength of mortar that replaced 5% of cement with LRM + S was similar to that of the plain cement mortar. Scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction revealed that the hydration products of LRM + S-containing cement mortar were similar to those of the plain cement mortar. Thus, LRM + S can be used as a cement substitute.