Indian Journal of Engineering & Materials Sciences

Vol. 21, April 2014, pp. 227-232

Fly ash based lightweight aggregates incorporating clay binders

P Gomathi & A Sivakumar*
Structural Engineering Division, VIT University, Vellore 632 014, India
Received 7 May 2013; accepted 5 December 2013
This study focuses on the strength characterization of artificial fly ash aggregates produced from a pelletization
process. Additionally, to improve the stability and strength properties of fly ash aggregates clay binders such as bentonite
and metakaolin are added during the production. Physical properties such as specific gravity, bulk density, water absorption,
gradation and individual crushing strength of aggregates are determined. The faster hardening of fresh aggregates is
envisaged with the addition alkali activator in the binder. Fly ash aggregates are then cured in different environmental
conditions such as controlled humidity curing at 40% RH and 35C, hot air oven curing at two different temperatures - 50C
and 100C. Porosity of fly ash aggregates is found to be reduced with the addition of binder material as a result of good
agglomeration with fly ash. Also, the production efficiency of fly ash aggregates is found to be dependent on the binary
blends of fly ash with clay binders and the concentration of alkali activator added to the fly ash. The test results also indicate
that a maximum crushing strength of 17.97 MPa can be obtained in the case of fly ash aggregates subjected to hot air oven
curing at 100C.
Keywords: Hot air oven curing, Alkali activator, Fly ash, aggregate, Bentonite, Metakaolin, Geo-polymerization

The demand for the lightweight aggregate in the

production of prefabricated lightweight concrete
structural element proves to be an ideal choice and
future scope for the construction industry. Reduction
in the self weight of the concrete element with high
strength to weight ratio makes it so advantageous to
be used as a structural element1. Lightweight
aggregate concrete is most preferred for constructing
long span structural beam due to reduced bending
stress as a result of reduction in the self weight. The
production of artificial lightweight aggregate is one
ideal choice for disposing safely the industrial waste
materials as well as minimizing environmental
pollution. The porous lightweight aggregate has less
strength and also more deformable as compare to the
normal weight aggregates2. The manufacturing
process of artificial aggregate is carried out by means
of agglomeration method that envisages the formation
of pellets from a powder material with more stable
spherical balls3. Earlier studies were conducted on the
various manufacturing techniques and hardening
process of artificial lightweight aggregate; a disc
pelletizer in which the formation of pellets proceeds
in three paths due to the thumbing force, excluding
the external compaction4. The investigation on the
effect of curing process such as accelerated curing
_________
*Corresponding author (E-mail: sivakumara@vit.ac.in)

and autoclave curing showed that the autoclave and

accelerated curing techniques provided strength
enhancement of lightweight aggregate5. A high
strength concrete (45 to 75 MPa) can be produced
using cold bonded fly ash aggregate with density of
concrete6 in the range 1600-1950 kg/m3. Improvement
in the strength of cold bonded aggregates is achieved
using sintering process which involves burning at
temperature greater than 1000C in a muffle furnace7.
The fineness of various binder materials added to
flyash improve the ballability and increase the
efficiency of production8. The porosity of lightweight
aggregate significantly influenced the physical and
mechanical properties of aggregate as well as the
composition of binder material used during the
pelletization process9. It is understood that the
unreacted silica particles exhibited a different
micostructural formation due to different reactivity of
source materials, percentage of nonreactive fillers,
and alkalinity for geo-polymerization reaction10.
Micostructural analysis showed that the final products
are mainly composed of crystalline phase of polymer
fillers which enable the composites with high variable
mechanical properties11. The present study is intended
on the manufacturing of fly ash aggregates and to
evaluate the influence of binder on the strength
properties of pelletized aggregates. Also, the effect of
curing regime on the aggregate strength properties in

INDIAN J. ENG. MATER. SCI., APRIL 2014

228

different environmental conditions such as controlled

humidity curing at 40% RH at 35C, hot air oven
curing at two different temperatures - 50C and 100C
were studied.
Experimental Procedure
Materials

A low calcium class-F fly ash obtained from

Ennore thermal power plant was used as raw material
for aggregate production. The efficiency and strength
properties of aggregate were evaluated with the
addition of binders such as bentonite and metakaolin
at 20% and 30% of total binder content. The physical
and chemical properties of various raw materials used
in aggregate production are provided in Table 1. The
water content for pelletization was optimized at 25%
of total binder and alkali activator (sodium hydroxide)
of molarity 10M (for fly ash bentonite aggregate)
and 12M (for only fly ash aggregate and fly ash
metakaolin aggregate) was used. A disc type
pelletizer was fabricated (Fig. 1) with 500 mm
diameter of disc and 250 mm depth of pelletizer. The
rotating disc was set at an angle 36C and speed was
optimized at 55 rpm. The pelletization process was
carried up to 15 min time duration then followed by
air drying. Curing of aggregates was done in different
methods namely; humidity controlled environment at
40% relative humidity and 35C (Fig. 2), hot air oven
curing at 50C and 100C up to 7 days (Fig. 3). The
mix combination for various types of aggregates
produced with different fly ash binder proportions
are given in Table 2.

Fig. 1 Fabricated disc pelletizer machine

Results and Discussion

Table 1 Physical properties and chemical analysis of various
binders used
Observation

Fly ash class F

Bentonite

Metakaolin

2.1
400

2.64
-

2.52
800

56.2
25.8
6.8
3.67
1.76
0.47
2.06
0.01
0.52
2.54

47.84
14.85
9.61
2.29
2.20
2.88
1.45
19.73

41.4
30.5
1.0
0.3
1.8
0.9
0.9
18.16

Specific gravity
Blaines fineness
(m2/kg)

Fig. 2 Humidity curing of fly ash aggregate

Chemical composition(%)
SiO2
Al2O3
Fe2O3
CaO
MgO
SO3
Na2O
K2O
Cl
Loss on ignition

Fig. 3 Hot air oven curing of fly ash aggregate

GOMATHI & SIVAKUMAR: FLY ASH BASED LIGHTWEIGHT AGGREGATES

229

Table 2 Mix combination for various types of fly ash lightweight aggregate
Mix type
F3-RH
20B2-RH
30MT3-RH
F3-50
20B2-50
30MT3-50
F3-100
20B2-100
30MT3-100

Aggregate curing at various temperature

Fly ash

Binder content (%)

Bentonite

Metakaolin

100
80
70
100
80
70
100
80
70

0
20
0
0
20
0
0
20
0

0
0
30
0
0
30
0
0
30

NaOH (molarity)

40% relative humidity and 35C

40% relative humidity and 35C
40% relative humidity and 35C
Hot air oven at 50C
Hot air oven at 50C
Hot air oven at 50C
Hot air oven at100C
Hot air oven at 100C
Hot air oven at 100C

Pelletization efficiency of fly ash aggregate formation

Efficiency of aggregate production depends on the

amount of raw fly ash converted to fly ash balls during
agglomeration of moist fly ash particles in a
pelletization process. The pelletization efficiency
represented in Fig. 4 shows that it is dependent on the
type of binder and concentration of sodium hydroxide.
The maximum pelletization efficiency was obtained
with the addition of bentonite at 20% by weight of fly
ash along with sodium hydroxide solution at 10M. The
maximum time required for the formation of stable
balls was up to 10 min pelletization duration and for
the remaining 5 min the pellets were compacted due to
the compaction forces. However, with the increase in
the concentration of sodium hydroxide (12M) the size
of the pellets was found to be bigger and more
cohesive. The efficiency of pellet production depends
on the type of binder used in the fly ash aggregate. The
efficiency of production was increased when fly ash
was mixed with metakaolin binder which can be seen
in Fig. 4. It is realized that the efficiency during fly ash
aggregate production depends on the binder content,
alkali activator dosage and duration.
The physical characterization test results of various
fly ash lightweight aggregate is provided in Table 3. The
saturated specific gravity of fly ash (1.75) aggregate was
observed to be lower than the bentonite aggregate (1.95)
and metakaolin aggregate (1.80). The bulk density of
lightweight aggregate was found to be varying for the
different curing process and an increasing trend was
noticed for higher oven curing temperature at 100C.
The experimental test results on water absorption of
various types of fly ash lightweight aggregate are shown
in Fig. 5. It can be noted that water absorption of all
types of aggregates showed higher porosity and thereby
considerable increase in water ingress. However,
compared to fly ashbinder combinations the addition of
binder exhibited a considerable reduction. The increase
in micro structural formation due to higher compaction

12
10
12
12
10
12
12
10
12

Table 3 Physical properties of various fly ash aggregates

produced
Aggregate
mix
proportion
Natural
aggregate
F3-RH
20B2-RH
30MT3-RH
F3-50
20B2-50
30MT3-50
F3-100
20B2-100
30MT3-100

Specific
gravity,
SSD

Loose bulk Rodded bulk

Water
density,
density,
absorption,
kg/m3
kg/m3
%

2.61

2610.04

2813.06

1.00

1.87
1.99
1.93
1.81
1.98
1.85
1.75
1.95
1.80

1035.01
1026.05
983.45
993.23
986.06
976.31
978.34
949.68
848.41

1226.12
1235.09
1228.18
1126.13
1135.05
1128.21
1052.23
1062.29
1012.23

24.55
22.22
21.67
23.87
19.26
20.77
21.26
16.39
17.86

Fig. 4 Efficiency of pellet production for various types of fly ash

aggregates (15 min duration)

Fig. 5 Water absorption of various types of fly ash aggregate

containing binder

INDIAN J. ENG. MATER. SCI., APRIL 2014

230

forces leads to reduced porosity and this could be

possibly due to fineness of bentonite and metakaolin
material compared to fly ash aggregates. Also, the water
absorption of aggregates cured at 100C hot air oven
showed reduction in water absorption (16.39% for
20BT2-100) as compared to room temperature curing
(22.22% of 20BT2-RT). It is also understood that the
higher compaction force during pelletization and
fineness of binder particles provide a closer granular
packing of aggregates. This resulted in lesser water
absorption in the case of fly-bentonite aggregates.
The particle size distribution as determined using IS:
238612 for various lightweight aggregates is given in
Table 4. It can be noted that different size ranges of
aggregates were formed and achieved almost a uniform
spherical shape. The sieve analysis results showed that a
maximum of 64.28% of aggregates were passing
through 10 mm sieve in the case of fly ash mixed
metakaolin binder. This value was reported to be higher
than compared to fly ash- bentonite aggregates (Fig 6).
Strength properties of fly ash aggregate

The crushing strength of spherical fly ash aggregates

were evaluated in a CBR testing machine shown in
Fig. 7. To arrive at a more reliable estimate, a total of

30 numbers of pellets from each aggregate types were

tested using the strength index formula given as:
Individial crushing strength of pellet =

2.8* P
* X 2

(1)

Where, P is the failure load and X is the distance

between the two plate of the pellet13.
A highest crushing strength of 10.22 MPa was
recorded for fly ash bentonite aggregate at 1 day
curing (100C hot air oven curing) compared to other
aggregate (Table 5). The crushing strength of
30 different types of aggregates was found for various
sizes of individual aggregate particles. The crushing
strength of individual pellets and the strength gain at
various ages of curing with different curing regimes are
shown in Figs 8-10. It can be noted from Table 5, that a
maximum crushing strength of 17.97 MPa (28 day
strength) was obtained for fly ash - metakaolin aggregate
at 100C hot air oven curing. The fly ash- metakaolin
binder (30M3-100) reported an improved crushing
strength at 100C hot air oven curing as compared to
other curing temperatures which can be seen in Fig. 11.

Table 4 Sieve analysis of fly ash lightweight aggregate

IS Sieve size, mm
F3
20
10
4.75

% of passing
Type of aggregate
BT2

100.00
10.36
0.00

100.00
90.27
12.96

MT3
100.00
64.28
7.64

Fig. 6 Gradation of various types of fly ash aggregates

Table 5 Individual crushing strength of various types of fly ash

aggregates
Type of
aggregate

F3-RH
30M 3-RH
20B 2-RH
F3-50
30M 3-50
20B 2-50
F3-100
30M 3-100
20B 2-100

Maximum crushing strength of fly ash

lightweight aggregate at 7 day curing (MPa)
6 mm
8 mm 10 mm
12 mm
3.71
3.69
3.31
11.40
4.49
4.67
17.62
14.51

2.72
3.93
4.01
8.36
4.62
5.06
10.03
10.22

2.33
3.37
10.39
7.81
8.67

9.50
6.57

Note: - denotes particular size of aggregate not available; results

denote the average of 30 nos. of pellets taken from each aggregate
type

Fig. 7 Crushing strength of pellet tested using CBR testing

machine

GOMATHI & SIVAKUMAR: FLY ASH BASED LIGHTWEIGHT AGGREGATES

Fig. 8 Maximum crushing strength of individual fly ash

lightweight aggregate without binder

Fig. 9 Individual crushing strength of fly ash lightweight

aggregate using bentonite binder with different curing
temperatures (6 mm size of pellet)

Fig. 10 Individual crushing strength of fly ash lightweight

aggregate using metakaolin binder with different curing
temperatures (6 mm size of pellet)

Fig. 11 Crushing strength of individual fly ash aggregate for

various curing regimes

231

Similarly fly ash-bentonite aggregates at 10M sodium

hydroxide showed a maximum strength of 14.51 MPa
with optimum pelletization duration of 15 min.
Test results confirmed that alkali-activated fly ash
aggregate kept in oven curing reported a maximum
strength gain compared to control humidity curing.
This denoted that the hardening process of alkali
treated fly ash aggregates was originally due to
geo-polymerization. It is also understood that
polymerization is effective at high temperature
provided in oven curing. The formation of
geo-polymerization is a continuous chain reaction
occurring between occurring silicates and aluminates
in fly ash which are more reactive in the presence of
the activator and further leads to the formation of
polysialates (Si-O-Al). Whereas, the alkali-activated
fly ash kept in controlled humidity curing at lower
temperature (50C) does not exhibit spontaneous
chemical reaction between the silicates and
aluminates. Since the activation energy is not
appreciable at normal air drying or at low temperature
humidity curing. This essentially exhibited from all
the experimental test results that the alkali activated fly
ash geo-polymer aggregates were sensitive for hot oven
curing. Geo-polymerization is the type of chemical
reaction which is more active at high temperature than
the normal temperature for the reaction of
silico-aluminates. The experimental trends given in
Figs 9 and 10 confirm that geo-polymerization is more
active at early ages of high temperature curing and
attains the maximum strength within 7 days and there
after no increase in strength was anticipated. The
geopolymerization of aluminosilicate materials
generally contains multiple steps and takes long time
(e.g., weeks) to finish completely, although, in most
cases, the geopolymers will gain major strength in the
first few hours/days. It is understood that the
completion time of geopolymerization depends on
many factors such as reactivity of raw materials, curing
temperature, alkali activator concentration.
Conclusions
The following conclusions are drawn from this
study:
(i) The pelletization efficiency and strength of fly
ash aggregates increase with the addition of
clay binders such as bentonite and metakaolin.
(ii) Addition of alkali activator (sodium hydroxide)
during pelletization of aggregate provides a
more stable formation of pellets as well as
increases the early strength gain properties.

232
(iii)

(iv)

(v)

(vi)

(vii)

INDIAN J. ENG. MATER. SCI., APRIL 2014

The influence of various curing process

indicated the rate of strength development and
an appreciable increase was noted in the case
of hot air oven curing at 100C.
The experimental test results also showed that
a maximum crushing strength of 17.62 MPa
was obtained for fly ash-metakaolin
aggregates (30MT3-100); 17.02 MPa for fly
ash aggregates (F3-100) and 15.18 MPa for
fly ash-bentonite aggregates (20BT2-100) at
28 days curing.
The bulk density of fly ash-metakaolin
aggregate was found to be lower (848.41 kg/m3)
at 100C hot air oven curing and also resulted
in maximum production efficiency.
The water absorption of fly ash aggregates
mixed with bentonite binder cured at 100C
oven curing showed lower water absorption
(16.39%) as compared to other two types of
curing.
The experimental results demonstrated the
potential advantages of fly ash based aggregates
and can prove to be an ideal choice for complete
replacement of natural aggregates in concrete
production. This can considerably lead to the

reduction in self weight of the structure and cost

of concrete production.
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