Eco-Friendly Fired Brick Produced from Industrial Ash and Natural Clay: A Study of Waste Reuse

Bottom ash (BA) is an industrial solid waste formed by the burning of coal. The environmental problems and storage costs caused by this waste increase with every passing day. In this study, the use of BA as an additive (clay substitute) in fired brick production was investigated. The study consisted of two stages. In the first stage, cylinder blocks were produced from clay used in brick production. The second stage was the examination of the experimental substitution of clay with 10, 20, 30 and 40% BA. Samples were fired at 900, 1000, 1100 and 1150 °C to produce fired brick samples. The unit weight, compressive strength (before and after freeze–thawing) and water absorption were analyzed for the samples. The unit weight values decreased in the samples containing BA. The mechanical properties met the conditions prescribed in the relevant standards; i.e., all of the samples fired at 1100 and 1150 °C had a sufficient compressive strength over 20 MPa. The high potential of fired bricks for the construction industry was proved. BA can be used as a clay substitute, while the developed protocol can be used to effectively produce fired bricks.