Mullite Formation in Coal Fly Ash is Facilitated by the Incorporation of Magnesium Oxide

摘要

We have studied the chemical and mineralogical composition of different coal fly ash samples, collected as byproducts from thermal power plants. With the addition of magnesium oxide (MgO), the percentage of mullite increased when the fly ash samples were sintered at 1600 °C. X- ray diffraction (XRD) results revealed that mullite, cristobalite and corundum were the main phases of the sintered fly ash. With an increase in MgO content, the peak intensity of mullite and corundum increased while that of cristobalite decreased.