RECYCLING OF BOILER FLY ASH INTO ASPHALT PAVING MATERIALS, ASPHALT SHINGLES, AND BRICKS

IT IS CLEARLY RECOGNIZED BY THOSE ASSOCIATED WITH THE COAL INDUSTRY THAT MAJOR DETERRENTS TO THE USE OF COAL ARE THE GASEOUS, LIQUID, AND SOLID WASTE PRODUCTS THAT ARE GENERATED. IN PARTICULAR, THE LANDFILL REQUIREMENTS FOR SOLID WASTE PRODUCTS ARE BECOMING A MAJOR ENVIRONMENTAL AND ECONOMIC ISSUE. THIS PROJECT SPECIFICALLY ADDRESSES A MEANS OF MITIGATING THE PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH THE DISPOSAL OF FLY ASH PRODUCED FROM PULVERIZED COAL-FIRED BOILERS BY RECYCLING THE RESIDUE INTO ASPHALT PAVING MATERIALS, ASPHALT SHINGLES, AND BRICK PRODUCTS, VIA THE USE OF AN INNOVATIVE, HIGH TEMPERATURE MELTING PROCESS. THE TECHNOLOGY BEING PROPOSED FOR PRODUCTION OF THE VITRIFIED PRODUCT FROM FLY ASH IS BASED ON ADVANCED IN-FLIGHT SUSPENSION GLASS MELTING TECHNOLOGY BEING DEVELOPED FOR THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY. PHASE I OF THE RESEARCH IS AN EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATION OF THE FEASIBILITY OF USING FLY ASH FROM A COAL-FIRED ELECTRIC POWERPLANT AS A CONSTITUENT IN ASPHALT PAVING MATERIALS, ASPHALT SHINGLES, AND BRICK PRODUCTS. THE PHASE I EFFORT IS DIRECTED TOWARD DEFINING THE FEEDSTOCK AND PRODUCT GLASS COMPOSITION/PROPERTY CRITERIA, DEVELOPING TEST SAMPLES OF THE PRODUCT BEING INVESTIGATED, CONDUCTING EVALUATION TESTS ON THE PRODUCTS, AND REFORMULATING AND EVALUATING THE GLASS BATCH/FLY ASH COMPOSITION IF NECESSARY.