Effects of rice husk ash and wollastonite incorporation on the physical and thermal properties of refractory ceramic composites

ABSTRACT The main objective of this work was to evaluate the effects of rice husk ash and wollastonite microfibers incorporation, added per clay partial substituition, on physical and thermal properties of refractory ceramic composites. The raw materials characterization occurred with respect to their chemical composition (XRF), phase composition (XRD) and granulometry by laser. The composites were avaluated by physical properties - apparent porosity, bulk density, water absorption, linear retraction after sinterization and mass variation - and thermal properties - thermal conductivity and thermal shock. The rice husk ash used in the present work proved to have potential as a ceramic precursor in the development of refractories. The clay substitution per ash and the microfiber different percentages resulted in an increase in water absorption and apparent porosity and a reduction in the linear retraction. The increase in porosity suggests that the mullitization was insufficient. Regarding the thermal performance, the thermal conductivity was inversely proportional to the porosity and the microfiber percentage. In addition, the higher the thermal-shock temperature gradient the lower was the number of cycles resisted by the composites.