Synthesis of synthetic slag as a replacement for industrial GGBS – a boon for the cement industry

This study focuses on the effects of synthetic slag as an alternative to the existing, commercially available, GGBS slag in terms of the compressive strength of slag blended cement (SBC) pastes. Typically, these synthetic slags are prepared on a laboratory scale from limestone, pond ash, red mud and fly ash. Three types of slag were prepared from different raw mixes and the best slag was found with a maximum amorphous content at high temperature. This was examined further for the compressive strength of the slag blended cement. Quantitative X-ray diffraction analysis confirmed the percentage of amorphous content in each of the slags prepared. The results obtained indicate that synthetic slag can be considered as an alternative option to slag obtained from slag plants. This paper presents the results and conclusions of the laboratory trials with respect to the implementation of synthetic slag in SBC.