Journal of Cleaner Production 275 (2020) 123942

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Journal of Cleaner Production

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jclepro

Utilization of fly ash amended sewage sludge as brick for sustainable

building material with special emphasis on dimensional effect
Kaling Taki a, Rohit Gahlot b, Manish Kumar c, *
a
Discipline of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Gandhinagar, 382355, Gujarat, India
b
Discipline of Material Science and Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Gandhinagar, 382355, Gujarat, India
c
Discipline of Earth Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology, Gandhinagar, 382355, Gujarat, India

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Sewage sludge (SS) management has been regarded as a serious environmental and health issue around
Received 2 May 2020 the globe, especially in developing countries like India, mainly due to the lack of proper regulatory
Received in revised form criteria, and appropriate engineering infrastructures. The present research work demonstrates the uti-
18 July 2020
lization of Fly Ash (FA) in varying percentages (with an interval of 10%) with SS as brick for sustainable
Accepted 24 August 2020
Available online 28 August 2020
building material with special emphasis on dimensional Effect. The impact of dimensional effect is
measured using compressive strength behaviour for a stress rate of 14 MPa/min of two different sizes of
Handling editor. Prof. Jiri Jaromir Kleme
s brick i.e. D1 and D2 of sizes 7
7x7 cm3 and 2
2x2 cm3, respectively. Owing to the sintering effect, the
maximum strengths of 4.02 MPa and 7.6 MPa are noticed for a composition of 60% SSþ40% FA for D1 and
Keywords: 40% SS þ 60% FA for D2, respectively. According to the Indian Standards (IS) 13757: 1993, an exhibited
Compressive strength strength of more than 3.5 MPa by any brick composition enables it to be used as a common building
Curing brick. In general, due to the formation of triangular wedges, the D2 bricks exhibited better strength for
Fly ash any mixing ratio of FA and SS. The added benefit in our study was lower thermal conductivity (0.48
Sewage sludge
Wm1K1) of the prepared fired brick implying its better insulation property. Our study uniquely
Absorption
highlights the possible utilization of FA for stabilizing SS for sustainable substitution of natural clay fired
brick. Future study may further investigate the compositional effect of FA on the thermal and thermo-
dynamic attributes of the bricks.
© 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction due to rapid increase in urbanization and population (UN- ESCAP

Sewage sludge (SS) disposal has been a big issue due to its toxic
nature (Taki et al., 2019, 2020; Gogoi et al., 2015). Owing to high
nutrient content SS has been utilized for agricultural purposes, but
presence of toxic ingredients restricted its further usages (Taki
et al., 2020; Lee et al., 1998). In order to dispose SS in safely
manner, different techniques such as thermal drying, alkaline sta-
bilization, aerobic and anaerobic decomposition have been utilized
to generate biosolids (Ukwatta et al., 2016; Yerousis, 2011; Atiyeh
et al., 2000; Elvira et al., 1998). Like SS, presence of heavy metal
traces and organic compounds in biosolids have limited its appli-
cation (Ukwatta et al., 2016; Pigozzo et al., 2006; Chang et al., 1997).
By 2050, it is expected that 27 billion tons of waste will be produced
* Corresponding author. Discipline of Earth Sciences, Room no. 336A, Block-5,
Indian Institute of Technology, Gandhinagar, 382355, Gujarat, India.
E-mail address: manish.env@gmail.com (M. Kumar).
[Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific], 2015).
SS constitutes a vital fraction in the total waste produced, and
turning this solid waste into income-generating assets that has
been identified as an essential opportunity (Peccia and Westerhoff,
2015); UN- ESCAP, 2015).
In order to highlight the value addition of SS for infrastructure
development, many studies have been conducted on raw SS for
generating construction material. This geotechnical use can forbid
the unregulated dumping of SS, and help in the successful man-
agement of natural waste materials. Ukwatta and Mohajerani
(2016) and Ukwatta et al. (2016) have utilized biosolids for
replacing clay fraction in bricks. The use of biosolids had resulted in
lower shrinkage, and higher compressive strength of bricks. Goel
and Kalamdhad (2017) reported that 10% addition of paper mill
sludge (PMS) to clay bricks results in an increase in the compressive
strength. Beyond 10% PMS, the strength was decreased by 70%.
Babu and Ramana (2013) found that incorporation of 5% dried
sludge from sand beneficiation treatment plants brings about 50%

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.123942
0959-6526/© 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
K. Taki, R. Gahlot and M. Kumar
improvement in the compressive strength. Mageed et al. (2011)
recounted the use of 30% sludge ash (water treatment plant) with
clay for manufacturing of good quality bricks. Chaing et al. (2009)
and Liew et al. (2004) had assimilated dried SS with rice husk ash
(RHA) and clay. It was established that with 15% RHA, 10% clay and
24% optimum moisture, good quality bricks conforming to the
construction standards could be generated. Tay (1987) utilized 40%
dried sludge and 50% sludge ash with clay for making bricks with
exceptional compressive strength comparable to concrete. Ac-
cording to Jain and Bishnoi (2016), India is one of the leading
producers of bricks next to China, and produces a total number of
236 billion bricks per year. The Indo-Gangetic plains contribute to
70% of the total bricks produced in India, which results in vast
consumption of resources like soil, sand, and coal. The loss of top
agricultural soil in compensating the increasing demand for bricks
resulted in the fast depletion of arable land, affecting crop pro-
ductivity (Jain and Singh, 2009). The present study not only ad-
dresses the issue of SS management, but also the conservation of
natural resources by utilizing SS as a source material for brick
construction. For the present study, fly ash (FA) has been used as an
additive with SS for making consolidated bricks.
FA are the by-products of thermal power plants and have a
diverse application due to its versatile nature (Mann et al., 2016). A
study to replace clay by FA in building bricks has been efficaciously
demonstrated by Fatih and Umit (2001). It was reported that with
60% FA, 30% optimum water content, and 950  C firing tempera-
ture; the compressive strength reached 100 kg/cm2. Similarly,
Kayali (2005) demonstrated the use of 100% FA for synthesizing
load-bearing bricks. It was concluded that compressive strength,
tensile strength, bond strength improved by 28% (three times), 44%
(five times), with 28% reduction in density. The research work also
investigates the dimensional effect on compressive strength of
bricks. Variation in the property, when the dimension/size of
structure changes or alteration in the behaviour of geometrically
identical samples is also referred to as dimensional effect (Ince
et al., 2013). As per the previous research findings, it was
observed that the compressive strength of the brick is improved
with density, addition of admixture, firing temperature and
adversely affected by water absorption and organic contents
(Ukwatta et al., 2015; Kadir et al., 2010). However, the variation of
compressive strength with respect to the brick shape and dimen-
sion is still unexplored. In the study by Moral et al. (2007) on
compressed earth blocks, it was strongly emphasized to investigate
the effect of specimen geometry/testing procedure on the
compressive strength. To the best of our knowledge, no study has
been conducted so far to investigate the dimensional effect with
respect to bricks. Also, there is an absolute dearth of literature
related to the dimensional effect on the mechanical behaviour of
bricks.
In case of concrete, the dimensional effect plays a very vital role.
The pioneer study to understand the dimensional effect was carried
out by Kani (1967) on large concrete beams. It was observed that a
significant reduction in shear strength occurred with an increase in
beam depth. With an increase in sample dimension, the probability
of weak links/plane increases resulting in a lower ultimate strength
(Griffith, 1920). Del Viso et al. (2007) studied the influence of
dimensional effect on compressive strength of concrete (100 mm,
67 mm, 50 mm, 33 mm) and cylindrical cubes (75 mm (dia.) x100
mm (height); from the stress-strain plot for both samples it was
found that the larger samples resisted less stress compared to the
smaller one. Similarly, Su et al. (2015) also evaluated the dimen-
sional effect on a cube (40 mm, 70 mm, 100 mm, 150 mm, 200 mm)
and prismatic (80 mm
40 mm, 140 mm
70 mm,
200 mm
100 mm, 300 mm
150 mm, 400 mm
200 mm), it
was reported that there was a significant contribution of
2
Journal of Cleaner Production 275 (2020) 123942
dimensional effect on compressive strength behaviour. The
compressive strength of cube and prismatic samples with a side
dimension of 200 mm is about 91% and 89% of specimens with a
side dimension of 40 mm is reported.
In the present study, we have tried to explore whether the
dimensional effect plays a significant role in the load-carrying ca-
pacity of bricks like concrete. This will help the reader to appreciate
the findings and analyse the insights into it. For the study, two
different dimensions of brick have been considered i.e. dimension 1
(D1) (7
7x7 cm3) and dimension 2 (D2) (2
2x2 cm3). Based on Del
Viso et al. (2007) and Su et al. (2015) research work, where the
authors have gone 3e4 times downsize the reference bigger sam-
ples for investigating the consequence of dimensional effect on
compressive strength. In the present study the size of 7
7x7 cm3
has been reduced by 3.5 times to understand the consequence of
dimensional effect.
Therefore, the overall aim for carrying out the present research
work can be summarized as, to address the disposal and manage-
ment issue of SS by utilizing it as a resourceful construction ma-
terial. Owing to the unregulated criteria in India, which leads to the
high amount of sediment in the SS (Taki et al., 2020). The motiva-
tion was to investigate if the sediment present in SS could be used
as a value added product in civil engineering work as construction
material. With an aim to develop a cleaner sustainable construction
material for protecting the natural assets and mitigating pollution
was also a triggering factor for the present study. Also, the study
was undertaken to understand the phenomenal consequence of
dimensional effect on mechanical attributes of synthesized bricks.
Under the light of above discussions, the objective of the present
study was presented in three folds: (i) To investigate whether the
SS amended with FA bricks fit within the limits of Indian codal
provision to be used as a construction material (ii) To appraise the
consequence of dimensional effect in the compressive strength of
bricks (iii) To study the changes in the morphology and mineralogy
of synthesized bricks.
2. Material and methods
2.1. Sample collection and evaluation of geotechnical properties
In June 2018, the SS sample was collected from Jaspur Sewage
Treatment Plant, Gandhinagar, India. For a period of approximately
two months, the collected SS sample was subjected to sun-drying.
In order to comprehend the geotechnical properties, the crushing
and pulverization of SS was done through sieve size ranging from
4.25 mm to 75 mm size as per IS standards (Taki et al., 2020). For the
study, the FA was collected from Gandhinagar thermal power plant
(India). FA was added in 0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90 and 100%
to SS by weight ratio. Table 1 summarizes the geotechnical prop-
erties of SS and FA.
2.2. Geotechnical tests on sewage sludge and sewage sludge fly ash
composites
2.2.1. Consistency limits
For the study, the following consistency limits were computed:
Liquid Limit (LL), Plastic Limit (PL), Shrinkage Limit (SL). The testing
for LL was carried out as per Indian standard (IS): 2720 (Part V)-
1985 (Reaffirmed, 2006). A total of 200 gm of pure SS and
SS þ FA mix. was passing through 425 mm sieve was mixed with
water to form a slurry. The slurry was sealed in a plastic bag for 24 h
for proper distribution of moisture. Using the Casagrande appa-
ratus, the LL test was carried out for 0e80% FA compositions. For
100% and 90% FA compositions, the cone penetrometer set up was
used due to the non-cohesive behaviour of FA (Gupta and Sachan,
K. Taki, R. Gahlot and M. Kumar Journal of Cleaner Production 275 (2020) 123942

Table 1
Geotechnical properties of sewage sludge (SS) and fly ash (FA).

Geotechnical Parameters Sewage Sludge Fly Ash

Present study Ukwatta et al. (2016) Lin et al., 2007 Kumar et al., 2007 Present study

LL 52 ± 1.5 53 30.3 315 44 ± 0.58

PL 24 ± 0.58 27 e e 0
SL 10 ± 0.5 e e e e
PI 28 ± 2 26 9.7 260 e
DFSI 47 e e e e
Sand (SS)/Coarse size particle (FA) e 87.55 17 e 1
Silt 68 11.64 46 e 82
Clay (SS)/Clay size particle (FA) 27 0.46 37 e 17
Classification CH SM CL e MI
Organic content 5 ± 0.2 7.10 e 50e70 e
OMC 20 23 17.8 85 31
MDD (gm/cc) 1.55 1.53 1.66 0.56 1.16
Gs 2.66 ± 0.3 2.51 2.75e2.77 1.55 2.2 ± 0.02
Swell Pressure (kPa) 57 e e e e
Unconfined Compressive Strength (kPa) 207 ± 7.5 e e e 320 ± 3.2

LL: liquid limit; PL: Plastic limit; SL: Shrinkage limit; PI: Plasticity Index; DFSI: Differential free swell index; OMC: Optimum moisture content; MDD; Maximum dry density; G:
Specific gravity; CH: High compressibility; CL: Low compressibility; SM: Silty sand; MI: Silt of intermediate compressibility (Note**All are in percentage, except for MDD, G,
Swell Pressure, Unconfined compressive strength).

2018). For PL and SL, the testing was carried out as per IS: 2720 (Part
V)-1985 (Reaffirmed, 2006).
2.2.2. Differential free swell index (DFSI)
DFSI test was carried out for pure SS and FA as per IS: 2720 (Part
XL)-1977 (Reaffirmed, 2002). For the test, 5 g of oven-dried SS and
FA was mixed separately with water and kerosene in a 100 ml
cylinder and observed for volume change in water with respect to
the kerosene. The DFSI was computed by the following equation:
DFSI (%) ¼(Vw-Vk)/Vk*100
Where Vw and Vk are the respective volume of SS in water and
kerosene.
2.2.3. Compaction parameters and unconfined compressive
strength
The compaction characteristics, i.e., optimum moisture content
(OMC) and maximum dry density (MDD) of pure SS and FA, were
determined by standard proctor test (IS:2720 (Part VII) _1980
(Reaffirmed, 2011)). Unconfined compressive strength (UCS) of
pure SS and FA was computed using a specimen of sample size of
50 mm (dia.) and 100 mm (height) as per (IS:2720 (Part X) _1991
(Reaffirmed, 2006)).
2.3. Brick casting
For brick casting, the SS chunks were manually crushed by a ram
hammer, and then pulverized to a size of 4.75 mm (Supplementary
Fig. S1). After that, the pulverized product was oven-dried at
around 110  C. For geotechnical testing, SS was further reduced to a
size of 425 mm and 75 mm. In order to remove the organics present,
SS was heated to a temperature of about 440  C in a muffle furnace
(BSI, 1990). In the present study, the different composition (0, 10,
20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, and 100%) of FA in weight ratio was
added to heat-treated SS. For the study, two brick samples with
different dimensions were casted: dimension 1 (D1) (7
7x7 cm3)
and dimension 2 (D2) (2
2x2 cm3). For brick casting, static
compaction method was used, pressure was applied through a
manpower driven reaction frame system with vertical guiding rod,
which can move up and down by rotating. Mixing of SS and FA was
done at a water content equivalent to the OMC of SS. For all the
composition of FA, the brick sample was cast at a density equivalent
to MDD of SS. Once the brick was cast, it was first air-dried for 24 h,
then in an oven at around 100  C (24 h) (Ukwatta et al., 2015) and
finally firing at 1000  C for 10 h in a muffle furnace. After firing, the
synthesized brick sample was subjected to water curing for 24 h for
quantifying the water absorption capacity of the bricks. Based on
water absorption the bricks are further classified as per IS 3495
(Part 2): 1992. Also, the bricks were investigated for weight loss
after drying and firing in the oven and muffle furnace. Finally, the
fired brick samples were tested for compressive strength, water
absorption and efflorescence as per IS: 3495 (Part 1, 2, 3)-1992.
(1) Before performing the compressive test, the brick samples were
cured under water for 3 days (IS: 3495 (Part 1)-1992). This was
done to generate the worst condition because after 3 days the brick
will be totally saturated, and the corresponding strength will give
an indication about the quality of brick for further classification.
Fig. 1 demonstrates the overall stages from SS collection, process-
ing, brick casting, and testing.
3. Results and discussions
3.1. Plasticity characteristic and specific gravity (G)
Fig. 2(a) represents the effect of FA content on the plasticity
characteristics, i.e., Liquid limit (LL), Plastic limit (PL) and Plasticity
Index (PI) of the SS. It was observed that with an increase in FA
content, the LL and PL was decreased. This behaviour might be due
to the dominance of FA in the mixture, which may marginalize the
effect of clay fraction. As FA is non-plastic, increasing its content
makes the mixture more non-plastic and reduces the LL. Also, the
addition of FA might have resulted in the formation of coarser
particles responsible for such behaviour. Beyond 80% FA, the LL was
found to be increasing (up to 44%), this might be due to the hollow
nature of FA imbibing more water. For 0% FA to 80% FA, the LL was
determined by employing Casagrande apparatus as per IS: 2720
(Part V) e 1985 (Reaffirmed, 2006), and for 90% FA and 100% FA
the cone penetrometer was employed (Bachus et al., 2019; Gupta
and Sachan, 2018). Similarly, PL also was found to be decreasing,
which might have contributed to the non-cohesive effect of FA in
the matrix. The PL test was carried out as per IS: 2720 (Part V) e
1985 (Reaffirmed, 2006), for 90% FA and 100% FA the PL was re-
ported as zero because it was not possible to make sample owing to
the non-cohesive behaviour of FA (Gupta and Sachan, 2018). PI was
computed as the numerical difference of LL and PL; it is a measure
3
K. Taki, R. Gahlot and M. Kumar Journal of Cleaner Production 275 (2020) 123942

Fig. 1. Demonstration of different stages from sewage sludge collection, processing, brick casting and analysis.

of workability (Taki et al., 2020). It can be observed that with an might result in lower G values.
increase in FA percent, the workability increased. This was due to
the reduction in the value of PI with increasing FA percentage. The
3.2. Water absorption and weight loss
improvement in workability was revealed with the ease samples
could be cast. It was found that PI was reducing till 80% FA beyond
Fig. 2(b) demonstrates the water absorption characteristic for
which it was increasing. This might be due to high LL and non-
both D1 and D2 samples. It was observed that with an increase in
existence of PL for 90% FA and 100% FA. From Supplementary
FA content, the water absorption was found to be decreasing. The
Table S1, it is observed that the specific gravity (G) was found to
trend exhibited by both the samples were almost the same. As per
be decreasing with an increase in FA content, this is due to the
IS 13757: 1993 up to class 12.5 and higher class of brick, the water
hollow nature of FA (Bachus et al., 2019; Gupta and Sachan, 2018),
content should not be more than 20% and 15% (Fig. S2) In the
also with an increase in FA the clay content is decreasing which
present study, water absorption reported for all the composition is
4
K. Taki, R. Gahlot and M. Kumar Journal of Cleaner Production 275 (2020) 123942

Fig. 2. Variations of (a) liquid limit (LL), plastic limit (PL), plasticity index (PI); (b) water absorption and (c) weight loss with varying composition of fly ash and sewage sludge.

higher than 20%. In case of pure SS bricks, the significant amount of high expansive behaviour. For compositions from 10% FA-100% FA,
clay percentage (27%) might be responsible for this behaviour. As the water absorption may be attributed to the hollow spherical
reported by Taki et al. (2020) the present SS contains montmoril- nature of FA (Bachus et al., 2019; Gupta and Sachan, 2018), which
lonite mineral, which is responsible for high water absorption and can be observed from SEM (Scanning Electron Microscope) (Fig. 6).

5
K. Taki, R. Gahlot and M. Kumar Journal of Cleaner Production 275 (2020) 123942

Fig. 3. Variation in compressive strength (MPa) for sewage sludge amended with varying percent of fly ash. For 2
2x2 cm3 and 7
7x7 cm3 the max. peak strength was exhibited by
60% and 40% fly ash. Also, for all composition the strength is higher in case of 2
2x2 cm3 reflecting the effect of sample dimension.

6
K. Taki, R. Gahlot and M. Kumar
Though water absorption is higher for all FA composition, i.e., above
20% yet, it is not increasing with the FA percentage in the mixture;
this might be due to the non-cohesive behaviour of FA. As FA
content dominates the matrix, some of the water molecules might
get entrapped into the hollow structure, and rest comes out under
the action of applied pressure during sample preparation due to the
non-active behaviour of FA. Fig. 2(c) shows the variation in weight
loss due to oven heating (100  C) and firing (1000  C), it can be
observed that the pattern of weight loss after oven heating and
firing follows the same trend in both the samples casted. Weight
loss in firing is higher than oven heating; this is due to the removal
of foreign compounds/crystalline bound water which could not be
removed by simple oven heating. Also, firing at high temperature
above 800  C results in the removal of inorganic fractions which is
responsible for significant weight loss (Karaman et al., 2006). Based
on the statistical student t-test for a test of significance
(Supplementary Table S2), it can be observed that there is no sig-
nificant difference in water absorbance of two brick samples
(p > 0.05). Also, weight loss is significant in the case of oven heating
(p < 0.05) but not in firing (p > 0.05).
3.3. Compressive strength
Fig. 3 shows the variation of compressive strength of D1 and D2
SS bricks with different proportions of FA. Each composition was
tested in triplicates for quality control, and the average was taken
for plotting the stress-strain plot. Supplementary Table S3 repre-
sents the physical properties of the synthesized bricks. For D1
samples, with an increase in FA, the strength increased till 40% FA
beyond which it reduced. The increase in strength till 40% FA was
found to be as 4.02 MPa. The higher strength can be attributed to
the formation of new microstructure and densification effects
resulting from sintering effect (Esmeray and Atıs, 2019; Lingling
et al., 2005). In the case of 100% FA, the compressive strength was
found to be 4.95 MPa. This might be due to the crushing effect of FA
due to its hollow spherical nature (Gupta and Sachan, 2018) under
applied pressure during the sample preparation.
The matrix densification with FA crushing effect assisted by
sintering might have resulted in higher strength. FA might have
become much finer because of crushing effect, and resulted in
sintered product in combination with the clay fractions (Lingling
Fig. 4. FTIR analysis of sewage sludge amended with varying percent of fly ash.
7
Journal of Cleaner Production 275 (2020) 123942
et al., 2005). A similar trend was observed for D2 samples but
with enhanced strength properties. Among all combinations, the
maximum strength was exhibited by 60% FA i.e., 7.6 MPa. As re-
ported in case of concrete cube the strength increases as the
dimension reduces, this might be attributed to the confining effect
or overlapping of the triangular wedge at 1/3rd distance from both
ends (Hamad, 2017; Suddin and Ramli, 2014; Jie et al., 2015; Inci
et al., 2013; Ince and Arici, 2004). It can be observed that for all
combinations, the strength exhibited by D2 brick was higher than
D1 bricks due to dimensional effect. As per IS: 13757 (1993), the
bricks are classified into different classes according to compressive
strength (Fig. S2). In the case of D1 samples, the strength exhibited
by 40, 50, and 60% FA fulfils the criteria to be used as a common
construction brick (Fig. S2). While in the case of D2 samples, the
strength exhibited by 60 and 70% FA is significantly high, which
might be attributed to the dimensional effect.
3.4. Thermal conductivity
Based on the equation
T ¼ 0.0559exp(0.0014 Dd) (2)
Where Dd: dry density (Kadir and Mohajerani, 2011), the thermal
conductivity was obtained as 0.48 Wm1K1 indicating that the
present bricks have good insulation property. For construction
material like concrete thermal conductivity is a vital function of
density (Sutcu and Akkurt, 2009; Demirbas, 2004; Dondi et al.,
2004; Blanco et al., 2000; Glenn et al., 1998; Jungk et al., 1996;
Schmidt-Reinholtz,1990; CCANZ, 1980; Arnold, 1969; Ball, 1968).
Similarly, for bricks the thermal conductivity was found to be a
function of dry density. As per Ukwatta et al. (2015) and Kadir and
Mohajerani (2011), it was observed that brick casted at different
density have different thermal conductivity, and by employing
equation (2) all the thermal conductivity value was computed in
the respective research work. In the present study, the maximum
dry density of SS was obtained as 1.55 gm/cc, and the same density
was used for casting all bricks samples from 0% FA-100%FA. Taking
the dry density as a bench mark the thermal conductivity was
computed by using the empirical equation (2). The dry density of
the present study was much lower than the densities reported by
K. Taki, R. Gahlot and M. Kumar Journal of Cleaner Production 275 (2020) 123942

Fig. 5. X ray diffractogram for sewage sludge amended with varying percent of fly ash. It was observed that with increase in fly ash content more new peaks formation is identified.
[Q: Quartz, M: Mullite, H: Hematite].

8
K. Taki, R. Gahlot and M. Kumar
Ukwatta et al. (2015) and Kadir and Mohajerani (2011), resulting in
lower thermal conductivity (Supplementary Table S4). Ukwatta
et al. (2015) reported that with change in dry density the thermal
conductivity of bricks varied accordingly. A significant 25% reduc-
tion in thermal conductivity was observed from 1.08 to 0.81
Wm1K1 with change in dry density. Similarly, Kadir and
Mohajerani (2011) reported a 37% reduction in thermal conduc-
tivity by varying the density, which have resulted in energy savings.
As reported in India, construction materials are clay and cement
bricks having thermal conductivity around 0.8 Wm1K1 (Bulli-
babu and Abidali, 2018). Hence the present bricks can be used, as a
potential material for insulation work.
3.5. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR)
Fig. 4 shows the FTIR spectra of fired clay brick samples with
varying composition of FA ranging from 0 to 100% FA, and also
depicts the significant FTIR spectra. The symmetric and asymmetric
Fig. 6. SEM micrograph for (i) Raw 100% SS: (a) and (b*) (10 mm), (c) and (d*) (1 mm) (ii) 60%SSþ40%FA: (e) and (f*) (10 mm), (g) and (h*) (1 mm) (iii) 40%SSþ60%FA: (i) and (j*)
(10 mm), (k) and (l*) (1 mm) (iv) Raw 100% FA: (m) and (n*) (10 mm), (o) and (p*) (1 mm). It can be observed that after mixing and heating the morphology changes to a denser state
resulting in higher compressive strength.
9
Journal of Cleaner Production 275 (2020) 123942
stretching vibrations of aliphatic CeH bonds in the CH3 and CH2
group (Zhai et al., 2011) are responsible for peaks between 2800
and 3000 cm1 (broad bands around 2854 and 2924 cm1) for all
combination except 100% FA. A massive decomposition of alcohol,
ammonia, and carboxylic acid in the SS is observed when the SS is
heated to 500  C, only a bit containing CeH and OH of COOH (Zhai
et al., 2011). The peak 1085.73 cm1 shows the quartz phase of 100%
FA (Criado et al., 2007). A central band was observed for FA around
1085.73 cm1, which might be attributed to the asymmetric
stretching mode of SieOeSi or AleOeSi. As per Khale and
Chaudhary (2007), the intensity at 1085.73 cm1 is proportional
to the reactivity of FA. In 100%SS, there is an absence of a
1085.73 cm1 peak. The shift in the peak from 904.11 cm1(10% FA)
to 1085.73 cm1 (60% FA), i.e., 181.62 cm1, is an indicative that
modification has occurred in the microstructure of SS due to the
formation of new products with addition of FA (Khale and
Chaudhary, 2007). Towards the low wavenumber, a larger shift is
observed, which might be attributed to the partial replacement of
K. Taki, R. Gahlot and M. Kumar
SiO4 species by AlO4, this replacement unvaryingly responsible for
the alteration of the local chemical environment of SieO (Tha-
milselvi et al., 2017). The higher degree of penetration of Al from
the glassy fraction of FA into (SiO4)4- the skeleton is indicative of a
larger shift and is analogous to zeolites.
3.6. Mineralogy and microstructure
Fig. 5 demonstrates the X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern for
different SS þ FA combinations in fired brick samples. The 2q ranges
from 5 to 80 with an increment of 0.02 for every 15 s. A
comprehensive liaison between XRD peak intensity and crystal
morphology is demonstrated by the diffraction pattern (Inoue and
Hirasawa, 2013). The major peaks at 16.44, 33.24, 35.28, 39.28 in
XRD plot confirms the presence of (Q)Hexagonal Quartz (SiO2), (M)
Orthohombic Mullite (3Al2O3.2SiO2) and (H)Hematite (Fe2O3)
(Hamzooui et al., 2006; Wang et al., 2014; Kruse et al., 2019; Jedidi
et al., 2009; White and Case, 1990), the absence of any such major
peaks is observed in 100% SS, the shift in intensity and presence of
new peaks at 20.93 and 28.01 (40% FA) confirms the change in
morphological and Compressive strength behaviour (Hamzaoui
et al., 2016; Inoue and Hirasawa, 2013). It was observed that for
quartz, the peak is present in all the plots indicating it to be highly
unreactive (Reig et al., 2013). Fig. 6 depicts the SEM micrograph for
the fired brick samples. For pure SS and FA, the structure is stable
after firing the structure modifications take place due to sintering of
the clay portion (Akinshipe and Kornelius, 2017; Johari et al., 2010)
and finer fraction of FA (Lingling et al., 2005), also the matrix seems
to have become denser. Resulting in higher compressive strength of
the brick samples (Akinshipe and Kornelius, 2017; Johari et al.,
2010).
3.7. Dimensional effect
As per Ince et al. (2013), an alteration in the structural attributes
due to the changes in the dimension of the structure is referred to
as the dimensional effect. From the compressive strength stress-
strain plots (Fig. 3), it can be found that the larger samples resist
the smaller amount of applied stress as compared to a smaller
sample. A similar observation has been reported by Hamad (2017),
Fig. 7. Different modes of failure in a cubical sample. 7
7x7 cm3 exhibited non-explosive failure mode, because with increase in sample size the probability of weak links/plane
increase resulting in such failure. In case of 2
2x2 cm3 the failure mode is semi-explosive this might be due to the formation and overlapping of the triangular zone.
10
Journal of Cleaner Production 275 (2020) 123942
Del Viso et al. (2007). Fig. 7 represents the various failure mecha-
nisms modes in concrete cubicle samples. In the present study, D1
samples exhibited non-explosive failure mode because with an
increase in sample size, the probability of weak links/plane increase
(Griffith, 1920), resulting in such failure. In the case of D2 samples,
the failure mode is semi-explosive; this might be due to the for-
mation and overlapping of the triangular wedges, which helps the
sample to carry more load resulting in enhanced compressive
strength. Also, it can be observed that only the peripheral portion of
the cubic sample was adversely affected and spalled out from the
matrix (Del Viso et al., 2007). This is because when the load was
applied the non-triangular zone might have strained to its
threshold, due to continuous deformation under applied pressure
resulting in early failure by spalling. Whereas, the triangular wedge
portion was not strained much, because of which the load carrying
capacity increased.
4. Environmental implications
Present study demonstrates that SS amended with FA can be
successfully used for brick manufacturing with exceptional
strength. The profound novelty of present research work is; it will
help the society to understand the civil engineering utility of SS
apart from opting for other natural resources. This will not only
help in the management of SS but also help in the prevention of
exploitation of natural assets. As reported by Jain and Bishnoi
(2016), in the past years the Indo-Gangetic plains contributed
almost 70% of the total bricks production in India, which results in
the vast consumption of resources like soil, sand, and coal. The high
sediment content in the SS can be a valid answer to mitigate the
exploitation of natural resources and address the disposal issue of
SS. Taki et al. (2019, 2020), Kumar et al. (2013) and Kumar et al.
(2010) strongly highlighted that incineration and landfilling for SS
management in developing nations like India is not a viable solu-
tion due to the high cost involvement. Also, this initiative will help
in the development of a cheaper construction material owing to
vast availability and reduced transportation cost. In addition, the
present study is a pioneer work that also explores the phenomena
of the dimensional effect on the mechanical properties of bricks.
This will promote the reader to explore more and open up a new
K. Taki, R. Gahlot and M. Kumar
platform for further research. Further, the incorporation of FA as an
additive in SS, also addresses the disposal issue of FA due to oper-
ational constraints and environmental hazards (Gupta and Sachan,
2018; Singh et al., 2016).
5. Conclusions
The utilization of SS with FA as a replacement of clay for brick
manufacturing, and SS management, has been demonstrated in the
present study. Based on the compressive strength test, it was
observed that the strength exhibited by 40, 50 and 60% FA for D1
samples is more than 3.5 MPa, therefore as per IS 13757: 1993 it can
be utilized in the construction sector. For D2 samples, the strength
exhibited by all percentages of SS and FA mixture is higher than D1
samples, which might be attributed to the dimensional effect. The
LL, PL, and PI was found to be decreased from 0% FA to 80% FA. The
reduction in PI with an increase in FA percent indicates improved
workability, which was reflected in casted samples. XRD, FTIR, and
SEM confirm the formation of new compounds and structural
modification occurred due to the interaction of SS and FA at high
firing temperature. Thermal conductivity was obtained at 0.48
Wm1K1, demonstrating better insulation properties of synthe-
sized bricks when compared with other reported studies. In the
present study, dry density was considered to predict the thermal
conductivity. As all the brick samples were synthesized for one
particular density no variation could be observed. The effect of
variation of FA might have adversely affected the thermal con-
ductivity and other thermodynamic attributes irrespective of the
same density. As a future scope, it is recommended to study the
compositional effect of FA on the thermal and thermodynamic
properties of the synthesized bricks.
CRediT authorship contribution statement
Kaling Taki: Conceptualization, Data curation, Writing - original
draft. Rohit Gahlot: Data curation. Manish Kumar: Conceptuali-
zation, Supervision, Validation, Writing - review & editing.
Declaration of competing interest
We declare to have no competing financial interest. We also
declare no conflict of interest.
Acknowledgements
We thankfully acknowledge the financial assistance provided by
GSBTM project as well as WIN foundation. Our heartfelt gratitude
goes to Prof. Ajanta Sachan, for providing much needed moral
support as well as geotechnical lab facilities. We also thank Ashwin
Singh, Pranjay Joshi and Alok Thakur for extending their kind help
during experiment.
Appendix A. Supplementary data
Supplementary data to this article can be found online at
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.123942.
References
Akinshipe, O., Kornelius, G., 2017. Chemical and Thermodynamic Processes in Clay
Brick Firing Technologies and Assosciated Atmospheric Emissions Metrics-A
Review.
Atiyeh, R.M., Domínguez, J., Subler, S., Edwards, C.A., 2000. Changes in biochemical
properties of cow manure during processing by earthworms (Eisenia andrei,
Bouche) and the effects on seedling growth. Pedobiologia 44 (6), 709e724.
Babu, G.R., Ramana, V.N., 2013. Durability of bricks cast with industrial sludge. IOSR
11
Journal of Cleaner Production 275 (2020) 123942
Journal of Machanical and Civil Engineering (IOSR-JMCE) 6 (4), 43e46.
Bachus, R.C., Terzariol, M., Pasten, C., Chong, S.H., Dai, S., Cha, M.S., et al., 2019.
Characterization and engineering properties of dry and ponded class-F fly ash.
J. Geotech. Geoenviron. Eng. 145 (3), 04019003.
Bsi, B., 1990. Methods of Test for Soils for Civil Engineering Purposes. British
Standards Institution, Milton Keynes, UK.
Chang, A.C., Page, A.L., Hyun, H.N., 1997. Cadmium uptake for Swiss chard grown on
composted sewage sludge treated field plots: plateau or time bomb? J. Environ.
Qual. 26 (1), 11e19.
Chiang, K.Y., Chou, P.H., Hua, C.R., Chien, K.L., Cheeseman, C., 2009. Lightweight
bricks manufactured from water treatment sludge and rice husks. J. Hazard
Mater. 171 (1e3), 76e82.
Criado, M., Palomo, A., Ferna ndez-Jimenez, A., 2005. Alkali activation of fly ashes.
Part 1: effect of curing conditions on the carbonation of the reaction products.
Fuel 84 (16), 2048e2054.
Del Viso, J.R., Carmona, J.R., Ruiz, G., 2007. Size and shape effects on the compressive
strength of high strength concrete. Cement Concr. Res. 13071, 386e395. ETS de
Ingenieros de Caminos, Canales y Puertos, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha.
Elvira, C., Sampedro, L., Benitez, E., Nogales, R., 1998. Vermicomposting of sludges
from paper mill and dairy industries with Eisenia andrei: a pilot-scale study.
Bioresour. Technol. 63 (3), 205e211.
Esmeray, E., Atıs, M., 2019. Utilization of sewage sludge, oven slag and fly ash in clay
brick production. Construct. Build. Mater. 194, 110e121.
Fatih, T., Umit, A., 2001. Utilization of fly ash in the manufacturing of building bricks.
International ash utilization symposium. Centre for applied energy research,
University of Kentucky 13.
Goel, G., Kalamdhad, A.S., 2017. An investigation on use of paper mill sludge in brick
manufacturing. Construct. Build. Mater. 148, 334e343.
Gogoi, A., Biswas, S., Bora, J., Bhattacharya, S.S., Kumar, M., 2015. Effect ofvermi-
composting on copper and zinc removal in activated sludge with special
emphasis on temporal variation. Ecohydrol. Hydrobiol. 15 (2), 101e107.
Gupta, K., Sachan, A., 2018. Effect of crushing and strain rate on mechanical
behavior of type-F fly ash. Transportation Infrastructure Geotechnology 5 (1),
4e23.
Hamad, A.J., 2017. Size and shape effect of specimen on the compressive strength of
HPLWFC reinforced with glass fibres. Journal of King Saud University-
Engineering Sciences 29 (4), 373e380.
Hamzaoui, R., Bouchenafa, O., Guessasma, S., Leklou, N., Bouaziz, A., 2016. The
sequel of modified fly ashes using high energy ball milling on mechanical
performance of substituted past cement. Mater. Des. 90, 29e37.
Ince, R., Arici, E., 2004. Size effect in bearing strength of concrete cubes. Construct.
Build. Mater. 18 (8), 603e609.
Ince, R., Yilmaz, S., Go €r, M., 2013. May). Size effect in splitting diagonal cubes. In:
Proc. 2nd Inter Balkans Conf. On Chall. Of Civ. Engng, Tirana, Albania,
pp. 604e611.
Inoue, M., Hirasawa, I., 2013. The relationship between crystal morphology and XRD
peak intensity on CaSO4$ 2H2O. J. Cryst. Growth 380, 169e175.
IS 13757, 1993. (Reaffirmed 2007). Burnt Clay Fly Ash Building Bricks
dspecification.
IS 2720 Part V, 1985. (Reaffirmed 2006). “Determination of Liquid and Plastic Limit
(Second Revision)”.
IS 2720 Part XL, 1977. (Reaffirmed 2002). “Determination of Free Swell Index of
Soils”.
IS 2720 Part-X, 1991. (Reaffirmed-2006). “Determination of Unconfined Compres-
sive Strength (First Revision)”.
IS 2911 Part III, 1980. Code of Practice for Design and Construction of Pile
Foundation.
IS 3495 Part 1, 1992. Determination of Compressive Strength.
IS 3495 Part 2, 1992b. Determination of Water Absorption.
IS 3495 Part 3, 1992. Determination of Efflorescence.
Jain and Bishnoi, 2016. Development of Unfired Bricks Using Industrial Waste
(Doctoral Dissertation, MSc Thesis. India Institute of Technology Delhi.
Jain, S.K., Singh, P.S., 2009. Manual and Information Brochure on the Brick.
Published.
Jedidi, I., Saïdi, S., Khmakem, S., Larbot, A., Elloumi-Ammar, N., Fourati, A., et al.,
2009. New ceramic microfiltration membranes from mineral coal fly ash.
Arabian Journal of Chemistry 2 (1), 31e39.
Johari, I., Said, S., Hisham, B., Bakar, A., Ahmad, Z.A., 2010. Effect of the change of
firing temperature on microstructure and physical properties of clay bricks
from Beruas (Malaysia). Sci. Sinter. 42 (2), 245e254.
Kadir, A.A., Mohajerani, A., 2011. Recycling cigarette butts in lightweight fired clay
bricks. Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers-Construction Materials
164 (5), 219e229.
Kadir, A.A., Mohajerani, A., Roddick, F., Buckeridge, J., 2010. Density, strength,
thermal conductivity and leachate characteristics of light-weight fired clay
bricks incorporating cigarette butts. Int. J. Civ. Environ. Eng. 2 (4), 1035e1040.
Kani, G.N., 1967. How safe are our large concrete beams? Journal of the American
concrete institute proceedings 64, 128e141.
Karaman, S., Ersahin, S., Gunal, H., 2006. Firing temperature and firing time influ-
ence on mechanical and physical properties of clay bricks. J. Sci. Ind. Res. 65,
153e159.
Kayali, O., 2005. High-performance Brick from Fly Ash. World of Coal Ash (WOCA),
Lexington, Kentucky, USA.
Khale, D., Chaudhary, R., 2007. Mechanism of geopolymerization and factors
influencing its development: a review. J. Mater. Sci. 42 (3), 729e746.
K. Taki, R. Gahlot and M. Kumar
Kumar, M., Furumai, H., Kurisu, F., Kasuga, I., 2010. Evaluating the mobile heavy
metal pool in soakaway sediment, road dust and soil through sequential
extraction and isotopic exchange. Water Sci. Technol. 62 (4), 920e928.
Kumar, M., Furumai, H., Kurisu, F., Kasuga, I., 2013. Potential mobility of heavy
metals through coupled application of sequential extraction and isotopic ex-
change: comparison of leaching tests applied to soil and soakaway sediment.
Chemosphere 90 (2), 796e804.
Lee, S.H., Jung, C.H., Chung, H., Lee, M.Y., Yang, J.W., 1998. Removal of heavy metals
from aqueous solution by apple residues. Process Biochem. 33 (2), 205e211.
Lingling, X., Wei, G., Tao, W., Nanru, Y., 2005. Study on fired bricks with replacing
clay by fly ash in high volume ratio. Construct. Build. Mater. 19 (3), 243e247.
Mageed, A.A., Rizk, S.H.A., Abu-Ali, M.H., 2011. Utilization of water treatment plants
sludge ash in brick making. J. Eng. Sci. 39 (1), 195e206. Assiut University.
Mann, H.S., Brar, G.S., Mann, K.S., Mudahar, G.S., 2016. Experimental investigation of
clay fly ash bricks for gamma-ray shielding. Nuclear Engineering and Tech-
nology 48 (5), 1230e1236 online for Punjab State Council for Science and
Technology. http://pscst.gov.in/.
Morel, J.C., Pkla, A., Walker, P., 2007. Compressive strength testing of compressed
earth blocks. Construct. Build. Mater. 21 (2), 303e309.
Peccia, J., Westerhoff, P., 2015. We should expect more out of our sewage sludge.
Environ. Sci. Technol. 49 (14), 8271e8276.
Pigozzo, A.T.J., Lenzi, E., Luca Junior, J.D., Scapim, C.A., Costa, A.C.S.D., 2006. Tran-
sition metal rates in latosol twice treated with sewage sludge. Braz. Arch. Biol.
Technol. 49 (3), 515e526.
Reig, L., Tashima, M.M., Borrachero, M.V., Monzo , J., Cheeseman, C.R., Paya, J., 2013.
Properties and microstructure of alkali-activated red clay brick waste.
Construct. Build. Mater. 43, 98e106.
Singh, R.K., Gupta, N.C., Guha, B.K., 2016. Fly ash disposal in ash ponds: a threat to
12
Journal of Cleaner Production 275 (2020) 123942
ground water contamination. J. Inst. Eng.: Series A 97 (3), 255e260.
Su, J., Ye, J.Y., Fang, Z., Zhao, M.H., 2015. Size effect on cubic and prismatic
compressive strength of cement paste. J. Cent. S. Univ. 22 (10), 4090e4096.
Sudin, M.A.S., Ramli, M., 2014. Effect of specimen shape and size on the compressive
strength of foamed concrete. In: MATEC Web of Conferences, vol. 10. EDP Sci-
ences, 02003.
Taki, K., Choudhary, S., Gupta, S., Kumar, M., 2020. Enhancement of geotechnical
properties of municipal sewage sludge for sustainable utilization as engineering
construction material. J. Clean. Prod. 251, 119723.
Taki, K., Gogoi, A., Mazumder, P., Bhattacharya, S.S., Kumar, M., 2019. Efficacy of
vermitechnology integration with Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (UASB) and
activated sludge for metal stabilization: a compliance study on fractionation
and biosorption. J. Environ. Manag. 236, 603e612.
Tay, J.H., 1987. Bricks manufactured from sludge. J. Environ. Eng. 113 (2), 278e284.
Ukwatta Pitiye, A., Mohajerani, A., 2016. Geotechnical and chemical characteristics
of ETP and WTP biosolids. Aust. GeoMech. 51 (2), 79e86.
Ukwatta, A., Mohajerani, A., Eshtiaghi, N., Setunge, S., 2016. Variation in physical
and mechanical properties of fired-clay bricks incorporating ETP biosolids.
J. Clean. Prod. 119, 76e85.
Ukwatta, A., Mohajerani, A., Setunge, S., Eshtiaghi, N., 2015. Possible use of biosolids
in fired-clay bricks. Construct. Build. Mater. 91, 86e93.
UN- ESCAP, 2015. Economic and social commission for Asia and the pacific. October,
13th 2015. https://www.unescap.org/unbis/solid-waste-management.
White, S.C., Case, E.D., 1990. Characterization of fly ash from coal-fired power plants.
J. Mater. Sci. 25 (12), 5215e5219.
Yerousis, G.P., 2011. Technical and Economic Feasibility of Biosolids-Amended Brick
Production. Doctoral dissertation, Birzeit University.