Brazil is the fifth largest producer of dimension stones in the world, and the states of Espírito Santo, Bahia, Ceará e Paraíba are the major producers in this country. In this sector, the generation of waste during processing is quite significant. When the production of dimension stones in 2004 was 6,450,000 tons, the estimated volume of waste at the processing stages was 1.610.000t/year (Chiodi Filho, 2005). Currently, this waste has been deposited in the land of the companies, which implies a cost to them. In general, the generation of solid waste has been one of the major problems faced by national and international industries. Especially in regards to the disposal and handling of these wastes because they are generally expensive and difficult to implement. In this study, we assess the feasibility of using waste dimension stone sawing dust (DSSD) in pre-cast blocks for masonry. The DSSD was used to partially replace cement in the contents of 5%, 10% and 15% by weight. The blocks produced were evaluated for compressive strength and absorption. The results show's viability for the use of DSSD as partial replacement of cement.
Dimension stone sawing dust; mansory blocks; marble; granite
