The red ceramics industry is partially accountable for the environmental degradation provoked by extraction of raw material, burning of the products and discards of waste ceramic after burning. This paper aims at examining the potential of the production of ceramic tiles by adding roof tile chamotte to the basic mass typically used in the production of semi-porous tiles. The basic mass and the chamotte were characterized by X ray fluorescence, mineralogical analysis by X ray diffraction. Test samples were produced by uniaxial pressing with the addition of 5%, 10%, 15% and 20% chamotte to the basic mass, being then fired in an industrial roller oven with a peak temperature of 1135ºC in a cycle of 25 min, to be later analyzed from a technological point of view: water absorption, linear retraction , flexural strength, apparent porosity, apparent specific mass and burning loss, being finally microstructurally analyzed through scanning electron microscopy The results have shown that the addition of roof tile chamotte causes a reduction in the mechanical strength and increases water absorption. Yet, the results found for the formulation doped with up to 20% chamotte are within the range established by current regulations.
Roof tile waste (chamotte); reuse; semi-porous ceramic tiles
