Recycled Materials for Construction Washed Copper Slag

Copper slag is a by-product of copper production from copper ore. During smelting, a molten pool of copper forms at the bottom of the furnace while a layer of impure metal, which is the slag, is drained off from the top. The copper slag is then quenched using industrial or sea water. Sometimes, it is left to cool by the air. For every ton of copper produced about 2.2 ton of slag is generated.

Production of copper slag Courtesy of A/Prof Wee Tiong Huan, NUS In Singapore, copper slag is largely used as abrasive for the removal of rust and marine deposits that have accumulated on ships. Spent copper slag originates from raw copper slag that has been spent of its abrasive property after using it to remove rust and marine deposit from ships. If the spent copper slag is properly treated to reduce the contaminant to an acceptable level, it can be further re-used. Companies like JPL Industries Pte Ltd and Ecowise Solutions Pte Ltd are involved in the treatment of copper slag for re-use. The treated spent copper slag can be recycled and put to good use as sand replacement in concrete. For structural usage, the use of copper slag as partial replacement of sand in concrete is allowed for up to 10% by mass. Tests have to be conducted to ensure that chloride and sulphate contents in the slag are within the allowable limits. The technology and process will involve the treatment and re-constitution of the spent copper slag to satisfy all the requirements for its use in making concrete. Builders are to inform the professional engineer and BCA before supplying concrete with copper slag replacement.

Processing of copper slag Courtesy of JPL Industries Pte Ltd (email: hosl@jplind.com.sg)

Treatment of copper slag Precast concrete internal partition Courtesy of Ecowise Solutions Pte Ltd walls using copper slag (email: ginkeat@ecowise.com.sg) Courtesy of A/Prof Wee Tiong Huan, NUS (email: cveweeth@nus.edu.sg)