Materials

The MSWI fly ash came from the Municipal Solid Waste Incineration Plant in Lagny (France), which operates with a wet scrubber. Approximately 300 kg of ash were taken as samples over a four-day period of normal operation in the factory during the month of June 1996 and stocked separately in closely sealed barrels. Before tests, an identical mass was taken from each sample and the ash was then sieved to 630 µm and carefully homogenized. The aim of the sieving was to eliminate the larger light particles. The residue of larger light particles after the sieving process was approximately 5 % of the mass of the MSWI fly ash.

Two types of cement were used. The first, Class C1, is a cement with a low C₃A (4.2 %) content (CPA-CEM I 52.5 PMES HTS of the Lafarge factory at Le Teil, France)¹. The second, Class C2, is a cement with a high C₃A (11.6 %) content (CPA-CEM I 52.5 of the Lafarge factory at Cormeilles, France).

The sand used in the manufacture of the mortars is a reference sand that is compliant with the NF EN 196-1 standard [5].

¹Certain materials are identified in this paper to specify the experimental procedures. In no case does such identification imply endorsement by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, nor does it indicate that the products are necessarily the best available for the purpose.