Silicate bonded sand

In the reclamation of chemically or resin bonded sands, the system employed must be able to break the bond between the resin and sand and remove the fines that are generated. The systems most commonly employed are wet washing and scrubbing for silicate bonded sands, or dry scrubbing/attrition and thermal (rotary drum or fluidized bed) systems for resin bonded sands. 

The first step in the strength loss process is the hydration of sodium. Little strength is lost in this step since the polysilicic acid network is not destroyed. Absorption of another water molecule by sodium causes strength failures through cleavage of the silicate network, probably catalized by hydroxide ion. When even small numbers of silicate bonds are broken, the polysilicate network is destroyed and the strength of the bound sand system is lost. 

The compositions of the invention contain 3-15 parts, per 100 parts of sand binder mixture by weight, of a binder system comprising a water soluble alkali metal silicate, amorphous colloidal silica and water. The key is to have very finely divided amorphous silica particles of colloidal size dispersed within the alkali metal silicate bond. It is inherent in the nature of water soluble alkali metal silicates having a molar ratio Si02/alkali metal oxide (M2O) above about 2.5, that colloidal silica is present. In the case of silicates having a ratio higher than 3.5, the colloidal silica content is such that they may be employed without adding more colloidal silica, but in the case of alkali metal silicates of lower sUica/alkali metal oxide ratio there is little or no amorphous colloidal silica present so that amorphous colloidal silica must be added in order to produce the cores and molds of the present invention. 

The hardening of a silicate - ester sand proceeds through an intermediate step, which consists of the hydrolysis of the ester by the alkaline silicate solution. This hydrolysis produces glycerol and acetic acid, which precipitates a silicate gel to form the initial bond. Further strength develops as the residual silicate dries. 

Wet regeneration involves binder removal through interparticle grinding. This technique applies only for green sand and silicate or C02-bonded sands and is not widely applied. 

Carbon dioxide-silica process. Sand is mixed with sodium silicate (3.0 to 3.5% of sand volume), and the mixture is blown or hand-rammed into a core box or around a pattern. Carbon dioxide gas is passed through the compacted sand to harden the binder. The bonding strength eliminates the need for drying or baking the mold and metal can be poured into the mold immediately. Over-gassing should be avoided because it makes the mixture friable. 

A variety of mineral-type materials are inorganic polymers [Ray, 1978]. Silica [(SiCLL] is found in nature in various crystalline forms, including sand, quartz, and agate. The various crystalline forms of silica consist of three-dimensional, highly crosslinked polymer chains composed of Si04 tetrahedra where each oxygen atom is bonded to two silicon atoms and each silicon atoms is bonded to four oxygen atoms. Silicates, found in most clay, rocks, and... 

In Table 3, susceptibility to weathering increases down the list as fewer silicon-oxygen bonds need to be broken to release silicate. Consequently, quartz and feldspars especially, but also mica in temperate soils, are common inherited minerals in the coarse particle size fractions of soil (the silt and sand fractions, 0.002-2 mm). The amphiboles, pyroxenes, and olivine are much more easily weathered. Thus, soils derived from parent material with rock containing a predominance of framework silicates e.g. granite, sandstone) tend to be more sandy, while those derived from rocks containing the more easily weathered minerals tend to be more clayey. 

The large furnace shrinkage of American bond clays may be overcome by admixture with a siliceous clay or sand, by increasing the content of grog or by sizing, and by the employment of higher prefiring furnaces. 

They are normally cast in the form of brick and are sometimes bonded to assure stability. The outstanding property of these materials is their ability to act as insulators. The most important are fireclay (aluminum silicates), silica, high alumina (70-80% ALjOj), mullite (clay-sand), magnesite (chiefly MgO), dolomite (CaO-MgO), forsterite (MgO-sand), carbon, chrome ore-magnesite, zirconia, and silicon carbide. (2) Characterizing the ability to withstand extremely high temperature, e.g., tungsten and tantalum are refractory metals, clay is a refractory earth, ceramics are refractory mixtures. 

Mortar (sometimes called cement) is used to bond surfaces like bricks together, but also for plastering walls. Historically, it has been composed variously of lime, sand, clay, volcanic rock and ash, brick dust, and potsherds. Early lime mortars that set simply by reaction between the lime and carbon dioxide in the air offered little protection from deleterious effects of water to the structure. Aggregate mortars that incorporatepozzolans and silicates, which react to bond with calcium, do not need C02, and some can even set underwater. These are called hydraulic mortars, and offer durability in weather, but are less suitable for situations where plasticity is needed, as in restoration projects, for example. 

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