Copper Slag

Copper slag is a by-product obtained during matte smelting and refining of copper. The common management options for copper slag are recycling, recovering of metal, production of value added products such as abrasive tools, roofing granules, cutting tools, abrasive, tiles, glass, road-base construction, railroad ballast, asphalt pavements.

One of the greatest potential applications for reusing copper slag is in cement and concrete production. The use of copper slag in cement and concrete provides potential environmental as well as economic benefits for all related industries, particularly in areas where a considerable amount of copper slag is produced.

Copper slag has a high Fe content and has been used as an iron adjustment material during the cement clinker production. Since the main composition of copper slag is vitreous FeSiO 3, it has low melting point and could reduce the calcination temperature for cement clinker.

Given its chemical and mineralogical characteristics copper slag a solid industrial by-product, may serve as a partial substitute for silica and hematite in raw mixes used to manufacture Portland cement clinker. The benefits of such substitution include lower production costs and energy savings.

Concrete prepared with such materials showed improvement in workability and durability compared to normal concrete and has been used in the construction of power, chemical plants and under-water structures. Partial replacement of copper slag in fine aggregate reduces the cost of making concrete. It was found that copper slag in the range of 40-50% could potentially replace sand in concrete mixture and in cement mortars to achieve strength and durability requirements. Daylight Group owns the import license of copper slag to Iraq and has distributorship agreement some producers in Japan.