Electric arc furnace (EAF) slag is a byproduct materials its chemical composition more closely to the cement clinker and composed mainly from different types of calcium silicate minerals. EAF slag utilization is limited due to the presence of polluting heavy metals (Cr, Ba, V, etc.) that can be dangerous to the human health and the environment. This research studies the chemical, mineralogical, and the environmental impacts of some Egyptian EAF slag with different cooling rates.
The environmental impacts of the studied slag showed that all heavy metals except vanadium and chromium was found to be very low. From the leaching test the reuse or the uncontrolled dumping of the air cooled Egyptian EAF slag without a previous treatment can have negative effects on the environment in the long term. The cooling rate affects significantly the leaching of Cr, without a significant relation of the original slag Cr content.
From the boiling test it was cleared that the percent of Free CaO and/or MgO in Egyptian EAF samples was negligible (∼0) so that they have volume stability to be used as construction materials.