MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF MINERAL STONE WOOL FIBERS BASED ON MIXTURE OF BLAST FURNACE SLAG AND DIABASE

Metallurgical slag is a valuable, but insufficiently used by-product especially from the production of iron and steel.This paper investigates the potential of employing the mixtures of blast furnace slag and naturally occurring minerals in production of mineral wool. Fibers were produced from molten batches of slag-diabase mixtures, and then tested for mechanical properties. Young?s modulus and surface hardness of individual fibers were determined by the nanoindentation procedure. Based on experimental results, it can be concluded that mechanical properties of produced fibers are comparable to the properties of non-slag stone wool fibers. This leads to a conclusion that blast furnace slag can be used as the main component in production of mineral wool, largely replacing the natural minerals.