Section Twelve
MANAGEMENT AND REUSE STRATEGIES
45    BENEFICIAL USE OF FOUNDRY EXCESS
SYSTEMS SANDS FOR CONSTRUCTION PRODUCTS
Raymond W. Regan, Sr., Professor
Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering
University Park, Pennsylvania 16802
Elaine S. Batchev, Graduate Research Assistant
Environmental Resources Research Institute
University Park, Pennsylvania 16802
Robert C. Voigt, Professor
Dept. of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering
Penn State University
University Park, Pennsylvania 16802
ABSTRACT
This chapter will explain how foundry excess systems sand (FESS) can be successfully incorporated into many standard construction products, such as asphalt concrete, portland cement,
Portland cement concrete, and flowable fill material, along with some illustrative experiences.
Strength and durability problems of some construction products using FESS with a higher clay
content are considered. Other difficulties reported with substituting FESS into the products will
be discussed, along with viable solution approaches.
INTRODUCTION
Foundry excess systems sand (FESS) is a high-volume residual material that can be reused by
substituting it for traditional materials in typical construction products. Reusing FESS for this
purpose is legally recognized as a beneficial use in many states. In the spring of 1996, for example, a general permit was issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection
(PaDEP) to 37 foundries represented as sources of the beneficially reused materials. In order to
qualify for beneficial use, the materials must be classified as nonhazardous and meet the same
industry performance criteria as the material being replaced.
The objectives of the chapter include the following:
• Show by chemical leaching tests results that, to a large degree, foundry residual
sands are nonhazardous. Their substitution into construction products will not adversely affect the environment any more than products made with traditional construction material.
• Review the physical characterizations of the foundry excess systems sands (FESS) to
demonstrate that this material has similar gradations as typical construction fine aggregate material, except that they generally contain too large a fraction of fine material; that is, the fraction less than the 200 mesh sieve size. Scalping this fine fraction
brings the foundry sand closer to required gradation.
• Review the experiences with FESS in the construction industry, including their use
in asphalt cement and cement concrete products, including flowable fill, a.k.a. controlled low-strength material (CLSM).
52nd Purdue Industrial Waste Conference Proceedings, 1997. Ann Arbor Press. Chelsea, Michigan 48118. Printed in
U.S.A.
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