• Journal of the Korean Crystal Growth and Crystal Technology
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.132-139
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• 2019

EPS (expanded polystyrene) is one of the most used building materials for insulation that is favored by its excellent heat insulation, economical efficiency and lightweight characteristics. However, EPS is vulnerable to the fire and producing large amount of toxic gases in case of fire. Therefore, ultra-lightweight geopolymer which can replace EPS is fabricated by using IGCC (integrated gasification combined cycle) fused slag and Si sludge as raw materials and the possibility of replacement on ultra-lightweight geopolymer for EPS as an insulation building material was evaluated in this study. Ultra-lightweight geopolymer can be fabricated with the pulverized IGCC fused slag having low carbon content and density, compressive strength, thermal conductivity were $0.064g/cm^3$, 0.04 MPa, and 0.072 W/mK, respectively. The thermal conductivity of ultra-lightweight geopolymer is 1.5~2.0 times higher than that of EPS suggested in the KS M 3808; however, the thermal conductivity value of geopolymer is meaningful and competitive to that of EPS in the market. Therefore, ultralightweight geopolymer can be applicable to the building material for thermal insulation purpose and have an enough possibility to replace EPS in the future because it is not only much safer than EPS in case of fire but also it can be fabricate by using waste materials from the industry.