Production of borosilicate cullet by using rice husk ash

The aim of this study is to use produce borosilicate cullet by using rice husk ash (RHA). For this purpose, rice husk ash was first characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), SEM, and chemical analyses. Borosilicate cullet is generally produced by direct fusion of precisely measured portions of boron oxide source and quartz (SiO2). In this study, rice husk ash was used as a source of SiO2. Different batches were prepared and fused to produce borosilicates varying in ratio B2O3·nSiO2. Produced samples were evaluated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results indicate that borosilicate cullets can be produced by using rice husk ash. The best result was obtained with the sample that contained 42.05% rice husk ash content melted at 1100 °C.