Põlevkivi aheraine ja paekivisõelmete kasutamine plastmaterjalis täiteainena [Magistritöö. Juhendajad: V. Gudkova; A. Paat]

There has been a significant increase in mining activity and demand for mineral resources in the world, resulting in large amounts of mining waste generated. To reduce the environmental impact of extractive waste, it must be reused and recycled. One possibility for recovery is to use mining waste as a filler in plastic materials. The aim of this master's thesis was to study the suitability of oil shale waste rock and limestone fines generated in Estonia as a filler for plastic material and to compare them with pure calcium carbonate currently used as a filler. The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of fillers made from mining waste on the properties of plastic composite material and how do plastic composite materials, with fillers made from mining waste, differ from material made with industrial calcium carbonate? For the study, nine different plastic composite materials were prepared using three different fillers at three different concentrations. The rheological, mechanical, and morphological properties of the created materials were studied. The results showed that the melt flow rate of plastic composite materials made from mining waste did not become lower compared to pure plastic material. In terms of tensile properties, it was found that as the filler concentration increased, the tensile strength of the material at break and the elongation at break decreased, but the tensile strength at maximum force was equal for all materials within the measurement error. As a result of the study, it can be concluded that the use of mining waste as a filler in plastic material is possible and needs further investigation.