Effect of Methyl Silicone Oil to Moisture Resistance of Sodium Silicate Sands by Microwave Hardening

The sodium silicate sands hardened by microwave have the advantages of high strength, fast hardening speed and low residual strength with the lower addition of sodium silicate. However, the sodium ion in the sands will absorb moisture from the atmosphere, which would lead to lower storing strength, so the protection of a bonding bridge of sodium silicate between the sands is crucial. Methyl silicone oil is a cheap hydrophobic industrial raw material. The influence of the addition amount of methyl silicone oil modifier on compressive strength and moisture absorption of sodium silicate sands was studied in this work. The microscopic analysis of modified before and after sodium silicate sands has been carried on employing scanning electron microscopy(SEM) and energy spectrum analysis(EDS). The results showed that the strength of modified sodium silicate sands was significantly higher than that of unmodified sodium silicate sands, and the best addition of methyl silicone oil in the quantity of sodium silicate was 15%. It was also found that the bonding bridge of modified sodium silicate sands was the density and the adhesive film was smooth, and the methyl silicone oil was completely covered on the surface of the sodium silicate bonding bridge to protect it.