A method to manufacture a native soil flowable fill includes hydro excavating native soil to form a hole at a first excavation, transferring the native soil from the first excavation to a debris tank, and adding a pozzolan component, cement and water to the debris tank. The method also includes mixing the native soil in the debris tank using a mixing apparatus to form the native soil flowable fill, and transferring the native soil flowable fill back to the first excavation into the hole. The native soil flowable fill comprises 30-90% by weight of native soil, 0-50% by weight of the added pozzolan component, 0-50% by weight of the cement, and 10-45% by weight of the water.

Alkali metal siliconates with low contents of water and alcohol are economically prepared in a three stage process where organoalkoxysilanes are reacted with a basic alkali metal salt to form an alcohol-rich hydrolysate, the hydrolysate is dried to a powder containing 0.5-5 wt. % alcohol, and residual alcohol is reduced in a post-treatment third step.

A method includes masking at least one hole of an article with a paste, wherein the hole opens onto a surface of the article, applying a coating to the surface of the article, and removing the paste including contacting the paste with a water containing liquid/environment to dissolve or re-disperse the paste, leaving at least one open hole in the surface of the coated article. The paste includes about 20-80 wt % of a filler material, about 0.5-20 wt % of a hydrogen phosphate compound, about 0.5-15 wt % of a polyhydroxy compound and about 5-25 wt % of water. The filler material has an average particle size in a range of about 0.1-100 microns, and includes a first material which includes alkali metal doped alumina, zirconium oxide, titanium oxide or a combination thereof and a second material which includes a silicate. A weight ratio between the first and second materials is in a range of about 1-10.

A method to manufacture native soil flowable fill includes hydro excavating native soil to form a hole at a first excavation, and transferring the native soil from the first excavation to a mixing tank. The method also includes adding a pozzolan component, cement and water to the mixing tank, mixing the native soil in the mixing tank with the added pozzolan component, cement and water to form the native soil flowable fill, and transferring the native soil flowable fill back to the first excavation and into the hole.

Mining provides our society with many of minerals, metals, and gemstones for a wide variety of applications from mundane items through to expensive jewelry. But the mining operations generate waste and large empty shafts and stopes within the ground. It would beneficial to provide a lightweight material for backfill which can provide safer working conditions for miners as well as advantages in respect of weight reduction, reducing water consumption, rheology improvement and cost minimization. Equally, it would be beneficial for the lightweight backfill material to include mining tailings to reduce the impact external to the mine. However, the inclusion of mine tailings into a foam is counter-intuitive as mine tailings are generally characterized by a high proportion of small particles with sharp edges. However, embodiments of the invention provide just such a foam based mine backfill material.

A method for producing an insulating composite block including a mineral foam, includes: providing a block including at least one cell having walls which are either sufficiently humid or consist of a water-repellent material, and b. filling the cell with a mineral foam that does not substantially include any calcium aluminate.

A light-emitting concrete composition comprising a cement, such as Portland cement, coarse aggregates, fine aggregates, zinc sulfide, and water. A product, such as an architectural feature, comprising the light-emitting concrete and methods for formulating and mixing it as well as a dry mix suitable to which water can be added to produce the light-emitting concrete. Light-emitting concrete traps solar energy during the daytime and converts it into visible light at night. The light-emitting concrete disclosed herein emits soft light night without any electricity and contributes to energy conservation and low-carbon eco-friendly environment.

The present invention concerns a thermally bonded granulate, where the thermally bonded granulate comprises 10-50 wt % of a mineral powder and 40-88 wt % of a bonding agent. The thermally bonded granulate further comprises 1-4 wt % of a strength-enhancing agent and 1-4 wt % of a density-reducing agent. The present invention further concerns the use of the thermally bonded granulate, and a method for producing the thermally bonded granulate.

A large-tonnage disc-shaped suspension ceramic insulator includes a ceramic insulator body, and a metal pin and a metal cap coaxially assembled with the ceramic insulator body through adhesive material, assembly interfaces of the ceramic insulator body, the metal cap, and the metal pin are coated with a primer; the adhesive material includes an expansion agent; and the expansion agent is configured to make the adhesive material expand after hardening so as to create a prestress between the ceramic insulator body and the metal pin as well as the metal cap. The present disclosure achieves overall compressive prestress distribution of the ceramic insulator product, mitigating thermal stress caused by temperature changes and improving the tensile strength of the large-tonnage disc-shaped suspension ceramic insulator assembly. By treating the assembly interfaces with the primer, the present disclosure significantly improves the assembly strength of the ceramic insulator/metal assembly.

Microcapsule encapsulated microcapsule (MIM) material compositions and methods for preparing the same are provided for self-repairing cements that include a plurality of first microcapsules where each of the first microcapsule comprises a first core and a first shell and a plurality of second microcapsules that each comprise a second core and a second shell where the plurality of second microcapsules are dispersed within a continuous phase comprised within the first core of each of the first microcapsules. The MIM material may be prepared such that the first and second shell comprise a cross-linked material. Compositions for self-healing cement slurries are also provided and include cement, sand, water, and microcapsule encapsulated microcapsules (MIM) materials.