Northern (Arctic) Federal University named after M. V. Lomonosov (Arkhangelsk, Russia)

Frolova M. A., Head of Chair, Candidate of Chemical Sciences, Associate Professor, aizenstadt@narfu.ru
Ayzenshtadt A. M., Professor, Doctor of Chemical Sciences, Professor, a.isenshtadt@narfu.ru
Morozova M. V., Associate Professor, Candidate of Engineering Sciences, Associate Professor, m.morozova@narfu.ru

Belgorod State Technological University named after V. G. Shukhov (Belgorod, Russia)

Lesovik V. S., Head of Chair, Doctor of Engineering Sciences, Professor, naukavs@mail.ru

Industrial processes for the preliminary preparation of mineral raw materials, whether natural or man-made, often involve mechanical disintegration to achieve specific surface area values. This process is believed to activate the particles within the resulting powder systems, thereby enhancing the quality of the final building composites for various functional purposes. The outcome of mechanical activation is reflected in measurable changes in the energy characteristics of the surface of the analyzed system, such as the energy of the activated surface layer and the proportion of chemical bonds broken within it. Additionally, changes in the geometric shape of the surface particles are considered, particularly through the fractal dimension. To quantitatively assess the mechanical activation process, this paper presents a description of the changes in surface properties of highly dispersed powders produced by grinding sands from several deposits in the Arkhangelsk region. Based on experimental data, the following parameters were calculated for powders processed with varying grinding times: surface activity, the degree of change in properties, the proportion of broken bonds in the crystal structure, and the fractal dimension. The study found that despite a significant increase in the specific surface area and a decrease in the dimensional characteristics of the sand powders, the change in surface properties was only 6–7 % after 30 minutes of mechanical grinding, with volumetric property changes of up to 18 %. This indicates that activation processesoccur during the mechanical treatment of the studied raw materials.
The research was funded by the Russian Science Foundation under project No. 23-13-20013, «Soil concretes using organomineral reactive binders for the reinforcement of historical road structures on the Solovetsky Archipelago».

1. Blanc N., Mayer-Laigle C., Frank X., et al. Evolution of grinding energy and particle size during dry ball-milling of silica sand. Powder Technology. 2020. Vol. 376. pp. 661–667.

2. Yao G., Wang Z., Yao J., et al. Pozzolanic activity and hydration properties of feldspar after mechanical activation. Powder Technology. 2021. Vol. 383. pp. 167–174.
3. Yao G., Cui T., Zhang J., Wang J., Lyu X. Effects of mechanical grinding on pozzolanic activity and hydration properties of quartz. Аdvanced Powder Technology. 2020. Vol. 31, Iss. 11. pp. 4500–4509.
4. Evtushenko Е. I., Cherevatova А. V., Kozhukhova N. I., et al. Study of mechanoactivation effectiveness of granite screening in mills of various types when synthesis of nanostructured binder. Vestnik Belgorodskogo Gosudarstvennogo Tekhnologicheskogo Universiteta im. V. G. Shukhova. 2020. No. 11. pp. 102–112.
5. Nelyubova V. V., Strokova V. V., Danilov V. E., Aizenshtadt A. M. Comprehensive activity analysis of silicacontaining raw materials for use in mechanical activation efficiency evaluations. Obogashchenie Rud. 2022. No. 2. pp. 18–26.
6. Puzatova A. V., Dmitrieva M. A., Leitsin V. N. Evaluation of the efficiency of mechanical activation of the initial components of cement-based composite material. Vestnik Inzhenernoy Shkoly Dalnevostochnogo Federalnogo Universiteta. 2024. No. 4. pp. 3–17.
7. Glezer A. M. Amorphous and nanocrystalline structures: similarities, differences, mutual transitions. Rossiyskiy Khimicheskiy Zhurnal. 2002. Vol. XLVI, No. 5. pp. 57–63.
8. Strokova V. V., Nelyubova V. V., Khmara N. O., et al. Expanded perlite sand as an effective binder additive. Stroitelnye Materialy. 2022. No. 6. pp. 61–66.
9. Wu C., Hong Z.-Q., Yin Y.-H., Kou S.-C. Mechanical activated waste magnetite tailing as pozzolanic material substitute for cement in the preparation of cement products. Construction and Building Materials. 2020. Vol. 252. DOI: 10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2020.119129
10. Baidarashvili M. M., Sakharova A. S. The study of the sorption properties of materials using physico-chemical method of adsorption sites distribution. Sorbtsionnye i Khromatograficheskie Protsessy. 2020. Vol. 20, No. 1. pp. 87–94.
11. Kakorin I. А. Influence of active centers on the adsorption process. Mezhdunarodnyi Zhurnal Gumanitarnykh i
Estestvennykh Nauk. 2023. No. 5–5. pp. 43–46.
12. Lesovik V. S., Frolova M. A., Aizenshtadt A. M. Surface activity of rocks. Stroitelnye Materialy. 2013. No. 11. pp. 71–74.
13. Smirnov V. A., Korolev E. V. Building materials as disperse systems: Multiscale modeling with dedicated software. Stroitelnye Materialy. 2019. No. 1–2. pp. 43–53.
14. Frolova M. A., Korolev E. V. Energy model of surface activation of mineral components of building composite materials. Stroitelnye Materialy. 2025. No. 1–2. pp. 72–78.
15. Ibragimov R. A., Korolev E. V., Bikaeva Yu. V., Larionov I. S. The contact angles of quartz and caustic dolomite powders after mechano-magnetic treatment. Stroitelnye Materialy. 2024. No. 3. pp. 64–70.
16. Shamanina А. V., Aizenshtadt A. M., Kononova V. М., Danilov V. Е. Estimation of the efficiency of mechanical activation of silica-containing rocks. Vestnik Belgorodskogo Gosudarstvennogo Tekhnologicheskogo Universiteta im. V. G. Shukhova. 2021. No. 5. pp. 19–27.
17. Weissmüller J. Surface free energy density, sur-face tension and surface stress of solid-fluid interfaces. Encyclopedia of solid-liquid interfaces. Elsevier Inc., 2024. pp. 300–303.
18. Zuev V. V., Potseluev L. N., Goncharov Yu. D. Crystal energy as a basis for assessing the magnesian properties of solid materials (including magnesian cements). St. Petersburg: ALFAPOL, 2006. 119 p.
19. Zuev V. V., Denisov G. A., Mochalov N. A., et al. Energy density as a criterion for evaluating the properties of mineral and other crystalline substances. Moscow: Polymedia, 2000. 352 p.
20. Vydysh S. O., Bogatyreva E. V., Melnik F., Kartasheva A. I. Enthalpy calculation for the formation of complex compounds with account of the fractional contributions of bond energies. Obogashchenie Rud. 2024. No. 2. pp. 20–26.
21. Bajenova I. A., Ivanov A. S., Konstantinova N. M., et al. A new thermodynamic description of pure silicon from 0 K at 1 bar. Calphad. 2023. Vol. 81. DOI: 10.1016/j.calphad.2023.102554
22. Morozova M. V., Akulova M. V., Frolova M. A., Shchepochkina Yu. A. Determination of energy sand parameters on example of deposits of Arkhangelsk region. Materialovedenie. 2020. No. 9. pp. 45–48.
23. Islamova A. G., Feoktistov D. V., Orlova E. G. Influence of the copper and steel surfaces’ roughness on surface energy and wettability. Vestnik Tyumenskogo Gosudarstvennogo Universiteta. Fiziko-matematicheskoye Modelirovanie. Neft', Gaz, Energetika. 2021. Vol. 7, No. 1. pp. 60–78.
24. Korolev E. V., Grishina A. N., Pustovgar A. P. Surface tension in structure formation of materials. Significance, calculation, and application. Stroitelnye Materialy. 2017. No. 1–2, pp. 104–108.