The origin of thermal expansion differences in various size fractions of silica sand

ABSTRACT In this study, thermophysical properties of a commonly used silica sand were investigated and their relation to its granulometric and chemical composition was studied. Thermal expansion and differential scanning calorimetry tests were performed on individual fractions of the silica sand together with X-ray fluorescence measurements to determine their constituents. It was found that the various size fractions of silica sand exhibit different levels of thermal expansion based on the differences in SiO2 content. The expansion behaviour of two additional silica samples and a recycled olivine sand was also investigated in relation to its grain size to justify the findings.