Process for preparing ceramic-like materials and the ceramic-like materials

A material with magnetic properties containing an inorganic filler, a synthetic resin, and being cured with a curing agent, said material comprising:

• 100 volume parts phosphogypsum;
• 66 to 152 volume parts magnetite;
• 92 to 440 volume parts unsaturated polyester resin;
• and
• up to 46 volume parts acetone or styrene.

A process for preparing a material which absorbs X-radiation of 45-55 kev and hard radiation of 0.6-1.25 MeV comprising the steps of:

• preparing a physically homogenized dry composition with a grain size of up to 20 .mu.m, said dry composition containing waste phosphogypsum and glass-forming oxides in a volume ratio of 1:0.76 to 1.42, respectively, and said glass-forming oxides consisting mainly of 81% by weight of lead oxides, 11.5% by weight of silicon dioxides and 2.6% by weight of barium oxides;
• blending said dry composition with an unsaturated polyester resin in an amount corresponding to 46 to 220 volume parts per 100 volume parts of said dry composition, and adding an accelerant in an amount up to 8% by volume of said resin;
• and
• subsequent to said step of blending, adding a curing agent in an amount of 3 to 20 volume parts per 100 volume parts of said resin.

A material which effectively absorbs X-radiation of 45-55 keV and hard radiation of 0.6-1.25 MeV, and which contains an inorganic filler, a synthetic resin, and being cured with a curing agent, said material comprising:

• 100 volume parts of phosphogypsum;
• 76 to 142 volume parts of glass-forming oxides, wherein said glass-forming oxides consist of 81% by weight of lead oxides, 11.5% by weight of silicon dioxides and 2.6% by weight of barium oxides;
• 92-440 volume parts of unsaturated polyester resin;
• and
• up to 46 volume parts of acetone or styrene.

A process for preparing an expanded material having closed pores comprising the steps of:

• binding waste phosphogypsum with an unsaturated polyester resin in amounts corresponding to a volume ration of 1:0.6 to 2.7, respectively, said resin containing an accelerant in an amount of up to 8% by volume of said resin;
• adding a curing agent in an amount of 3 to 25 volume parts per 100 volume parts of said resin to form a raw composition;
• and
• adding butyl isocyanate in amount of 30% by volume of the raw composition and water in amount 0.05% to 0.15% by volume of the raw composition.

A process for utilizing phosphogypsum comprising:

• preparing a physically homogenized dry composition which includes waste phosphogypsum and inorganic compounds, wherein said inorganic compounds include one of the group of magnetite and glass-forming oxides, wherein said glass-forming oxides consist of 81% by weight of lead oxides, 11.5% by weight of silicon dioxides and 2.6% by weight of barium oxides, said dry composition having a grain size of up to 25 .mu.m;
• blending said dry composition with an unsaturated polyester resin in an amount corresponding to 46 to 220 volume pars per 100 volume parts of said dry composition, and adding an accelerant in an amount up to 8% by volume of said resin;
• subsequent to said step of blending, adding a curing agent in an amount of 3 to 20 volume parts per 100 volume parts of said resin to form a raw composition;
• subsequent to said step of adding a curing agent, shaping the raw composition into an article, whereby the waste phosphogypsum is utilized to form a material which has low moisture absorbability.