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(Zanelli et al., 2021)

Fired ceramic waste arises in the form of defective products removed through quality control processes or damaged after firing. Post-consumer fired waste also occurs from end-of-life scenarios for all ceramic products but there is currently no infrastructure in place for the separation of this waste stream.

The chemical composition of fired waste reflects the sum of material inputs, comprising of a combination of clay body and glaze. Due to its hard, inert nature, fired ceramic waste is most often crushed and re-used as a low-value secondary aggregate for road construction or groundwork operations.

The technical viability of re-using fired ceramic waste as an addition (typically <20%) to ceramic products is well established both in the literature and industry. The main challenge regarding its re-use is the material’s hardness and processing requirement. To reincorporate into a ceramic body, the product must be crushed and milled in order to achieve the required fine particle size for industrial ceramic materials. As such the viability of re-use in a ceramic composition depends largely on economic factors.