Pre-Print Copy *Frist author: tcling611@yahoo.com Page 1 Original citation: Ling, Tung-Chai , Kou, Shi-Cong, Poon, Chi Sun. (2016) Precast architectural tiles produced by double-layer casting method. Cement and Concrete Composites, In press, doi:10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2015.11.006 Available online 2 December 2015 http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0958946515300561 Precast architectural tiles produced by double-layer casting method Tung-Chai Ling a ,b , Shi-Cong Kou a,c , Chi Sun Poon a , * a Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong b College of Civil Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, Hunan, China c College of Civil Engineering. Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China Abstract This work aims to develop a technology with an instant demoulding ability for making precast architectural tiles with an aesthetically pleasing appearance. To achieve this, double-layer composite consisting of a wet-mixed self-compacting glass mortar as the surface-layer and a dry-mixed mortar as the base-layer was designed. The performance of the surface-layer prepared with recycled glass cullet with different particle sizes, and the effects of aggregate types and contents on the base-layer mortar were investigated. The results suggest that the non-porous nature and smooth surface of the glass cullet decreased the water absorption and reduced the strength of the mortars. The flexural and pull-out strength results demonstrated that all the architectural tiles produced exhibited good interfacial adhesion between the two layers and complied with the standard requirements for “Terrazzo tiles” for internal and external applications. Keywords: Self-compacting mortar, dry-mixed mortar, architectural tile, glass cullet, glass recycling, double-casting method 1. Introduction Over the last few decades, the large quantity of generated waste glass has posed a major problem for municipalities worldwide. In 2012, approximately 12.5 million tons (Mt) of waste glass was discarded in the United States [1] and 18.3 Mt was recorded in the municipal waste stream in Europe [2]. The total amount of waste glass generated in England and Australia was similar, about 1.1 Mt annually [3, 4]. Compared to other waste materials with relatively high commodity value such as plastics or cardboard, the recycling rate of waste glass is considerably lower due to the difficulties in separating, recovering and transporting them from the mixed waste loads.