Abstract: Coal gangue was used as the main raw material and CaO and MgO were used as fluxes to prepare ceramic foams, and a reasonable SiO2-Al2O3-CaO-MgO component system was designed, and the effects of CaO/SiO2 mass ratio, MgO/SiO2 mass ratio and calcination conditions on the properties of foam ceramics were investigated. When the amount of added CaO was 1-2 wt%, the prepared foam ceramic samples showed uniform pore structure, while the sample with more than 4 wt.% CaO caused a decrease in the viscosity of the liquid phase during foaming, and thus forming interconnected pores. The porosity and pore size of the foam ceramics gradually increased with the increase of the calcination temperature, and the excessively high temperature caused the gas to escape from the molten matrix, forming oversized interconnecting pores. When the calcination temperature was 1190 ℃, the prepared sample possessed the best foaming effect. The study of the samples with 1-4 wt.% MgO shows that, when the amount of MgO reached 2 wt.%, the compressive strength and apparent density of the foam ceramic sample show the maximum value, the excessive MgO increased the viscosity of the liquid phase, resulting in insufficient foaming and poor pore structure. The heating rate affects the melting rate of the molten matrix melting and the reaction time of the foaming agent at high temperatures. When the heating rate was 2 ℃/min, the prepared sample has a uniform and fine pore structure. Under the condition of 1 wt.% CaO, the addition of a suitable amount of MgO presented more particles, and the close connection between cordierite and calcium feldspar phase formed the interwoven chain structure between the particles, which improved the pore structure of the foam ceramics and improved the overall comprehensive performance of the samples.