Mineral admixtures in mortars effect of type, amount and fineness of fine constituents on compressive strength

This work is the third part of an overall project the aim of which is the development of general mix design rules for concrete containing different kinds of mineral admixtures (also named mineral additions or mineral constituents). It deals with the compressive strength of mortars made with up to 75% of crushed quartz, limestone filler or fly ash of different fineness. The paper presents all the experimental results as a sort of database and emphasizes the effects on strength of the nature, amount and fineness of mineral admixtures. For short hydration times (1 to 2 days), the nature of mineral admixture is not a significant parameter, as mortars containing the same amount of different kinds of admixtures having equivalent fineness present similar strengths. For long hydration times (up to 6 months), the excess strength due to fly ash pozzolanic activity is quantified by the difference between the strengths of mortars containing the same proportions of inert and pozzolanic admixtures with the same fineness. In the case of inert mineral admixtures, the increase in strength with the fineness of mineral admixtures cannot be explained by the filler effect, but can be attributed to the physical effect of heterogeneous nucleation. In the next part of this work, these results will be used for the elaboration of an empirical model leading to the quantification of both physical and chemical effects. This model presents strong similarities with the previous model based on calorimetric results.     

Mineral admixtures in mortars: Quantification of the physical effects of inert materials on short-term hydration

This work is the second part of an overall project, the aim of which is the development of general mix design rules for concrete containing different kinds of mineral admixtures. The first part presented the separation of the different physical effects responsible for changes in cement hydration when chemically inert quartz powders are used in mortars. This second part describes the development of an empirical model, based on semiadiabatic calorimetry measurements, which leads to the quantification of the enhancement of cement hydration due to the heterogeneous nucleation effect at short hydration times. Experimental results show that not all the admixture particles participate in the heterogeneous nucleation process. Consequently, the concept of efficient surface S_eff is introduced in the model. S_eff is the total admixture surface S (m² of mineral admixture/kg of cement) weighted by a function ξ(p). The efficiency function ξ(p) depends only on the replacement rate p and is independent of time, fineness and type of mineral admixture used. It decreases from 1 to 0: Low replacement rates give an efficiency value near 1, which means that all admixture particles enhance the hydration process. An efficiency value near 0 is obtained for high replacement rates, which indicates that, from the hydration point of view, an excess of inert powder does not lead to an increase in the amount of hydrates compared with the reference mortar without mineral admixture. The empirical model, which is mainly related to the specific surface area of the admixtures, quantifies the variation of the degree of hydration induced by the use of inert mineral admixtures. One application of the model, coupled with Powers' law, is the prediction of the short-term compressive strength of mortars.     

Mineral admixtures in mortars: Effect of inert materials on short-term hydration

This work is the first part of an overall project the aim of which is the development of general mix design rules for concrete containing different kinds of mineral admixtures. The separation of the different physical effects responsible for the modification of cement hydration, when chemically inert quartz powders are used in mortars, is presented. The phenomenological approach, based on semi-adiabatic calorimetry, is only associated with first-order phenomena, and the study excludes the complex physicochemical details involved in the chemistry of cement. The results, obtained for a wide range of fineness (between 180 and 2000 m²/kg) and replacement rates (up to 75%), show that short-term degrees of hydration in mortars containing a chemically inert mineral admixture (quartz) are always higher than for a reference mortar. This study confirms that cement hydration is enhanced by inert mineral admixtures. The two main physical effects responsible for the modification of the hydration of cement are identified as the dilution effect and heterogeneous nucleation. The dilution effect of the cement is highlighted with a coarse mineral admixture. The heterogeneous nucleation effect, although it increases with fineness of mineral admixtures, presents an optimum depending on the replacement rate. In the following part of this work, these results will be used for the development of an empirical model allowing us to quantify both physical effects.     

含粉煤灰或石英粉复合胶凝材料的抗压强度发展规律

用细度基本相同的粉煤灰和石英粉作为活性和惰性矿物掺和料,研究了不同水胶比、不同养护温度条件下,矿物掺和料的种类和掺量对复合胶凝材料抗压强度发展特性的影响.在水化初期,颗粒形貌等物理因素比反应程度等化学因素更能影响含有矿物掺和料的复合胶凝材料的抗压强度发展特性,活性与惰性矿物掺和料的作用基本相同.热激发能明显促进粉煤灰的火山灰反应,有利于含粉煤灰的复合胶凝材料的抗压强度发展.含大掺量粉煤灰的复合胶凝材料特别适合用于内部能较长时间维持较高温度的大体积混凝土结构.     

Combined effect of expansive and shrinkage reducing admixtures to obtain stable and durable mortars

In order to improve the dimensional stability of cement based mortars, the effects produced on cement hydration of a shrinkage reducer (propyleneglycol ether based—SRA) and an expansive admixture (calcium oxide based—EXP) were investigated. Mortar samples (prepared without admixtures or with SRA or EXP or SRA and EXP) were compared through compressive strength measurements, water evaporation, restrained shrinkage and restrained expansion measurements. Setting time and free expansion were also detected on cement paste specimens.

A synergistic effect on the shrinkage reduction was observed when the shrinkage reducing admixture and the expansive agent were used together. In order to clarify this phenomenon, the hydration of cement pastes containing these kinds of admixtures was followed by ESEM-FEG (environmental scanning electron microscopy–field emission gun), TG (thermogravimetry), specific surface area measurements (by BET—Brunauer–Emmet–Teller-method) and XRDS (X-ray diffraction spectroscopy).     

含有活性或惰性掺合料的复合胶凝材料硬化浆体的微观结构特征

用压汞法测定了不同温度条件下养护的含有粉煤灰或石英粉的复合胶凝材料硬化浆体的孔隙率.用扫描电镜观察了硬化浆体的微观形貌,同时测定了各种组成的复合胶凝材料的净浆强度.常温水化初期,活性与惰性矿物掺合料都只具有物理填充的作用,硬化浆体的孔隙率和强度由矿物掺合料的掺量所决定.高温水化条件下粉煤灰的火山灰反应提前发生.随水化龄期延长,粉煤灰逐渐发生火山灰反应,使硬化浆体结构密实,其强度逐步提高.活性与惰性矿物掺合料对复合胶凝材料浆体结构与性能的影响的差异在水化后期逐渐显现.     

Investigation on pozzolanic effect of perlite powder in concrete

The pozzolanic effect of perlite powder (PP) added to concrete can be determined quantitatively with strength indices: specific strength ratio (R), index of specific strength (K), and contribution percentage of pozzolanic effect to strength (P). Besides compressive strength, these indices indicate that perlite powder has a high pozzolanic effect and is an active mineral admixture (MA) for concrete.     

Potential use of natural perlite powder as a pozzolanic mineral admixture in Portland cement

This paper investigates the effect of incorporating natural perlite powder (NPP) as a cement replacement on cementitious materials properties. For this purpose, cement pastes and mortars were prepared by replacing 5, 10, 15, and 20% of NPP by mass of the Portland cement. Physicomechanical performances of pastes and mortars based NPP were inspected using normal consistency, setting times, heat of hydration, and compressive strength testing. Resistance against sodium sulfate attack and sulfuric acid attack were also assessed to investigate the durability characteristics of different mortar mixes. Experimental results show that cement pastes and mortars incorporating up to 20% of NPP demonstrate satisfactory physical and mechanical properties with very comparable results to cementitious materials without NPP. In addition, improved sulfate and acid attacks resistance with increased NPP content were demonstrated. The X-ray diffraction analyses confirm that NPP can be considered as a good pozzolanic material that can be used satisfactorily as a mineral admixture in cement production.     

Relationship between ultrasonic velocity and compressive strength for high-volume mineral-admixtured concrete

Ultrasound is used to evaluate the compressive strength of concrete with mineral admixtures. In addition, the relationship between ultrasound velocity and compressive strength of concrete are evaluated. High-volume fly ash (FA), blast furnace slag (BFS) and FA+BFS are used as the mineral admixtures in replacement of Portland cement (PC).

Compressive strength and ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) were determined at the 3-, 7-, 28- and 120-day curing period. Both compressive strength and UPV were very low for all the levels of mineral admixtures at an early age of curing, especially for samples containing FA. However, with the increase of curing period, both compressive strength and UPV of all the samples increased. The relationship between UPV and compressive strength was exponential for FA, BFS and FA+BFS. However, constants were different for each mineral admixture and each level replacement of PC.     

The pozzolanic activity of a calcined waste FCC catalyst and its effect on the compressive strength of cementitious materials

Equilibrium catalyst (Ecat), one of the spent fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) catalysts from oil companies, shows pozzolanic activity. In this study, the effects on the pozzolanic activity of calcination of Ecat and on the compressive strength of the resulting cementitious materials were examined. The pozzolanic activity of this mineral additive was indicated from DSC measurements. The results show that the pozzolanic activity of Ecat increases with calcined temperature initially, reaches a maximum, and then decreases afterwards. Ecat calcined at about 650 °C becomes the most active. Mortars with 10% calcined catalyst at 3-28 curing days exhibit strength 8-18% greater than that with the untreated. Concrete with a 10% calcined Ecat at 3-28 curing days exhibits strength 7-11% greater than that with the untreated. If the calcined catalyst is further ground, its pozzolanic activity is enhanced, and the compressive strength of the resulting mortars or concrete becomes higher.     

混凝土矿物掺合料的强度效应研究

矿物掺合料对混凝土具有重要的强度效应。本文认为掺有矿物掺合料的混凝土复合材料的强度由水泥混凝土基体（水泥浆体和砂石集料）产生的强度和帮物掺合料的物理和化学两方面效应对强度的贡献两部分构成，据此提出了全面估算混凝土矿物掺合料强度效应的新方法。并从理论和试验两方面分析了水胶化、掺合料掺量以有龄期对矿物掺合料强度效应的影响规律。     

Combined effects of mineral admixtures and curing conditions on the sorptivity coefficient of concrete

The effect of mineral admixture and curing condition on the sorptivity of concrete are investigated. In the present work, the maximum particle size and the grading of coarse aggregate, the cement content and water/cement ratio of the concrete are kept constant. Then, in the ordinary Portland cement (OPC) 42.5 concrete, a portion of the sand is replaced by a mineral admixture such as fly ash (FA), limestone filler, sandstone filler or silica fume (SF). This paper presents the results of both the sorptivity coefficient and the compressive strength of OPC 42.5 concretes with these mineral admixtures, and concretes with OPC 32.5, blended cement (BC) or trass cement (TC). The results obtained indicate that the sorptivity coefficient of concrete decreases as the compressive strength of concrete increases. It is also shown that the sorptivity coefficient of concrete is very sensitive to the curing condition. The effect of curing condition on the sorptivity coefficient of concrete seems to be higher in low-strength concretes.     

Normalized age applied to AAR occurring in concretes with or without mineral admixtures

This paper presents a method for assessing the normalized age factors, which allow accelerated alkali-aggregate reaction (AAR) tests performed at various temperatures (20, 40 and 60 °C) to be related to the conditions encountered in situ in concrete structures. The evaluation of normalized age factors is based on the comparison of many experimental results taken from the literature concerning laboratory tests and in situ measurements. The use of these factors permits us to evaluate, from the results of an accelerated test performed at 60 °C, the protection time against AAR that could be expected for in situ concretes containing mineral admixtures (silica fume and fly ashes). The results show that, in addition to the inhibitory action of mineral admixtures leading to a strong decrease in the final AAR-swelling, the protection against abnormal expansion caused by AAR increases significantly when mineral admixtures are used. Abnormal expansion is expected at 2-4 years for plain concrete compared to 7-50 years for concrete with mineral admixtures.     

掺合料对硫铝酸盐水泥基混凝土耐久性影响的研究

研究了掺合料复掺(矿渣∶粉煤灰=2∶1)、单掺矿渣、单掺粉煤灰对硫铝酸盐水泥基混凝土强度、抗渗性、抗冻性的影响,并与相同水灰比下掺合料复掺对普通硅酸盐水泥基混凝土对应性能的影响进行对比。结果表明:在硫铝酸盐水泥基混凝土中,掺合料的加入使混凝土的早期和后期强度都明显降低,抗渗性稍微降低,抗冻性明显降低,且掺量越高,其强度、抗渗性、抗冻性降低越明显;但复掺时的效果比单掺时的效果好,粉煤灰的效果最差;而在普通硅酸盐水泥基混凝土中,掺合料的加入使混凝土的早期强度降低,但后期强度超过空白样的强度,抗渗性、抗冻性明显提高,但是,在无掺合料时其抗渗性、抗冻性大大低于相同水灰比下硫铝酸盐水泥基混凝土的抗渗性、抗冻性。     

Effect of shrinkage-reducing admixtures on the properties of alkali-activated slag mortars and pastes

The effect of a shrinkage-reducing admixture (SRA) based on polypropylenglycol on the dimensional stability of waterglass-activated slag mortars was studied. The analysis also showed the effect of the admixture on pore structure of the mortars as well as on the mineralogical composition and microstructure of the alkali-activated slag pastes.The SRA reduced the shrinkage by up to 85 and 50% when the alkali-activated slag mortar specimens were cured at relative humidities of 99 and 50%, respectively. The mechanism primarily involved in shrinkage reduction is the decrease in the surface tension of pore water prompted by the admixture. The SRA also modified the pore structure - under both curing conditions - increasing the percentage of pores with diameters ranging from 1.0 to 0.1 μm. Capillary stress is much lower in these pores than in the smaller capillaries prevailing in mortars prepared without admixtures.Microstructurally, the SRA occasioned a slight increase in the proportion of Si units Q² in the CSH gel and a decrease in the percentage of Al replacing the Si in the gel structure. The admixture did not, however, modify the mineralogical composition of the pastes.Finally, the SRA admixture retarded the alkaline activation of the slag, more intensely at higher admixture dosages. While the admixture did not significantly alter the degree of reaction in pastes cured for 7 days at RH = 99%, the value of this parameter dropped by 7% in the presence of the admixture in pastes cured at 50% relative humidity.     

Effect of acid attack on concrete with different admixtures or protective coatings

Different admixtures and coatings were used in an attempt to improve the chemical resistance of a standard concrete mix. The admixtures included pulverised fuel ash, styrene butadiene latex, water reducing, super plasticising, retarding and water-proofing agents. Coatings, including PMMA and polymer emulsions, were brushed onto hardened concrete cubes. Forty 102 mm cubes containing the different admixtures or coatings were immersed in a channel with a 1% solution of continuously flowing sulphuric acid. Twenty cubes contained centrally positioned short mild steel bars. The changes in weight with time for each cube were determined continuously up to 172 days exposure, and the condition of the reinforcement was visually examined at termination. The effects of admixture aadditions on the workability and compressive strength of the concrete were also investigated.     

Effect of water-repellent admixtures on the behaviour of aerial lime-based mortars

Two different anionic surfactants, sodium oleate and calcium stearate, commercialized as water repellents for cement-based mortars, were added to lime-based mortars in order to check whether they were improved by these admixtures. Different properties of lime-based mortars were evaluated: fresh state behaviour through water retention, air content and setting time, hardened state properties such as density, water absorption through capillarity, water vapour permeability, long-term compressive strengths, pore structure through mercury intrusion porosimetry, and durability assessed by means of freezing–thawing cycles. A clear improvement in lime-based mortars was achieved when sodium oleate was added: strong capillarity reduction and excellent durability in the face of freezing–thawing processes, without any compressive strength drop. The mechanism for this improvement was related to air void formation due to the air-entraining ability of these surfactants. Insolubility of calcium stearate turned out to be responsible for fewer air bubbles – as SEM examination revealed – and showed lower effectiveness.     

The origin of early age expansions induced in cementitious materials containing shrinkage reducing admixtures

Studies on the early-age shrinkage behavior of cement pastes, mortars, and concretes containing shrinkage reducing admixtures (SRAs) have indicated these mixtures frequently exhibit an expansion shortly after setting. While the magnitude of the expansion has been noted to be a function of the chemistry of the cement and the admixture dosage; the cause of the expansion is not clearly understood. This investigation uses measurements of autogenous deformation, X-ray diffraction, pore solution analysis, thermogravimetry, and scanning electron microscopy to study the early-age properties and describe the mechanism of the expansion in OPC pastes made with and without SRA. The composition of the pore solution indicates that the presence of the SRA increases the portlandite oversaturation level in solution which can result in higher crystallization stresses which could lead to an expansion. This observation is supported by deformation calculations for the systems examined.     

Efficiency of mineral admixtures in concrete: Microstructure,compressive strength and stability of hydrate phases

The use of mineral additives in concrete such as fly ash, silica fume, natural pozzolan, metakaolin and calcined clay has become widespread due to their pozzolanic reaction and environmental friendliness. The microstructure characteristics of concrete including pore structure and interfacial transition zone (ITZ) with addition of metakaolin, silica fume and slag were investigated in this study. The experimental results show that the addition of mineral admixtures results in the denser ITZ, optimized pore structure and reasonable pore size distribution especially at later curing stages. Metakaolin presents the most distinct improvement effects on microstructure of concrete. The development of the compressive strength is quantificationally related to the total porosity and average microhardness of the ITZ. Importantly, the influence of metakaolin, silica fume and slag on concrete was analyzed from thermodynamic stability of hydrate phase aspects.     

The effect of fly ash and limestone fillers on the viscosity and compressive strength of self-compacting repair mortars

Today, self-compacting mortars are preferred for repair purposes due to the application easiness and mechanical advantages. However, for self-compactability, the paste phase must meet some certain criteria at fresh state. The cement as well as the ingredients of the paste, powders with cementitious, pozzolanic or inert nature and plasticizing chemical admixtures should be carefully chosen in order to obtain a suitable paste composition to enrich the granular skeleton of the mix. The physical properties of powders (shape, surface morphology, fineness, particle size distribution, particle packing) and physico-chemical (time-dependent hydration reactions, zeta potentials) interactions between cement powder and plasticizer should be taken into consideration. All these parameters affect the performance of fresh paste in different manners. There is no universally accepted agreement on the effect of these factors due to the complexity of combined action; thus, it is hard to make a generalization.This study deals with the selection of amount and type of powders from the viewpoint of fresh state rheology and mechanical performance. The influence of powder materials on self-compactability, viscosity and strength were compared with a properly designed set of test methods (the mini-slump, V-funnel tests, viscosity measurements and compressive strength tests). It may be advised that, for each cement-powder-plasticizer mixture, a series of test methods can be used to determine the optimum content and type of materials for a specified workability.