Enhancing Concrete Properties by Using Silica Fume as Reactive Powder and Portland Cement-Clinker as Reactive Aggregate
Publication: Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 31, Issue 11
Abstract
In this research, techniques of cement paste strengthening and interfacial transition zone (ITZ) microstructure modification were simultaneously used to enhance the concrete engineering properties and a new concrete, named reactive-powder and reactive-aggregate concrete (RPRAC), was introduced. For this purpose, 18 wt.% of cement in concrete mix design was replaced with silica fume to strengthen the cement paste according to reactive powder concrete (RPC) technology and an optimal part of the sand in the concrete mix design was replaced with portland cement (PC) clinker as a reactive synthetic aggregate. RPRAC was then compared with RPC and normal concrete (NC) as controls in terms of workability, setting time, different-age compressive and flexural strengths, chloride penetration depth, open-pore volume, and water absorption. Simultaneous pozzolanic reactions of silica fume and surface hydration reactions of PC-clinker resulted in effective microstructural refinements both in hardened cement paste and ITZ. The achieved results showed that compressive strength of RPRAC was increased by 121% and 170% at 28 days compared to RPC and NC, respectively. The chloride penetration depth in RPRAC decreased by about 71% and 87% after 28 days of immersion in a NaCl solution compared to RPC and NC, respectively.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
References
Al-Azzawi, A. A., and R. Abdulsattar. 2018. “A state of the art review on reactive powder concrete slabs.” Int. J. App. Eng. Res. 13 (1): 761–768.
Arroudj, K., A. Zenati, M. N. Oudjit, A. Bali, and A. Tagnit-Hamou. 2011. “Reactivity of fine quartz in presence of silica fume and slag.” Engineering 3 (6): 569–576. https://doi.org/10.4236/eng.2011.36067.
ASTM. 1990. Standard test method for specific gravity, absorption and voids in hardened concrete. ASTM C642. West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM.
ASTM. 2001. Standard test method for density, relative density (specific gravity), and absorption of fine aggregate. ASTM C128. West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM.
ASTM. 2003a. Standard specification for flow table for use in tests of hydraulic cement. ASTM C230. West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM.
ASTM. 2003b. Standard test method for time of setting of hydraulic cement mortar by modified VICAT needle. ASTM C807. West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM.
ASTM. 2014. Standard test method for flexural strength of hydraulic-cement mortars. ASTM C348. West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM.
ASTM. 2015. Standard test method for flow of hydraulic cement mortar. ASTM C1437. West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM.
ASTM. 2016a. Standard practice for making and curing concrete test specimens in the laboratory. ASTM C192. West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM.
ASTM. 2016b. Standard test method for compressive strength of hydraulic cement mortars using 2-in. or [50-mm] cube specimens. ASTM C109. West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM.
ASTM. 2017. Standard specification for portland cement. ASTM C150. West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM.
Benezet, J. C., and A. Benhassaine. 1999. “The influence of particle size on the pozzolanic reactivity of quartz powder.” Powder Technol. 103 (1): 26–29. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0032-5910(99)00010-8.
Berger, R. L. 1974. “Properties of concrete with cement clinker aggregate.” Cem. Concr. Res. 4 (1): 99–112. https://doi.org/10.1016/0008-8846(74)90069-6.
Beshr, H., A. Almusallam, and M. Maslehuddin. 2003. “Effect of coarse aggregate quality on the mechanical properties of high strength concrete.” Constr. Build. Mater. 17 (2): 97–103. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0950-0618(02)00097-1.
Chen, Y., J. Wei, H. Huang, W. Jin, and Y. Qijun. 2018. “Application of 3D-DIC to characterize the effect of aggregate size and volume on non-uniform shrinkage strain distribution in concrete.” Cem. Concr. Compos. 86 (Feb): 178–189. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2017.11.005.
Ferreiro, S., D. Herfort, and J. S. Damtoft. 2017. “Effect of raw clay type, fineness, water-to-cement ratio and fly ash addition on workability and strength performance of calcined clay: Limestone portland cements.” Cem. Concr. Res. 101 (Nov): 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2017.08.003.
Gao, Y., G. De Schutter, G. Ye, H. Huang, Z. Tan, and K. Wu. 2013. “Porosity characterization of ITZ in cementitious composites: Concentric expansion and overflow criterion.” Constr. Build. Mater. 38 (Jan): 1051–1057. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2012.09.047.
Ghasemi, M., M. R. Ghasemi, and S. R. Mousavi. 2018. “Investigating the effects of maximum aggregate size on self-compacting steel fiber reinforced concrete fracture parameters.” Constr. Build. Mater. 162 (Feb): 674–682. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2017.11.141.
Halamickova, P., R. J. Detwiler, D. P. Bentz, and E. J. Garboczi. 1995. “Water permeability and chloride ion diffusion in portland cement mortars: Relationship to sand content and critical pore diameter.” Cem. Concr. Res. 25 (4): 790–802. https://doi.org/10.1016/0008-8846(95)00069-O.
He, F., C. Shi, Q. Yuan, C Chen, and K Zheng. 2012. “-based colorimetric methods for measurement of chloride penetration in concrete.” Constr. Build. Mater. 26 (1): 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2011.06.003.
Hewlett, P. 2003. Lea’s chemistry of cement and concrete. 4th ed. Oxford: Elsevier.
Houssam, A. T., and E. Tahar. 1995. “The influence of silica fume on the compressive strength of cement paste and mortar.” Cem. Concr. Res. 25 (7): 1591–1602. https://doi.org/10.1016/0008-8846(95)00152-3.
Karamloo, M., M. Mazloom, and G. Payganeh. 2016. “Influences of water to cement ratio on brittleness and fracture, parameters of self-compacting lightweight concrete.” Eng. Fract. Mech. 168 (Dec): 227–241. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.engfracmech.2016.09.011.
Parameshwar, N. H., and C. Y. Subhash. 2017. “Effect of different curing regimes and durations on early strength development of reactive powder concrete.” Constr. Build. Mater. 154 (Jul): 72–87. https://doi:10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2017.07.181.
Piasta, W., and B. Zarzycki. 2017. “The effect of cement paste volume and w/c ratio on shrinkage strain, water absorption and compressive strength of high-performance concrete.” Constr. Build. Mater. 140 (Jun): 395–402. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2017.02.033.
Ping, X., J. J. Beaudoin, and R. Brousseau. 1991. “Effect of aggregate size on transition zone properties at the portland cement paste interface.” Cem. Concr. Res. 21 (6): 999–1005. https://doi.org/10.1016/0008-8846(91)90059-Q.
Poon, C. S., S. C. Kou, and L. Lam. 2006. “Compressive strength, chloride diffusivity and pore structure of high performance metakaolin and silica fume concrete.” Constr. Build. Mater. 20 (10): 858–865. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2005.07.001.
Rafat, S. 2011. “Utilization of silica fume in concrete: Review of hardened properties.” Resour. Cons. Recycl. 55 (11): 923–932. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2011.06.012.
Rafat, S., and I. K. Mohammad. 2011. Supplementary cementing materials. New York: Springer.
Rafat, S., and C. Navneet. 2011. “Use of silicon and ferrosilicon industry by-products (silica fume) in cement paste and mortar.” Resour. Cons. Recycl. 55 (8): 739–744. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2011.03.004.
Rajhans, P., S. K. Panda, and S. Nayak. 2018. “Sustainable self-compacting concrete from C&D waste by improving the microstructures of concrete ITZ.” Constr. Build. Mater. 163 (Feb): 557–570. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2017.12.132.
Roa, G. A. 2003. “Investigations on the performance of silica fume-incorporated cement pastes and mortars.” Cem. Concr. Res. 33 (11): 1765–1770. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0008-8846(03)00171-6.
Shannag, M. J. 2000. “High strength concrete containing natural pozzolan and silica fume.” Cem. Concr. Compos. 22 (6): 399–406. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0958-9465(00)00037-8.
Srivastava, V., A. Harison, P. K. Mehta, and K. Rakesh. 2014. “Effect of silica fume in concrete.” Int. J. Innovative Res. Sci. Eng. Technol. 3 (4): 2347–6710.
Tavares, L. M., and M. C. Cerqueira. 2006. “Statistical analysis of impact-fracture characteristics and microstructure of industrial portland cement clinkers.” Cem. Concr. Res. 36 (3): 409–415. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2005.09.012.
Titi, H., and H. Tabatabai. 2018. “Effect of coarse aggregate type on chloride ion penetration in concrete.” Constr. Build. Mater. 162 (Feb): 871–880. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2018.01.090.
Vargas, P., O. Restrepo-Baena, and J. I. Tobón. 2017. “Microstructural analysis of interfacial transition zone (ITZ) and its impact on the compressive strength of lightweight concretes.” Constr. Build. Mater. 137 (Apr): 381–389. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2017.01.101.
Yogendran, V., B. W. Langan, M. N. Haque, and M. A. Ward. 1987. “Silica fume in high strength concrete.” ACI Mater. J. 84 (2): 124–129.
Zhang, M., and O. E. Gjorv. 1990. “Microstructure of the interfacial zone between lightweight aggregate and cement paste.” Cem. Concr. Res. 20 (4): 610–618. https://doi.org/10.1016/0008-8846(90)90103-5.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 31 • Issue 11 • November 2019
Copyright
©2019 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jun 5, 2018
Accepted: May 29, 2019
Published online: Sep 3, 2019
Published in print: Nov 1, 2019
Discussion open until: Feb 3, 2020
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.