Novel Plastering Mortar Incorporating Cenospheres for Autoclaved Aerated Concrete Based on Magnesium Phosphate Cement
Publication: Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 33, Issue 4
Abstract
Autoclaved aerated concrete (AAC) is an energy-saving and environmentally friendly building material. However, ordinary portland cement (OPC) mortar is prone to cracking and spall when it is used for surface plastering of AAC. To resolve this situation, this research proposes a novel plastering mortar appropriate for AAC based on magnesium phosphate cement (MPC) incorporating fly ash (FA) and cenospheres. Two series of mortar mixtures were formulated with different FA and cenosphere dosages. Firstly, MPC was partially replaced with FA by weight. Then, in the case of fixed FA content, sand was replaced with an equal volume of cenospheres at different percentages. The mechanical strength, water retention, drying shrinkage, and thermal conductivity of the MPC mortar was investigated. The hydration products and microscopic properties of the MPC mortar were examined by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The results show that FA greatly improves the water retention of MPC mortar. The water retention of MPC mortar is 97.5% at FA replacement of 40%. Although cenospheres replacing sand slightly reduced mechanical strength of MPC mortar, they can significantly decrease the thermal conductivity and drying shrinkage of mortar. When sand was completely replaced with cenospheres, the bond strength, drying shrinkage rate, and thermal conductivity were 0.6 MPa, , and , respectively. Finally, XRD and SEM tests of MPC mortar also indicated that cenospheres inhibited the hydration of MPC and reduced the strength of MPC mortar. In conclusion, the developed MPC mortar has excellent bond strength as well as low drying shrinkage rate and thermal conductivity, which can effectively deal with the problem of cracking and spall in traditional plaster mortar and is also an eco-friendly building material.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
Data Availability Statement
All data, models, and code generated or used during the study appear in the published article.
Acknowledgments
This research is sponsored by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) No. 51778363.
References
Abdelrazig, B. E. I., J. H. Sharp, and B. El-Jazairi. 1988. “The chemical composition of mortars made from magnesia-phosphate cement.” Cem. Concr. Res. 18 (3): 415–425. https://doi.org/10.1016/0008-8846(88)90075-0.
Ahmad, M. R., and B. Chen. 2018. “Effect of silica fume and basalt fiber on the mechanical properties and microstructure of magnesium phosphate cement (MPC) mortar.” Constr. Build. Mater. 190 (Nov): 466–478. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2018.09.143.
Ahmad, M. R., B. Chen, M. A. Haque, and S. Y. Oderji. 2020. “Multiproperty characterization of cleaner and energy-efficient vegetal concrete based on one-part geopolymer binder.” J. Clean. Prod. 253 (Apr): 119916. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.119916.
Bentz, D. P., and P. E. Stutzman. 1994. “Evolution of porosity and calcium hydroxide in laboratory concretes containing silica fume.” Cem. Concr. Res. 24 (6): 1044–1050. https://doi.org/10.1016/0008-8846(94)90027-2.
Binici, B., E. Canbay, A. Aldemir, I. O. Demirel, U. Uzgan, Z. Eryurtlu, K. Bulbul, and A. Yakut. 2019. “Seismic behavior and improvement of autoclaved aerated concrete infill walls.” Eng. Struct. 193 (Aug): 68–81. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.engstruct.2019.05.032.
Buj, I., J. Torras, D. Casellas, M. Rovira, and J. de Pablo. 2009. “Effect of heavy metals and water content on the strength of magnesium phosphate cements.” J. Hazard. Mater. 170 (1): 345–350. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2009.04.091.
Chen, B., S. Y. Oderji, S. Chandan, and S. Fan. 2017. “Feasibility of magnesium phosphate cement (MPC) as a repair material for ballastless track slab.” Constr. Build. Mater. 154 (Aug): 270–274. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2017.07.207.
Chinese Standard. 2001. Special masonry mortar and plaster mortar for autoclaved aerated concrete. JC890-2001. Beijing: Chinese Standard.
Chinese Standard. 2006. Technical specification for light weight aggregate concrete. JGJ12-2006. Beijing: Chinese Standard.
Chinese Standard. 2009. Standard test method for basic performance of building mortar. JGJ/T70-2009. Beijing: Chinese Standard.
Chinese Standard. 2017. Adhesives for ceramic tiles. JC/T547-2017. Beijing: Chinese Standard.
Christel, T., S. Christ, J. E. Barralet, J. Groll, and U. Gbureck. 2015. “Chelate bonding mechanism in a novel magnesium phosphate bone cement.” J. Am. Ceram. Soc. 98 (3): 694–697. https://doi.org/10.1111/jace.13491.
Covill, A., N. C. Hyatt, J. Hill, and N. C. Collier. 2011. “Development of magnesium phosphate cements for encapsulation of radioactive waste.” Adv. Appl. Ceram. 110 (3): 151–156. https://doi.org/10.1179/1743676110Y.0000000008.
ElKashef, M., and M. AbdelMooty. 2014. “Investigating the use of autoclaved aerated concrete as an infill in reinforced concrete sandwich panels.” Mater. Struct. 48 (7): 2133–2146. https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-014-0298-3.
Fic, S., and M. Szeląg. 2015. “Analysis of the development of cluster cracks caused by elevated temperatures in cement paste.” Constr. Build. Mater. 83 (May): 223–229. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2015.03.044.
Gardner, L. J., S. A. Bernal, S. A. Walling, C. L. Corkhill, J. L. Provis, and N. C. Hyatt. 2015. “Characterisation of magnesium potassium phosphate cements blended with fly ash and ground granulated blast furnace slag.” Cement Concr. Res. 74 (Aug): 78–87. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2015.01.015.
Hanif, A., Z. Lu, M. Sun, P. Parthasarathy, and Z. Li. 2017. “Green lightweight ferrocement incorporating fly ash cenosphere based fibrous mortar matrix.” J. Clean. Prod. 159 (Aug): 326–335. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.05.079.
Huang, X., R. Ranade, Q. Zhang, W. Ni, and V. C. Li. 2013. “Mechanical and thermal properties of green lightweight engineered cementitious composites.” Constr. Build. Mater. 48 (Nov): 954–960. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2013.07.104.
Karakurt, C., H. Kurama, and I. B. Topcu. 2010. “Utilization of natural zeolite in aerated concrete production.” Cem. Concr. Compos. 32 (1): 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2009.10.002.
Kolay, P. K., and D. N. Singh. 2001. “Physical, chemical, mineralogical, and thermal properties of cenospheres from an ash lagoon.” Cem. Concr. Res. 31 (4): 539–542. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0008-8846(01)00457-4.
Lee, K. H., H. S. Yoon, and K. H. Yang. 2017. “Tests on magnesium potassium phosphate composite mortars with different water-to-binder ratios and molar ratios of magnesium-to-phosphate.” Constr. Build. Mater. 146 (Aug): 303–311. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2017.04.123.
Le Rouzic, M., T. Chaussadent, L. Stefan, and M. Saillio. 2017. “On the influence of Mg/P ratio on the properties and durability of magnesium potassium phosphate cement pastes.” Cem. Concr. Res. 96 (Jun): 27–41. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2017.02.033.
Li, Y., W. Bai, and T. Shi. 2017. “A study of the bonding performance of magnesium phosphate cement on mortar and concrete.” Constr. Build. Mater. 142 (Jul): 459–468. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2017.03.090.
Li, Y., and B. Chen. 2013. “Factors that affect the properties of magnesium phosphate cement.” Constr. Build. Mater. 47 (Oct): 977–983. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2013.05.103.
Liao, W., H. Ma, H. Sun, Y. Huang, and Y. Wang. 2017. “Potential large-volume beneficial use of low-grade fly ash in magnesia-phosphate cement based materials.” Fuel 209 (Dec): 490–497. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2017.08.028.
McBride, S. P., A. Shukla, and A. Bose. 2002. “Processing and characterization of a lightweight concrete using cenospheres.” J. Mater. Sci. 37 (19): 4217–4225. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1020056407402.
Mo, L., L. Lv, M. Deng, and J. Qian. 2018. “Influence of fly ash and metakaolin on the microstructure and compressive strength of magnesium potassium phosphate cement paste.” Cem. Concr. Res. 111 (Sep): 116–129. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2018.06.003.
Narayanan, N., and K. Ramamurthy. 2000. “Structure and properties of aerated concrete: A review.” Cem. Concr. Compos. 22 (5): 321–329. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0958-9465(00)00016-0.
Ngu, L. N., H. Wu, and D. K. Zhang. 2007. “Characterization of ash cenospheres in fly ash from Australian power stations.” Energy Fuels 21 (6): 3437–3445. https://doi.org/10.1021/ef700340k.
Pavía, S., and R. Hanley. 2010. “Flexural bond strength of natural hydraulic lime mortar and clay brick.” Mater. Struct. 43 (7): 913–922. https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-009-9555-2.
Qiao, F., C. K. Chau, and Z. Li. 2010. “Property evaluation of magnesium phosphate cement mortar as patch repair material.” Constr. Build. Mater. 24 (5): 695–700. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2009.10.039.
Raj, A., A. C. Borsaikia, and U. S. Dixit. 2020. “Bond strength of autoclaved aerated concrete (AAC) masonry using various joint materials.” J. Bulid. Eng. 28 (Mar): 101039. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jobe.2019.101039.
Standardization Administration of China. 1999. Test method for strength of cement mortar. GB/T17671. Beijing: Standards Press of China.
Szelag, M. 2018. “Development of cracking patterns in modified cement matrix with microsilica.” Materials 11 (10): 1928.
Wan, H., Y. Hu, G. Liu, and Y. Qu. 2018. “Study on the structure and properties of autoclaved aerated concrete produced with the stone-sawing mud.” Constr. Build. Mater. 184 (Sep): 20–26. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2018.06.214.
Wang, A. J., J. Zhang, J. M. Li, A. B. Ma, and L. T. Liu. 2013. “Effect of liquid-to-solid ratios on the properties of magnesium phosphate chemically bonded ceramics.” Mater. Sci. Eng. C-Mater. Biol. Appl. 33 (5): 2508–2512. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.msec.2013.02.014.
Wu, Y., J. Y. Wang, P. J. M. Monteiro, and M. H. Zhang. 2015. “Development of ultra-lightweight cement composites with low thermal conductivity and high specific strength for energy efficient buildings.” Constr. Build. Mater. 87 (Jul): 100–112. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2015.04.004.
Xu, B., H. Ma, and Z. Li. 2015. “Influence of magnesia-to-phosphate molar ratio on microstructures, mechanical properties and thermal conductivity of magnesium potassium phosphate cement paste with large water-to-solid ratio.” Cem. Concr. Res. 68 (Feb): 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2014.10.019.
Xu, B., H. Ma, H. Shao, Z. Li, and B. Lothenbach. 2017. “Influence of fly ash on compressive strength and micro-characteristics of magnesium potassium phosphate cement mortars.” Cem. Concr. Res. 99 (Sep): 86–94. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2017.05.008.
Yinfei, D., X. Ling, D. Haibin, D. Deyi, W. Hao, and L. Eidong. 2020. “Evaluation of thermal behavior and high-temperature performances of asphalt mixture containing fly ash cenosphere.” Constr. Build. Mater. 245 (Jun): 118429. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2020.118429.
Zhou, H., and A. L. Brooks. 2019. “Thermal and mechanical properties of structural lightweight concrete containing lightweight aggregates and fly-ash cenospheres.” Constr. Build. Mater. 198 (Feb): 512–526. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2018.11.074.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 33 • Issue 4 • April 2021
Copyright
© 2021 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: May 19, 2020
Accepted: Aug 31, 2020
Published online: Jan 21, 2021
Published in print: Apr 1, 2021
Discussion open until: Jun 21, 2021
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.