Prediction of Thermal Decomposition of Hardened Cement Paste
Publication: Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 24, Issue 5
Abstract
When exposed to elevated temperatures, various constituents in hardened cement paste will undergo decomposition, resulting in thermal damage of concrete. To better understand the thermal damage mechanism, it is essential to investigate the whole decomposition process of hardened cement paste. Based on the kinetic and stoichiometric analysis, a numerical method is presented in this paper for predicting the thermal decomposition of hardened cement paste. In this method, the initial volume fractions of various constituents in hardened cement paste are expressed as a function of the water-to-cement ratio, degree of hydration, and the chemical composition of cement. By analyzing the kinetics of decomposition, the volume fraction evolution of each constituent is then formulated in terms of the heating rate and temperature. When silica fume is added, the pozzolanic reaction is also considered. Finally, the validity of the proposed numerical method is verified with three sets of experimental data collected from the literature. The effect of the heating rate on the thermal decomposition of hardened cement paste is evaluated in a quantitative manner.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
Acknowledgments
The financial support from the National Natural Science Foundation (Grant No. 50978026) and the Ministry of Education (Grant No. 20100009110014) of the People’s Republic of China is gratefully acknowledged.
References
Anderberg, Y. (1997). “Spalling phenomena of HPC and OC.” Proc., Int. Workshop on Fire Performance of High-Strength Concrete, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Gaithersburg, MD, 69–73.
Bentz, D. P., and Garboczi, E. J. (1991). “Percolation of phases in a three-dimensional cement paste microstructural model.” Cem. Concr. Res.CCNRAI, 21(2–3), 325–344.
Bentz, D. P., Jensen, O. M., Coats, A. M., and Glasser, F. P. (2000). “Influence of silica fume on diffusivity in cement-based materials I. Experimental and computer modeling studies on cement pastes.” Cem. Concr. Res.CCNRAI, 30(6), 953–962.
Biolzi, L., Cattaneo, S., and Rosati, G. (2008). “Evaluating residual properties of thermally damaged concrete.” Cem. Concr. Compos.CCOCEG, 30(10), 907–916.
Chan, S. Y. N., Peng, G. F., and Anson, M. (1999). “Fire behavior of high-performance concrete made with silica fume at various moisture contents.” ACI Mater. J., 96(3), 405–411.AMAJEF
Galwey, A. K., and Brown, M. E. (1999). Thermal decomposition of ionic solids, Elsevier, Amsterdam, NE.
Gawin, D., Pesavento, F., and Schrefler, B. A. (2002). “Simulation of damage-permeability coupling in hygro-thermo-mechanical analysis of concrete at high temperature.” Commun. Numer. Methods Eng.CANMER, 18(2), 113–119.
Gawin, D., Pesavento, F., and Schrefler, B. A. (2003). “Modelling of hygro-thermal behaviour of concrete at high temperature with thermo-chemical and mechanical material degradation.” Comput. Methods Appl. Mech. EngrgCMMECC, 192(13–14), 1731–1771.
Hansen, T. C. (1986). “Physical structure of hardened cement paste: A classical approach.” Mater. Constr., 19(114), 423–436.MCUAAA
Hertz, K. D. (1992). “Danish investigations on silica fume concretes at elevated temperatures.” ACI Mater. J., 89(4), 345–347.AMAJEF
International Organization for Standardization (ISO). (1999). “Fire-resistence tests—Elements of building construction—Part 1: General requirements.” ISO 834-1:1999, International Standards for Business, Government and Society, Geneva, Switzerland.
Kalifa, P, Menneteau, F. D., and Quenard, D. (2000). “Spalling and pore pressure in HPC at high temperatures.” Cem. Concr. Res.CCNRAI, 30(12), 1915–1927.
Khoury, G. A., Majorana, C. E., Pesavento, F., and Schrefler, B. A. (2002). “Modelling of heated concrete.” Mag. Concr. Res.MCORAV, 54(2), 77–101.
Komonen, J., and Penttala, V. (2003). “Effects of high temperature on the pore structure and strength of plain and polypropylene fiber reinforced cement pastes.” Fire Technol.FITCAA, 39(1), 23–34.
Lee, J., Xi, Y., Willam, K., and Jung, Y. (2009). “A multiscale model for modulus of elasticity of concrete at high temperatures.” Cem. Concr. Res.CCNRAI, 39(9), 754–762.
Lin, W. M., Lin, T. D., and Powers-Couche, L. J. (1996). “Microstructures of fire-damaged concrete.” ACI Mater. J., 93(3), 199–205.AMAJEF
Lu, P., Sun, G., and Young, J. F. (1993). “Phase composition of hydrated DSP cement pastes.” J. Am. Ceram. Soc.JACTAW, 76(4), 1003–1007.
Ollivier, J. P., Maso, J. C., and Bourdette, B. (1995). “Interfacial transition zone in concrete.” Adv. Cem. Based Mater., 2(1), 30–38.ACATE9
Peng, G. F., and Huang, Z. S. (2008). “Change in microstructure of hardened cement paste subjected to elevated temperatures.” Constr. Build. Mater., 22(4), 593–599.
Piasta, J., Sawicz, Z., and Rudzinski, L. (1984). “Changes in the structure of hardened cement paste due to high temperature.” Mater. Constr., 17(100), 291–296.MCUAAA
Pont, S. D., Meftah, F., and Schrefler, B. A. (2011). “Modeling concrete under severe conditions as a multiphase material.” Nucl. Eng. Des.NEDEAU, 241(3), 562–572.
Pourchez, J., Valdivieso, F., Grosseau, P., Guyonnet, R., and Guilhot, B. (2006). “Kinetic modelling of the thermal decomposition of ettringite into metaettringite.” Cem. Concr. Res.CCNRAI, 36(11), 2054–2060.
Sanjayan, G., and Stocks, L. J. (1993). “Spalling of high-strength silica fume concrete in fire.” ACI Mater. J., 90(2), 170–173.AMAJEF
Shimada, Y., and Young, J. F. (2001). “Structural changes during thermal dehydration of ettringite.” Adv. Cem. Res.ACEREN, 13(2), 77–81.
Tenchev, R., and Purnell, P. (2005). “An application of a damage constitutive model to concrete at high temperature and prediction of spalling.” Int. J. Solids Struct.IJSOAD, 42(26), 6550–6565.
Tennis, P. D., and Jennings, H. M. (2000). “A model for two types of calcium silicate hydrate in the microstructure of Portland cement pastes.” Cem. Concr. Res.CCNRAI, 30(6), 855–863.
Yang, D. Y., Sun, W., and Liu, Z. Y. (2007). “Thermal decomposition kinetics of ettringite crystal.” J. Chin. Ceram. Soc., 35(12), 1641–1646 (in Chinese).KSYHA5
Zelić, J., Rušić, D., and Krstulović, R. (2002). “Kinetic analysis of thermal decomposition of formed during hydration of commercial Portland cement by DSC.” J. Therm. Anal. Calorim.JTACF7, 67(3), 613–622.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Copyright
© 2012. American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: May 16, 2011
Accepted: Nov 9, 2011
Published online: Nov 11, 2011
Published in print: May 1, 2012
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.