Effect of Limestone Powder Content on the Early-Age Properties of -Cured Concrete
Publication: Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 30, Issue 8
Abstract
The effect of limestone powder content on the curing degree (the carbonation rate after the curing process), compressive strength, reaction products, and microstructure of concrete cured in a environment were investigated in this study. Various proportions of limestone powder (0, 10, 20, 30, 40, and 50%) were blended in concrete as partial mass replacement for cement. Concrete specimens with dimensions of were manufactured and initially preconditioned at with a relative humidity (RH) of and circulated air for durations up to 5 h. curing was then carried out for 1–3 h in a chamber at a pressure of 0.2 MPa. Results showed that concrete incorporating limestone powder demonstrated a higher curing degree as compared with those without limestone under the same conditions. The remaining water-to-binder ratio was also critical for the curing of concrete regardless of the incorporation of limestone powder. There may exist an optimal remaining water content or remaining water-to-binder ratio for which fast diffusion and dissolution of results in the highest curing degree of concrete. Concrete incorporating limestone powder demonstrated higher optimal remaining water-to-binder ratio as compared to those without limestone. Quadratic response surface analysis indicated that a combined effect of the limestone powder content and the remaining water-to-binder ratio, rather than the individual factors, play a critical role in improving the curing degree of the concrete specimens incorporating limestone powder. The microstructure and reaction products of the -cured concrete were characterized by thermogravimetric analysis (TG), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electronic microscopy/energy-dispersive spectroscopy (SEM/EDS) examination. It was found that limestone powder with a maximum particle size of could serve as a nucleus for precipitation of reaction products, especially calcium carbonates, and induce the consumption of calcium silicates ( and ). Incorporating limestone powder can also generate more carbonation products and make the microstructure less porous.
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Acknowledgments
The authors would like to acknowledge the financial support from Specialized Research Fund for the Doctoral Program of Higher Education (SRFDP) (20130161110019).
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Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 30 • Issue 8 • August 2018
Copyright
©2018 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jan 24, 2017
Accepted: Oct 9, 2017
Published online: May 25, 2018
Published in print: Aug 1, 2018
Discussion open until: Oct 25, 2018
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