Evaluation of Particle Effects in Portland Cement Systems
Publication: Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 30, Issue 9
Abstract
Various filler materials were evaluated to identify and differentiate chemical reactions from physical particle reactions during hydration within a portland cement system. Laboratory teasting included solubility within a calcium hydroxide environment, heat generation via isothermal calorimetry, and portlandite formation identification via X-ray diffraction. Results indicate that quartz, which is often accepted as inert filler material in portland cement systems, is chemically reactive in highly alkaline environments. The study introduces diamond, a novel, truly nonreactive filler material that allows quantitative determination of the extent of pure physical reactivity, otherwise known as the filler effect, in the absence of additional contributions to hydration due to chemical reactivity. A proposed zero-reaction plot is suggested to evaluate material reactivity with respect to portland cement. Consequences of the zero-reaction plot are further reaching than a filler test; this method can evaluate the exothermic reactivity of amendments to portland cement in a manner that makes comparative analyses uncomplicated.
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Acknowledgments
The authors would like to express their gratitude to the Florida Department of Transportation and Dr. H.D. DeFord for funding this research. The authors would also like to thank Katherine Maslak, Justin Roessler, Danielle Kennedy, Marissa Romero, Benjamin Watts, and Caitlin Tibbetts for their help in the labs performing experiments. The authors would like to thank Kiersten Wang for her assistance in formatting and reviewing this manuscript. The authors would also like to thank Dr. Paul Carpinone, whose knowledge of chemistry was of great assistance.
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Published In
Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 30 • Issue 9 • September 2018
Copyright
©2018 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Aug 22, 2017
Accepted: Feb 16, 2018
Published online: Jun 23, 2018
Published in print: Sep 1, 2018
Discussion open until: Nov 23, 2018
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