Investigating the Working Mechanisms of Viscosity-Modifying Admixtures through Rheological and Water Transport Properties
Publication: Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 32, Issue 2
Abstract
Viscosity modifying admixtures (VMAs) show great potential in achieving the desired rheological properties for 3D concrete printing. In addition to rheology, water transport properties are critically important; due to the absence of formwork, freshly printed components with high exposed surface areas are susceptible to excessive water loss. In this study, the effect of VMAs (i.e., attapulgite/palygorskite nanoclay and diutan gum) on the water transport properties of cement pastes were investigated. Bleeding, water retention under suction pressure, and evaporation under airflow were measured. The nanoclay was found to reduce bleeding but had no effect on water retention or evaporation. The diutan gum was found to reduce bleeding, improve water retention, and decrease evaporation loss. The potential working mechanisms of nanoclay and diutan gum are discussed and tied to observations of the rheological and water transport properties of the modified pastes.
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Acknowledgments
The authors would like to acknowledge the Thornton Tomasetti Student Innovation Fellowship and National Science Foundation (NSF 1653419) for financial support and technical support by the staff of Columbia University’s Carleton Laboratory.
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Published In
Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 32 • Issue 2 • February 2020
Copyright
©2019 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Sep 5, 2018
Accepted: Jul 11, 2019
Published online: Dec 10, 2019
Published in print: Feb 1, 2020
Discussion open until: May 10, 2020
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