Influence of Copper Slag on Mechanical Performance, Hydrate Assemblage, and Mechanism of Cementitious System
Publication: Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 34, Issue 12
Abstract
Copper slag (CS) is a by-product generated during the process of copper metal smelting. The influence of CS on the mechanical performance, hydrate assemblage, and mechanism of the cementitious system was investigated by multiple methodologies to accelerate the sustainable development of the copper industries. The results revealed that adding 10% by weight of CS was beneficial to developing compressive strength. However, the strength decreased significantly if too much CS was incorporated. This adverse effect can be mitigated by prolonging the curing age. Besides, the evolution of mechanical performance was explained by multiple microscopic studies. More ettringite (AFt) and monosulfate (AFm) were formed in the paste containing 10% by weight of CS at 28 days, which filled the space and improved the strength. For the paste containing 30% by weight of CS, the backscattered electron images suggested that more than 60% of incorporated CS participated in the hydration at 200 days and developed an additional C─ (A)─ S─ H with a higher atomic ratio of Fe/Si and Al/Si, resulting in a dramatic improvement in compressive strength. Finally, the hydration mechanism of CS in the cementitious system was established based on the dissolution test combined with the theory of cement hydration.
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Data Availability Statement
No data, models, or code were generated or used during the study.
Acknowledgments
This work was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 51678441), the Science and Technology Commission of Shanghai Municipality (Grant Nos. 19DZ1202702 and 19DZ1201404), the Housing and Urban-Rural Construction Management Commission of Shanghai Municipality (Grant. No. 2021-001-002), as well as the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Project No. 52108240). We would also like to thank the China Scholarship Council for their financial support.
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Published In
Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 34 • Issue 12 • December 2022
Copyright
© 2022 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Aug 31, 2021
Accepted: Apr 5, 2022
Published online: Oct 3, 2022
Published in print: Dec 1, 2022
Discussion open until: Mar 3, 2023
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