Rheological and hydration characterization of calcium sulfoaluminate cement pastes

Calcium sulfoaluminate (CSA) cements are currently receiving a lot of attention because their manufacture produces less CO2 than ordinary Portland cement (OPC). However, it is essential to understand all parameters which may affect the hydration processes. This work deals with the study of the effect of several parameters, such as superplasticizer (SP), gypsum contents (10, 20 and 30 wt%) and w/c ratio (0.4 and 0.5), on the properties of CSA pastes during early hydration. This characterization has been performed through rheological studies, Rietveld quantitative phase analysis of measured x-ray diffraction patterns, thermal analysis and mercury porosimetry for pastes, and by compressive strength measurements for mortars. The effect of the used SP on the rheological properties has been established. Its addition makes little difference to the amount of ettringite formed but strongly decreases the large pore fraction in the pastes. Furthermore, the SP role on compressive strength is variable, as it increases the values for mortars containing 30 wt% gypsum but decreases the strengths for mortars containing 10 wt% gypsum.This work has been supported by Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation through MAT2010- 16213 research grant, which is co-funded by FEDER, and Ramón y Cajal Fellowship (RYC-2008- 03523)

The development of mobile robot for air pollution data capture (POPOBOT)

In the Modern era, the environmental issues have given significant impact to the human live. The air pollution indoor and outdoor environment sometimes dangerous to the human health and it needs to be justified. To fulfill this purpose, telemeasurement process and technique should be used. Therefore, in this research, the mobile robot with equipped by several air quality parameters sensors is developed. The robot is controlled using remote control and using wireless connection system. The air quality in target area will be monitored by using sensors which will capture data and send it to the Central Control (laptop) for analyzing. And then to be able monitor certain area investigation, the mobile robot is guided by using wireless camera. Result from this project can make user to monitor and navigate the target area by using mobile robot and this can make user know the situation on that area. PIC16F887A has been chosen in this project as the main device which is controlling all activities of the mobile robot. Data capture and robot movement has been done in wireless to make user easy to do the monitoring activities. From result, knowing that the error percentage of the data capture is small compare to the digital meter. So from that knowing this project is effective because it make user easy to do air pollution monitoring process also can prevent the gas poisoning cases from happen

The complex binder based on Portland cement andash-and-slag wastes from thermal power stations

Increase in the balance of boiler and furnace fuel of the energy sector of the Republic of Belarus the proportion of own energy resources (milling peat and wood chips) places priority on resolving the issues of utilization of ash-and-slag wastes and reducing the area of ash-and-slag disposal sites, which cause irreparable damage to the environment. A considerable amount of research has been devoted to the utilization of ash-and-slag wastes. There are more than 300 technologies of their recycling and use. Ash and slag wastes are used in the production of concrete, mortars, ceramics, heat and water insulating materials, road construction. The world experience shows the potential of 70-80% utilization of ash and slag, as, for example, in some European countries. However, the cost of the recycling of ash-and-slag wastes with the production and simultaneous neutralization of wastes can be higher than the cost of the production. One of the directions of the use of ash and slag wastes is the production on their basis of new types of complex binder that have increased strength and low prime cost. The replacement of a part of cement with active mineral additive allows to achieve significant saving of binder. The existing methods of the production of complex binders include the stages of joint or separate grinding of cement clinker and mineral additive with following mixing. Significant energy costs for grinding increase the cost of binder. In this regard, the development of the effective complex binder with the use of ash-and-slag wastes of the Belarussian state district power station in Orekhovsk using resource-saving technology is the actual research objective

Influences of chloride immersion on zeta potential and chloride in concentration of cement-based materials

In this paper, the zeta potential of freshly mixed cement paste and hardened cement pastes, as well as the concentration index, was measured. The influences of chloride concentration in mixing water and slag content on zeta potential of freshly mixed pastes were studied. A proposed model was expressed to explain the relationship of zeta potential and concentration index of hardened cement pastes immersed in chloride solution. The results showed that the increase of chloride concentration in mixing water and slag replacement improved the zeta potential of freshly mixed cement, the hydration rate and concentration of ions in mixed water affects the zeta potential. With the increase of chloride concentration in soaking solution, the chloride concentration index and zeta potential of hardened cement paste all gradually decreased. The addition of slag gave some changes on chloride in concentration and zeta potential. The relationship among chloride concentration index, chloride concentration in soaking solution and slag replacement revealed by Gouy-Chapman model was in good agreement with the measured results

Vacuum mixing technology to improve the mechanical properties of ultra-high performance concrete

Ultra-high performance concrete is an important evolution in concrete technology, enabled by the combination of a good particle packing density, a suitable mixing procedure and compatible binders and admixtures. In the last decades a lot of research has been performed to explore the boundaries of this new type of concrete. Mixers equipped with a vacuum pump able to lower the mixing pressure from 1,013 to 50 mbar are an interesting way to improve the performance by lowering the air content. Profound research is necessary, because little is known about this technique of air content reduction. The influence of a reduced air content on the mechanical properties of ultra-high performance concrete is tested at The Magnel Laboratory for Concrete Research. This paper reports the results of the compressive strength, the splitting and bending tensile strength and the modulus of elasticity. All the mechanical properties after 28 days curing are improved by reducing the air content in the ultra-high performance concrete. An increase in compressive strength between 7 and 22 % is measured. The bending tensile strength increases maximum with 17 % and the splitting tensile strength gains 3-22 % in performance. Furthermore, the modulus of elasticity improves with 3-8 %. In conclusion, the air content can be controlled and a higher performance can be achieved by vacuum mixing technology. Finally, it is shown that the vacuum technology is not as effective in a 75 l capacity vacuum mixer as it is for a smaller vacuum mixer with a capacity of 5 l

Microstructural study of Styrene Polyacrylic (SPA) latex modified mortars

In this paper, the influence of the styrene polyacrylic (SPA) latex polymer on the microstructural properties of limestone mortars has been studied. For this purpose, five mortars were developed with different dosages of the SPA latex (0%, 2.5%, 5%, 7.5% and 10%) by weight of cement. This research was carried out using XRD, FTIR, and SEM analyses. The results of XRD and FTIR studies showed that the addition of SPA latex can increase the portlandite content of polymer-modified mortars (PMMs), compared to the control mortar. In addition, the moist environment promotes the Ca(OH)2 consumption in PMMs at early age and accelerates the hydration. Moreover, the SEM analysis revealed that the cement hydrate structure of the reference mortar is loose. In contrast, the hydrates of the PMMs were covered by a polymer film or membrane, and the pore structure is significantly affected by the filling effect the micropores by the latex particles

Internal curing of cement pastes by superabsorbent polymers studied by means of neutron radiography

Autogenous shrinkage is a problem in cementitious materials with a low water-to-binder ratio. When the internal relative humidity decreases due to the ongoing hydration reaction and selfdesiccation, autogenous shrinkage takes place if no external or internal water source is present. This may lead to cracking and eventually cause durability problems in constructions. Ideally, the internal relative humidity should be maintained during hydration of the cement paste. Superabsorbent polymers (SAPs) may be used to mitigate autogenous shrinkage. When self-desiccation occurs, these polymers will release their absorbed additional mixing water due to increasing capillary forces to stimulate internal curing. This release of water towards the cementitious matrix and the effect on the cementitious matrix itself can be studied by means of neutron radiography. In this study, thin samples of cement paste were casted between glass plates and the evolution of the internal water amount was studied as a function of time. In specimens without SAPs and a water-to-binder ratio of 0.30, shrinkage was seen. Furthermore, autogenous shrinkage was reduced in cement pastes when using SAPs and an additional entrained water-to-binder ratio of 0.054. The release of water from smaller SAPs (100 μm dry size) seemed to be more promising compared to bigger SAPs (500 μm) with the same absorption properties. The technique of neutron radiography supports the findings of shrinkage tests where SAPs were already proven to be useful. This opens additional insights towards the application of SAPs in the construction area