37
Index Term
I.
INTRODUCTION
Cement is an economical and durable material that is one of
the worlds most utilized man-made building products.
Cement is utilized for its good compressive strength and
stiffness but the major drawback is that it lacks tensile
strength.
External sulfate attack is one of the durability problems
associated with concrete. Since its identification it has been
the subject of numerous studies and still not totally understood
[1]. The extent to which concrete is affected by sulfates
depends on several factors including its permeability, water to
cement (w/c) ratio, type of cement, exposure conditions and
the environment [2]. Assuming the same environmental
conditions, two factors will tend to control the resistance of a
given concrete to sulfate attack: the chemistry of the cement
and the permeability of the concrete. To control the cement
chemistry, American Standards [3] suggest a limit on the
(C3A) and (2C3A + C4AF) contents of sulfate resistant, type V,
cements as 5% and 25%, respectively. On the other hand,
cements with low C3A and C4AF compounds generally tend to
have a higher C3S/C2S ratio, and an increase in the C3S
content of cement generates a significantly higher amount of
calcium hydroxide, as the hydration of C3S produces nearly
2.2 times more calcium hydroxide (CH) than the hydration of
C2S. Calcium hydroxide is known to be responsible for the
formation of gypsum, and gypsum is known to be the first step
IJENS
Constituents
CaO
SiO2
Al2O3
Fe2O3
MgO
SO3
Na2O
K2O
ClI.L.
OPC
(%)
62.56
20.85
4.70
3.86
1.23
2.79
0.49
0.12
--2.82
GGBS
(%)
33.76
38.60
13.20
3.53
5.36
0.55
1.33
0.66
0.07
2.94
38
III.
Fig. (1-a,b). Variation of the bulk density of the hardened cement pastes
versus Na2 SO4 concentration f at different curing ages; (a) without slag; (b)
with 35% slag
Figures (2-a,b) shows the variation in the mass loss verses the
concentration of Na2 SO4 at different curing ages . It is clear
that the rate of mass loss increases with increasing the curing
age due to the precipitation of hydrated phases in to the
available pores of cement pastes. But in fig.(2-a) the rate of
the of mass loss increases with the concentration of Na2SO4 in
the samples, and that is related to the increase and formation
of gypsum and ettringite which are produced by the chemical
IJENS
39
Fig. (3a,b). The variation of the total porosity as a function of the different
concentration of Na2SO4 in the cement pastes at different curing age (a)
without slag, (b) with 35% slag.
The total porosity of the blended cement pastes cured for 3,14
and 28 days are graphically represented as a function of the
concentration of Na2SO4 in the samples in fig(3-a,b). It is clear
that the total porosity decreases with curing time for all
hardened cement pastes. This is due to the filling up of a part
of the available pore volume with the hydration products, as
the hydration proceeds. In fig (3-a) the total porosity
decreasing up 5000 ppm , then increasing with the
concentration of Na2SO4 in the samples. This variation mainly
depending on the rate of the geometrical random arrangement
of the material hydrated phases during the hydration
mechanism inside the matrix of the sample [17].
IJENS
40
Fig. (4-a,b). The variation of the relative expansion of the hardened cement
pastes versus the concentration of Na2SO4 at different curing age (a) without
slag (b) with 35% slag
Fig. (5-a,b). The variation of the combined water contents in the blended
cement pastes with the concentration of Na2SO4 at different curing age (a)
with out slag (b) with 35% slag
IV. CONCLUSIONS
The results are summarized as follows.
1- When cement paste phases are exposed to sodium
sulfate gypsum and ettringite are produced depending
on the concentration of sodium sulfate in the sample,
by chemical reaction of sulfate with Ca(OH)2 and
C3A.
2- The formation of gypsum plays an important role in
the decrease in the balk density and mass loss and
combined water, where the gypsum results makes the
specimen material brittle and softening.
3- Ettringite formation results in cracking and expansion
of the material and this expansion leads to a increase
in the total porosity and the relative expansion of the
cement matrix, and that is related to the water
absorption of crystalline ettringite , the morphology
and size of the ettringite crystal .
IJENS
41
REFERENCES
[1]
[2]
[3]
[4]
[5]
[6]
[7]
[8]
[9]
[10]
[11]
[12]
[13]
[14]
[15]
[16]
[17]
[18]
[19]
[20]
[21]
IJENS