Abstract
This paper examines the influence of biochar on the properties of alkali-activated slag pastes using two activator solutions, namely NaOH and Na2CO3. The biochar demonstrated different absorption kinetics in the mixture of slag and the two activator solutions. The pastes with biochar showed a delay in the heat flow peak, compared to the pastes without biochar, but the cumulative heat release in these pastes at later hours was increased, compared to the pastes without biochar. It was found that the use of biochar reduced autogenous shrinkage in the pastes and the reduction in autogenous shrinkage was more pronounced in the alkali-activated slag with NaOH, compared to Na2CO3. The void structure of the pastes was investigated using x-ray micro-computed tomography. It was found that refined pore structure due to reduced effective solution/slag in the pastes with biochar was able to compensate for the decreasing effect of biochar voids on compressive strength. The electrical resistivity was shown to be lower in the pastes with biochar.
Highlights
It was found that refined pore structure due to reduced effective solution/slag in the pastes with biochar was able to compensate for the decreasing effect of biochar voids on compressive strength
The microstructure of biochar used in this study shown in
Uneven ridges and honeycomb pore structures can be observed on the surface of biochar, which is inherand honeycomb pore structures can be observed on the surface of biochar, which is inherand honeycomb pore structures can be observed on the surface of biochar, which is inherited ited from the biological capillary of the feedstock
Summary
Citation: Prabahar, J.; Vafaei, B.; Baffoe, E.; Ghahremaninezhad, A.The Effect of Biochar on the Properties of Alkali-Activated Slag Pastes. Constr.Mater. 2022, 2, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.3390/constrmater2010001Received: 22 November 2021Accepted: 11 December 2021Published: 23 December 2021Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.Attribution (CC BY) license (https://
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