Marsh Cone Research Articles

Analysis of PCE-based Superplasticiser for the Different Types of Cement using Marsh Cone Test

Analysis of PCE-based Superplasticiser for the Different Types of Cement using Marsh Cone Test

Impact of Superplasticizers on the Performance of Low-Grade Limestone-Based Cement Mixes.

Low-grade limestone (LGL) is not used to produce cement clinker, but this leftover material in cement quarries increases the water demand when used as a filler in concrete production. In this study, the effect of six commercial superplasticizers on the performance of cement mixes containing 35% LGL and 2% gypsum was investigated. The optimal doses of these superplasticizers were found in a range of different water/binder (w/b) ratios by conducting several Marsh cone and mini-slump tests. The addition of a superplasticizer with a higher active solid content produced a maximum cement flow, regardless of the w/b ratios. The LGL-based mortar samples admixed with this superplasticizer obtained a maximum compressive strength of about 36 MPa at the end of 28 days. SEM and XRD results showed the formation of a new calcium-rich mineral in their microstructure. These findings highlight the impact of the type and properties of superplasticizers on the performance of concrete mixes containing LGL as a supplementary cementitious material.

Genetic programming to understand the influence of new sustainable powder materials in the fresh performance of cement pastes

This study focused on pastes that incorporate metakaolin, biomass ash, and granite powder as supplementary cementitious materials to obtain specific expressions to predict rheological properties in pastes and to define the most appropriate dosage parameters using genetic programming. For this purpose, a dataset was developed following a central composite design, and some fresh properties were measured: Marsh cone and rheological properties, such as yield stress and plastic viscosity. The models generated by genetic programming presented robust statistical indices for the properties studied. The influence of supplementary cementitious materials on rheological properties was also analysed through a parametric analysis. After analysing the factors affecting paste rheology, it was concluded that the most important aspects affecting fresh behaviour were water demand and particle interaction, as well as the relation between both effects.

Influence of Polycarboxylate Superplasticizer on the Calorimetric and Physicomechanical Properties of Mortar

The use of polycarboxylate ether superplasticizer PCE in the preparation of mortars and concretes influences the hydration kinetics and the amount of total heat released. This leads to a modification of certain properties of the mortar, namely workability, calorimetry and mechanical resistance. In this study two ether polycarboxylate superplasticizers with different chemical structures were used; they were incorporated at different dosages into a standardized cement-based mortar. The objective of this work is to study the effectiveness of these superplasticizers and to select the most compatible product with cement and the most suitable for use according to the climates of the country. The impact of superplasticizers on fresh cement was studied by measuring the Marsh cone flow time and calorimetric measurement. In the hardened state, the mechanical properties were provided by measuring the compressive strength. The results show that low dosages of ether polycarboxylate superplasticizer promote grain hydration and produce more heat. On the other hand, high dosages delay the contact of the cement grains with the mixing water and cause a reduction in the final heat released and a delay in setting. The ether polycarboxylate superplasticizer with high carboxylic density gives the best mechanical resistance compressive at 7 and 28 days.

Fresh state and hydration properties of high-volume lithium slag cement composites

In this study, the fresh state and hydration properties of 0–60% lithium slag blended cement pastes were investigated at water-binder ratio of 0.47. The workability of the fresh pastes was evaluated by measuring the air content, marsh cone flow, mini-slump flow, setting times, and through rheology tests. A 40% lithium slag cement could produce 91% strength activity index at 28 days; mini-slump pat diameter of 70.54 mm; marsh cone flow efflux time of 145 s; air content 0.6%; hydration heat of 300 J/g (at 72 h). At replacement levels above 40%, the strength activity index, air content, mini-slump flow, hydration heat, and fluidity were significantly reduced. Experimental investigations confirm that the mini-slump test provides the best correlation coefficients (R2 = 0.96) with the maximum shear viscosity of lithium slag cement pastes than the marsh cone flow efflux time and air content. The classical slump and rheological models were used to characterise the mini-slump, yield stress, and plastic viscosity of low to high volume lithium slag cement pastes. The present study recommends that a 40% lithium slag cement paste is a viable option to produce green concrete for optimum fresh, hydration, rheological, and hardened properties.

Procedure for mix designing used for steel fibre reinforced self-compacting concrete

This work focuses on a methodical design process for developing self-compacting concrete (SFRSCC) using steel fibre reinforcements. The objective is to create a self-consolidating concrete that has the double advantage of self-consolidating characteristics and composite toughness. Experimental modelling involved building the mortar phase with manufactured sand (M-sand) as fine aggregate utilising a systematic mix design process based on the particle packing idea. Optimisation of aggregates was determined using the packing density idea and slump cone research. By conducting a paste consistency test, cement and ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) powder combinations were chosen. Finally, the amount of superplasticizer was determined based on Marsh cone experiments and the percentage by volume of steel fibres determined by slump flow research. The addition of steel fibre dosage impacts the workability of both standard and high strength concrete, and the fresh properties emphasised the necessity to maintain a large paste volume for increased workability. On the basis of the recommended mix design technique using M-sand, self-compacting concrete with a maximum strength of 70MPa was manufactured. On the other hand, experimental studies on the fresh and hardened properties of recommended self-compacting steel fibre concrete mixes were presented. In addition, test findings demonstrated the viability of employing M-sand as a replacement for river sand in its entirety.

Evaluation of cement grouted bituminous macadam technology: a laboratory study

ABSTRACT Cement Grouted Bituminous Macadam (CGBM) is a composite pavement that can offer sustainability in the pavement construction sector. The main objective of this study emphasises designing and evaluating the CGBM mixes prepared with different cementitious grouts and aggregate gradations. Compressive strength (7 and 28 days), Flexural strength (28 days), Marsh cone flow, and Initial and final setting time were considered for optimising the cementitious grouts. The details of several investigations on CGBM that include Marshall stability, Compressive strength, Indirect Tensile Strength (ITS), Resilient Modulus (Mr), Fracture energy, and Cantabro abrasion test were reported. The experimental results showed that sand and micro silica influence the mobility of grout to a greater extent. Percolation of grouts into Open Graded Friction Course (OGFC) mixes was a critical concern for grouts with flow time longer than 35 s. A reduction in the pore volume and reduced interconnected links in finer gradation resulted in improper full-depth penetration (FDP) characteristics. Mixture level tests for CGBM revealed that Mr of CGBM improved by about 6 times compared to the bituminous mix. In addition, CGBM showed high tensile strength with rapid crack propagation behaviour. Further, pavement design demonstrated a 35% of thickness reduction and cost reduction due to CGBM implementation.

An Experimental Investigation on Workability and Bleeding Behaviors of Cement Pastes Doped with Nano Titanium Oxide (n-TiO2) Nanoparticles and Fly Ash

In this study, the workability of cement-based grouts containing n-TiO2 nanoparticles and fly ash has been investigated experimentally. Several characteristic quantities (including, but not limited to, the marsh cone flow time, the mini slump spreading diameter and the plate cohesion meter value) have been measured for different percentages of these additives. The use of fly ash as a mineral additive has been found to result in improvements in terms of workability behavior as expected. Moreover, if nano titanium oxide is also used, an improvement can be obtained regarding the bleeding values for the cement-based grout mixes. Using such experimental data, a multi-layer perceptron artificial neural network model has been developed (5 neurons in the hidden layer of the network model have been developed using a total of 42 experimental data). 70% of the data employed in this model have been used for training, 15% for validation and 15% for the test phase. The results demonstrate that the arti- ficial neural network model can predict Marsh cone flow time, mini slump spreading diameter and plate cohesion meter values with an average error of 0.15%.

Investigation of the Effects of Fly Ash, Fine Sand and Expanded Perlite on the Properties on Foam Concrete

The relevance of concrete is growing in the modern world due to population growth and technological advancement. The necessity for specialty concrete arises from the various usage regions in the constructions. Foam concrete is one of the most useful varieties of special concrete because it offers insulation from heat and sound. The mechanical and physical properties of foam concrete are influenced by a variety of elements. The characteristics of foam concrete are substantially impacted by the mineral admixtures. The physical and mechanical impacts of fly ash (FA), fine sand, and expanded perlite (EP) admixtures on foam concrete were examined in this experimental investigation. On samples made from fly ash, sand, and expanded perlite, 15 various ratios of foam concrete mixtures were tested physically and mechanically (compressive strength, Marsh cone, ultrasonic pulse velocity, and thermal conductivity), as well as microstructurally (SEM). The foam concrete samples' compressive strength values were above 1.5 MPa, which is in compliance with TS 13655. According to the Marsh cone test, the flow duration of all the samples decreased as the weight of the fresh mortar increased. In all samples, the density increased along with the ultrasonic pulse velocity.

Compatibility of Ether-Based Poly-Carboxylate Superplasticizer with Mineral Admixtures Blended with OPC

The marsh cone test is a defined procedure to determine the quantitative fluidity of cement with mineral admixtures along with the saturation dosage and the efficiency of the superplasticizer (SP). In the present study, three mineral admixtures, micro-silica (MS), fly ash (FA), and ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) were used as cement replacement. Poly-carboxylate ether-based superplasticizer was used as a chemical admixture. Blends of cement and mineral admixtures with water/binder (w/b) ratios ranging from 0.40 to 0.60 at every interval of 0.05 were examined against the different dosages for SP. All the binder mixes reached a saturation dosage for SP, after which there is no change in the fluidity of the mix. The obtained dosage is considered the maximum amount of SP added to the concrete with the respective binder type. The replacement percentage of cement with mineral admixture also affected the fluidity of the binder mix. A decrease in the fluidity of binder mix was observed on increasing the amount of mineral admixture in it. At a higher w/b ratio, a significantly less SP dosage is required to attain saturation point and vice-versa. Based on the experimental investigation, it is concluded that the efficiency of SP depends on its dosage, the w/b ratio, the type and amount of mineral admixture.

A new approach for proportioning self-consolidating earth paste (SCEP) using the Taguchi method

Rammed earth (RE) construction is an ancient sustainable construction method, which offers various economic and environmental advantages such as the availability of local materials. However, RE construction is a very time-consuming and labor-intensive process due to the consolidation required to achieve the targeted performance. The use of self-consolidating earth concrete (SCEC) can facilitate casting and speed the construction process. However, developing SCEC is challenging due to the presence of clay in earth, which can significantly hinder flowability. Optimizing the paste matrix of SCEC, namely self-consolidating earth paste (SCEP), is essential for achieving targeted workability performance of SCEC. In this study, the Taguchi method was employed to evaluate the effect of various mixture parameters, including clay and admixture type, cement content, and water-to-powder (W/P) and cement-to-clay (Ce/Cl) ratios to proportion SCEP mixtures. These parameters form different binder compositions with various Atterberg limits and water contents to investigate the compatibility and efficiency of different admixture types on the workability and compressive strength of their corresponding SCEP mixtures. Adequate clay dispersion was achieved using sodium hexametaphosphate (NaHMP) whereas polycarboxylate ether (PCE) was only efficient on cement particles. Sodium silicate (NaSil) did not contribute to dispersion of single-powder systems, while sodium polynaphtalene (PNS) and non-esterified polycarboxylate (NE-PC) showed compatibility with both clay and cement particles. Signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) analyses revealed that lower cement content and higher W/P and Ce/Cl resulted in lower admixture demand for targeted workability and marsh cone test (MCT) values. Regarding 1-day compressive strength, to facilitate the demolding process, PNS, PCE and NaSil showed the highest efficiency. As concluded from the analysis of variance (ANOVA), clay and admixture type had the highest contribution on workability, while cement content and W/P were significant on compressive strength. Several theoretical models were also established to predict the workability of SCEP mixtures from Atterberg limits of the corresponding soil. Finally, a new SCEP proportioning approach was proposed based on the established models and compressive strength contours to be used for different earth types.

The Effects of Graphene Oxide-Silica Nano-Hybrid Materials on the Rheological Properties, Mechanical Properties, and Microstructure of Cement-Based Materials.

Despite their excellent performance, two-dimension nanomaterials have certain limitations in improving the performance of cement-based materials due to their poor dispersity in the alkaline environment. This paper has synthesized a new two-dimension stacked GO-SiO2 (GOS) hybrid through the sol-gel method. Nano-SiO2 is coated on the surface of GO with wrinkling characteristics, and the atomic ratio of C, O, and Si in GOS is 1:1.69:0.57. The paper discusses the impacts on the spreading, Marsh cone flow time, rheological properties, mechanical properties, and microstructure of cement-based materials for the GOS at different mixing quantities. Furthermore, with the same mixing quantity of 0.01%, the influences on the dispersity, flow properties, rheological parameters, and mechanical properties of GOS and graphene oxide (GO) are compared. Lastly, fuzzy matrix analysis has been adopted to analyze the comprehensive performance of cement-based materials containing GOS. The research results indicate that, compared with the reference sample, the spreading for the GOS cement mortar with 0.01% mixing quantity was reduced by 4.76%, the yield shear stress increased by 37.43%, and the equivalent plastic viscosity was elevated by 2.62%. In terms of the 28 d cement pastes, the compressive and flexural strength were boosted by 27.17% and 42.86%, respectively. According to the optical observation, GOS shows better dispersion stability in the saturated calcium hydroxide solution and simulated pore solution than GO. Compared with the cement-based materials with the same mixing quantity (0.01%), GOS has higher spreading, lower shear yield stress, and higher compressive and flexural strength than GO. Finally, according to the results of fuzzy matrix analysis, when the concentration of GOS is 0.01%, it presents a more excellent comprehensive performance with the highest score. Among the performance indicators, the most significant improvement was in the flexural properties of cement-based materials, which increased from 8.6 MPa to 12.3 MPa on the 28 d.

Fluidity of Cement Pastes with Admixtures and Super Plasticizer

The Marsh cone is a simple device for measuring viscosity by observing the time it takes for a known volume of liquid to flow from a cone through a short tube. It is standardized for use by mud engineers to check the quality of drilling mud. Other cones with different geometries and orifice arrangements are called flow cones, but have the same operating principle. The Marsh Cone (SS with Stand) is a simple device used for routine quick measurements of fluid viscosity. It’s a type of viscometer. It is an excellent indicator of changes in drilling fluid properties. The Marsh Funnel conical in shape - 152 mm in diameter at the top and 305 mm long with a capacity of 1,500 cm3. A 12- mesh screen covers half of the top and is designed to remove any foreign matter and drilled cuttings from the fluid. The fluid runs through a fixed orifice at the end of the funnel, which is 50mm long by 4.7 mm diameter in size

Developing Prediction Model on Workability Parameters of Ultrasonicated Nano Silica (n-SiO2) and Fly Ash Added Cement-Based Grouts by Using Artificial Neural Networks

Abstract In this experimental study, the workability and bleeding properties of cement-based grout mixes combined with fly ash (FA) and nano silica (n-SiO2) as colloidal nanopowder were investigated, and some prediction models were developed with the artificial neural network. The Marsh cone flow time, mini slump spreading diameter, and plate cohesion meter values of samples prepared in different concentrations have been measured and analyzed experimentally to investigate the workability properties. Moreover, bleeding tests were carried out on the grout mixtures prepared within the scope of this experimental study. Test results showed that the usage of FA as a mineral additive in the grout samples positively contributed to an increase on the fluidity of the grout samples as expected. Although the increase in n-SiO2 content in the grout mixes resulted in an increase in the Marsh cone flow time of the grout mixes, it resulted in a decrease in the mini slump spreading diameter of the samples. The increase in the plate cohesion values of the grout mixtures was also observed in the n-SiO2 added grout mixtures. At the same time, the bleeding values of the grout mixes with and without mineral additives of 0.9 % or more with n-SiO2 additives remained above 900 ml (below 10 % bleeding rate). The artificial neural network model can predict the workability properties of cement-based grouts containing n-SiO2 nanoparticle-doped FA with high accuracy.

A multilayer neural network approach on the effect of superplasticizer family on the flow behaviour of PPC paste

Strength, workability and durability of concrete are the major aspects that are considered in the construction field. In order to improve the fresh stage and hardened stage properties of concrete, chemical admixtures are added to concrete. The flow behaviour of cement paste will help in ensuring production of concrete with good workability. In this work experiment is carried out on the super plasticized Portland Pozzolana Cement (PPC) mix made using superplasticizer from four different family. Marsh cone flow time for PPC mix containing different percentage superplasticizer is determined experimentally and utilized for modelling.The Artificial Intelligence era is intervening to all engineering domain. In concrete technology the research orientation mostly directing towards the strength prediction, mixture design and crack pattern analysis. In this research multilayer neural network approach with backward propagation is used for predicting the flow behaviour of cement paste. These methods will enhance the model prediction accuracy than the simple regression analysis. Python environment with tensor flow approach is used here for developing the algorithm and for compiling Google co-lab were utilized. Multiple hidden layers used for developing the model. From the experimental studies 269 data were adopted. Cement content, water, superplasticizer amount (taken as the seven separate entities based on the family) were considered as input variables and flow time as out-put variable. The model predicted marsh cone time values reliably and it is statistically analyzed with root mean squared error value 5.3 %, mean absolute percentage error as 5.03, linear correlation coefficient as 0.99.

Utilization of waste glass powder as partial replacement of cement for the cementitious grouts with superplasticizer and viscosity modifying agent binary mixtures: Rheological and mechanical performances

The utilization of waste glass in cement-based grouting materials has attracted a lot of interests due to its ability of improving rheological properties and stability. The purport of this research was to investigate the feasibility of the grouts containing waste glass powder (WGP), superplasticizer (SP), and viscosity modifying agent (VMA). For all testing mixtures, the water to binder ratio was maintained at 0.5. The selected mixtures were used to evaluate properties of mini-slump, marsh cone flow time, thixotropy, bleeding capability, autogenous shrinkage, compressive strength, and flexural strength. The statistical analysis method was adopted to further assess the synergistic effect of WGP, SP, and VMA. The testing results indicated that the use of 15% WGP as cement replacement improved the mini-slump diameter, and marsh cone flow time, in the meantime, decreased yield stress and plastic viscosity. Moreover bleeding capacity and mechanical properties were enhanced simultaneously. The method of Decision Matrix Analysis (DMA) was carried out to comprehensively evaluate and analyze the effect of each component in the grouts, and the results shown that WGP had notably positive effects on the properties of grouts.

Silanization of SiO2 Decorated Carbon Nanosheets from Rice Husk Ash and Its Effect on Workability and Hydration of Cement Grouts.

Rice husk ash (RHA) having a porous sructure and a high amount of amorphous silica nanoparticles (4 nm) decorated on the surface of carbon nanosheets is a suitable and cheap candidate for the use of a grout additive. In this study, neat RHA and functionalized RHA (f-RHA) with three different loadings were successfully incorporated into the cement-bentonite based grouts by adjusting the water to cement ratio. The workability of the developed grouts having RHA-based additives was analyzed in terms of bleeding, density, flow spread, and Marsh cone time. Additionally, the thermal and prolongation of hydration performances of the cementitious grout were enriched by successful attachment of amino-silane functional groups on the RHA surface. The heat of hydration performances of RHA and functionalized RHA introduced cementitious grout composite were assessed by isothermal calorimetry tests, and especially the kinetics of hydration was increased by the addition of RHA. The presence of amino silane groups in f-RHA intensified the heat adsorption by reacting with cement constituents, and thus resulted in the retardation and reduction in the heat flow. Therefore, using an amino-silane coupling agent increased the induction period and hindered the heat of hydration compared to the reference grout. On the other hand, the incorporation of RHA and f-RHA into the cement matrix did not affect the thermal conductivity of the grouts.

Investigation on the effect of Colocasia esculenta extract on the fresh properties of cement paste

Currently, the overall concrete development comprises chemical admixtures to change their characteristics, either in their freshen or hardened state. But chemical admixtures may conceivably give off-gases into the indoor air in the buildings. As an alternative to chemical admixtures, admixtures of natural origin i.e., bio-admixtures have been studied by many researchers. This paper is an investigative study of plant extract from Colocasia esculenta on the fresh characteristics of the cement paste. The plant is of wild origin and unproductive to the human need was extracted. The fresh extract from the stem and the leaf part of the Colocasia plant were added in percentages of 1%, 2%, 3%, 4%, and 5% by weight of cement. The variation in the setting time of the cement paste was observed. The outcomes revealed a deduction in the setting time of the cement paste by an increment in the dose of the stem extract and the leaf extract, i.e., tends to decrease the initial setting period and increase the final setting period than the control sample. The workability of a cement paste is measured utilizing the marsh cone flow study and the mini-slump cone test. Both the extracts showed improvement in workability at a 0-minute retention period and thereafter loses their flowability over time due to the accelerating property of the stem extract and viscous nature of the leaf extract. Saturation point was not attained in marsh cone flow graph and hence have to lower the dosage applications.

Effects of packing density and water film thickness on fresh and hardened properties of ternary cement pastes

Optimisation of the packing density of cementitious materials by the addition of supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) is a way of obtaining the same service properties with less embodied energy and reduced carbon dioxide emissions. In this paper, ternary cement pastes containing metakaolin (MK) and limestone filler (LF) finer than ordinary Portland cement (OPC) were studied to evaluate the effects of these SCMs on packing density and water film thickness (WFT). The flowability of the pastes at different water to cementitious material ratios by volume ((w/cm)v = 0·5 to 1·0) was evaluated by mini-slump and Marsh cone tests to evaluate the opposite effects caused by the incorporation of finer particles (increase of free water to lubricate the particles due to higher packing and increase of specific surface area). The incorporation of LF and MK increased the flowability when (w/cm)v was increased over the optimum water demand corresponding to the maximum packing density. The rheological properties of the pastes were primarily dominated by the relative solid packing fraction and the flowability was found to be mainly governed by the WFT. The incorporation of finer particles accelerated the setting time. The reactive particles (OPC and MK) can be replaced by LF up to 20% to obtain a similar compressive strength, as validated by Powers’ model.

Rheological and workability effects of bottom ash usage as a mineral additive on the cement based permeation grouting method

This study presents the effects of rheological and fluidity features of cement based grouts incorporated with bottom ash (BA) as mineral additive on permeation grouting method. In this context, some experimental and analytical analyses were conducted and their results were presented. In terms of rheological and workability tests, the test program included 28 different mixtures having 0% (for control purposes), 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 25% and 30% bottom ash content and four water to binder ratios (w/b = 0.75, 1.00, 1.25 and 1.50). Plastic viscosity, apparent viscosity, and the yield stress of the mixtures based on rheological properties were measured for all mixtures. At the same time, marsh cone flow time, plate cohesion, and mini slump diameter in terms of workability features were obtained. In second part of this study, all rheological properties obtained from the mixtures were used for evaluating permeation grout method based on two analytical flow models (radial and spherical flow models). All test results showed that rheological parameters (especially plastic viscosity) and workability properties of the cement based grouts incorporated with BA are very important for determining of the permeation grouting design parameters such as injection pressure.