Ternary Blended Cement Research Articles

Beneficial Effect of Incorporation of Slag on the Hydration Heat, Mechanical Properties and Durability of Cement Containing Limestone Powder

This paper presents the experimental results of a wide research program, tending to determine the hydration mechanism, mechanical properties and the durability performance of ternary cement containing limestone powder and slag. The limestone powder increase the hydration at early ages inducing a high strength at, but it can reduce the later strength due to the dilution effect. On the other hands, Slag (S) contributes to increase the compressive strength at later ages. Hence, at medium blended cement (OPC-LP-S) with better performance could be produced. Results show at later age the Slag is very effective in producing ternary blended cements with similar on higher compressive strength than the ordinary Portland cement at 28 and 90 days. For durability, the incorporation of the slag into the cement containing limestone powder improves remarkably resistance to attack by acids and sulfates and it has been found that the durability of the cements never depends on the mechanical strength.

The Synergic Effect of Fly Ash and High Reactivity Attapulgite in Ternary Blended Cement

The main objective is to study the synergic effect of fly ash (FA) and high reactivity Attapulgite (HRA) together in ternary blended cement of (OPC+FA+HRA) and evaluate the efficiency factor of FA and HRA in binary blended cement and (FA+HRA) in ternary blended cement. To achieve this objective compressive strength of binary blended cement mixes of (OPC+FA) with FA replacement percentages of (20 %, 30% and 40%), (OPC+HRA) with HRA replacement percentages of (5 and 10%) by weight of cement and ternary blended cement mixes of (OPC+FA+5% and/or 10%HRA). Were tested and compared with that of reference mix at ages of (7, 28, 56 and 90) days to assess the synergic effect of FA and HRA in ternary blended cement. The results showed that using ternary blended cement of (OPC+FA+5% and/or 10%HRA) led to increasing compressive strength relative to binary blended cement mixes of (OPC+FA) at the same replacement percentages by weight of cement. More significant increments in compressive strength were noticed at the age of 7 days. The results also showed that the efficiency factors calculated according to the modified bolmoy΄s equation for ternary blended cement were always higher than their corresponding binary blended cement of (OPC+.FA).
 Keywords: Fly ash, High reactivity Attapulgite, Binary blended cement, Ternary blended cement

Enhancing the Strength Properties of High-Performance Concrete Using Ternary Blended Cement: OPC, Nano-Silica, Bagasse Ash

This study determined the strength properties of high-performance concrete (HPC) produced using ternary blended cement, based on Nano-silica (NS) and bagasse ash (BA) addition to Portland cement. Several mix proportions, based on random mix design, were considered based on the substitution of constituent materials. Fine aggregate was comprised of 60% river sand and 40% recycled aggregate (RA), coarse aggregate used was crushed rock for the development of M50, M60 and M70 grades of concrete. The replacement of cement by BA causes slowdown initial strength development, but increased the setting time of concrete. In order to improve the performance of HPC at early stage, NS was considered as third admixture for developing ternary binder blend in the concrete. The effect of NS and BA on fresh and hardened HPC were investigated and presented. The results indicated that the incorporation of NS reduced setting time and increased the early age strength development significantly. Thus, it was concluded that the addition of NS with mean particle size of 12 nm is suitable as an additional binder for improving the early age performance of HPC.

Early age, hydration, mechanical and microstructure properties of nano-silica blended cementitious composites

This study was carried out to understand the influence of nano-silica on hydration properties of binary, ternary and quaternary blended cement paste and mortar containing micro to nano sized admixtures including fly ash (FA), ultrafine fly ash (UFFA) and nano-silica in colloidal form (CNS). Characterization methods such as thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), X-ray diffraction studies (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX) was employed to quantify the hydration products. Further, early age and mechanical properties were also investigated for binary, ternary and quaternary cementitious system blended with nano-silica. The optimized proportions of blended paste and mortar are designed through modified Andreasen and Andersen particle packing model.The experimental test results revealed that the optimum dosage of CNS in binary blended cement composites is 3%. The presence of nano-silica in cementitious system amplified the hydration and pozzolanic activity, thereby promoting densified microstructure at nano scale. The flow test indicated the intensified demand for water absorption and reduced workability with the rise in level of incorporation of CNS particles in cement paste. Quaternary blended mix performed superior hydration along with strength properties amongst all the blended samples.

Synergistic effect of dry sludge from waste wash water of concrete plants and zeolitic by-product on the properties of ternary blended ordinary Portland cements

Abstract This paper analyses the use of two types of supplementary cementing materials, – dry sludge from waste wash water of concrete plants and zeolitic by-product – for producing hardened cement paste specimens. X-ray powder diffraction, scanning electronic microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and thermal analysis were used as investigation methods. Test results showed that the addition of dry sludge reduced the compressive strength of hardened cement paste at both 7 and 28 days. In hardened cement paste specimens where Portland cement was substituted with 5 %–30% of dry sludge the compressive strength decreased significantly after 7 and 28 at days. After 28 days blended Portland cement containing up to 10% of supplementary cementing materials ((SCM) - dry sludge and zeolitic by-product) demonstrated higher compressive strength than the reference specimen as a result of synergistic interactions, whereas higher replacement levels led to reduction in compressive strength.

Microstructure Evolution in Ordinary Portland Cement–Metakaolin–Red Mud-Based Ternary Blended Cement

The microstructure plays a vital role in governing the physical, chemical and strength properties of cement. Hence, microstructure analysis has been carried out by replacing 0% to 14% of the mass of ordinary Portland cement with metakaolin and red mud of different ratios. Studies have also been carried out to understand the effect of blending on the pH of cement paste and its influence on the setting time. The normal consistency of cement and red mud mix is found to be proportional to the percentage of replaced red mud and is attributed to the presence of finer particles in red mud. The cement paste without any addition has the lowest water requirement (28.5%) compared to the cement with metakaolin and red mud. The study shows that the strength of OPC having 80:20 MK:RM blend is high and is attributed to the pozzolanic reaction of MK and the RM particles which imparts filler effects to the concrete.

Valorization of demolition ceramic wastes and lignite bottom ash for the production of ternary blended cements

The present investigation aims to the utilization of demolition ceramic wastes (DCW) and coal bottom ash, derived from lignite combustion in power plants (LBA), for the development of ternary blended cements. The wastes under investigation were initially characterized by chemical analysis, X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric/differential thermal analysis (TG/DTA) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). After their grinding to a specific surface area of about 4000 cm2/g, various cement mixtures were prepared substituting Portland cement up to 20%. The physico-mechanical properties of the produced blended cements were examined by means of standard consistency, initial and final setting times, soundness and compressive strength, after curing at 2, 7, 28, and 90 days. The hydration evolution study was accomplished using X-ray diffraction and TG/DTG analyses at various ages. The results showed that both DCW and LBA could be valorized for the production of ternary blended cements, thus presenting significant environmental benefits in waste management practice.

Prediction of Loss on Ignition of Ternary Cement Containing Coal Bottom Ash and Limestone Using Central Composite Design

The effect of CBA/CBA-L ratio and the cement replacement on the Loss on ignition (LOI) of ternary cement blends was investigated using central composite design approach in the prediction of LOI of ternary cement blend comprising of Ordinary Portland cement, coal bottom ash and Limestone. LOI is an essential technique employed in the determination of the quality of the cement blend which can be achieved by heating a sample strongly at a specified temperature to enable release of volatile components until the weight remains constant. In this study, monitoring of the LOI of the various cement blends conducted dependent on cement replacement and coal bottom ash to coal bottom ash-limestone ratio (CBA/CBA-L ratio) via thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analysis. The CBA/CBA-L ratio was varied from 0.25-0.75 while the cement replacement ranges from 20-40%. The significance of these factors within the specified ranges considered was evaluated using analysis of variance. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of CBA/CBA-L ratio and cement replacement in the prediction of LOI for ternary cement blends by employing Face Central Composite Design. Analysis of variance results indicated that the LOI prediction via XRF analysis was better than that of TG analyses in which both satisfied Two-Level Factorial model. It was observed from the predictive models that the LOI of the ternary cement decreased as the CBA/CBA-L ratio was increased while LOI of the ternary cement blend increased as the cement replacement was increased. An increase in both CBA/CBA-L ratio and cement replacement resulted in a decrease in the LOI of ternary cement. The cement replacement level of the ternary cement blends indicated a stronger influence on LOI compared to the CBA/CBA-L ratio which was indicated by a significantly high F value for cement replacement compared to CBA/CBA-L ratio. The LOI results from XRF analysis were also found to significantly predict the LOI of the ternary cement blend compared to TGA with Regression value of 99.96% against 97.36% respectively. The CBA/CBA-L ratio and cement replacement were found to have a significant and interactive effect on the LOI of ternary cement blend for both XRF and TGA analyses.

Pore structure of concrete containing ternary cementitious blends

This paper presents the experimental work results of tested samples of nine concrete mixtures. The mixtures prepared with water to cementitious blends ratio of 0.4, 0.5 and 0.6. The mixtures include Portland cement, fly ash, and silica fume as ternary system of cementitious blends. The measured properties of concrete comprise air content, slump, and unit weight for the fresh state while the measured properties for the hardened concrete include compressive and tensile strengths, static and dynamic young’s moduli’s and pulse velocity. The pore structure attributes of concrete which involve, total pore volume, total pore surface area, average pore diameter and distributions of pore size were studied. The pore structure of studied mixtures investigated using Mercury Intrusion Porosimetry (MIP). The obtained results indicate that incorporating cementitious blends as ternary systems generally show significant improvement in various studies properties of concrete. Furthermore, the results indicate that pore structure characteristics and the distributions of the pore size are changed by used cementitious materials as well as water to cementitious blends ratio.

Probability of failure of RCA concrete with ternary blended cements

The paper presents the results of an investigation carried out to examine the flexural fatigue strength and failure probability of concrete made with 50% Coarse Recycled Concrete Aggregates (RCA) and ternary blended cements using Silica Fume (SF) and Metakaolin (MK). A control mix containing 100% Coarse Natural Aggregates (NA) was also tested for comparing the flexural fatigue results. A total of 128 concrete beam specimens were tested under flexural fatigue using 100 kN MTS Servo-controlled actuator under four-point flexural fatigue loads applied at frequency of 10 Hz. The material coefficients of various fatigue test models have been calculated to predict the flexural fatigue strength of different concrete mixes. The S-N-Pf curves have been generated for all the concrete mixes using the experimental fatigue data at various probabilities of failure. Two million cycles endurance limit has also been calculated for all the concrete mixes to assess the flexural fatigue strength of concrete made with 50% RCA. A minute decrease occurs in the endurance limit of concrete made with 50% RCA (i.e. 56% of average static flexural strength) with respect to the control concrete (i.e. 58%). Whereas, the endurance limits of 66% and 68% have been observed for the concretes made with 50% RCA with SF and 50% RCA with MK respectively. Therefore, the use of SF and MK has been found to enhance the flexural fatigue performance of concrete made with RCA.

Linking air-void system and mechanical properties to salt-scaling resistance of concrete containing slag cement

This paper is focused on correlating salt-scaling resistance to material performance of concrete made with various water-to-cement ratios (w/cm), ternary blends of slag cement and fly ash, and air contents. The fly ash incorporation was kept constant at 20% cement content replacement for all mixes. The material performance of the mixtures was evaluated using air-void system, sorptivity, abrasion, compressive strength, and depth-sensing indentation (DSI) tests.Test results show that effect of concrete properties, i.e., sorptivity, surface hardness, and air content on salt scaling resistance of concrete is relative to mixture proportion. For a w/cm of 0.55 the average total salt scaling after 45 F-T cycles was found about 80% higher than that of mixes made with w/cm of 0.35. The results associated with mixtures made with slag cement were found misleading, since they exhibited improved mechanical properties, while lowered salt-scaling resistance. In addition, 3–6% of air entrainment appeared beneficial for concrete mixtures made with w/cm of 0.55, when subjected to high potential salt scaling environments.

Mechanical, fracture and durability properties of self-compacting high strength concrete containing recycled polypropylene plastic particles

This study focuses on the mechanical, fracture and durability characteristics of self-compacting high-strength concrete (SCHSC) containing recycled polypropylene plastic particles (RPPP) with and without silica fume (SF). The designation of the two different sets of SCHSC containing plastic particles were used on the basis of a constant water–cementitious substance (w/cm) ratio of 0.32 and a total cementitious materials content of 550 kg/m3. The first set of mixtures included binary cementitious blends of 20% fly ash (FA) and 80% Portland cement (PC). However, the second series of the mixtures incorporated ternary cementitious blends of 20% FA, 10% SF and 70% PC. To produce the concretes, medium size aggregate was replaced with RPPP at five designated percentages of 0%, 10%, 20%, 30% and 40% by volume in both sets of concretes. Totally, 10 mixtures were produced and tested for mechanical, fracture and durability properties such as elastic modulus, compressive and splitting tensile strength, flexural strength, sorptivity, chloride ion permeability, gas permeability and fracture energy. The tests were carried out 28 and 90 days after casting. The test results showed that the use of RPPP significantly improved the fracture and ductility properties, whereas aggravated other measured properties of SCHSCs. However, with the addition of SF all mechanical and durability characteristics remarkably enhanced. The results also demonstrated that SCHSC with compressive strength higher than 70 MPa at 90 days was produced by using RPPP content up to 40% replacement level by total medium aggregate volume, and 10% SF.

Compressive Strength and Elastic Modulus of Concretes with Fly Ash and Slag

This paper presents the evolution of compressive strength and the modulus of elasticity of concretes with binary and ternary blends of ordinary Portland cement, fly ash and ground granulated blast-furnace slag (GGBS or slag). The study involved 54 concrete mixes with water–binder ratio (w/b) varying from 0.50 to 0.65 and the total binder content varying from 280 to 340 kg/m3. The influence of w/b, type of binder and exposure period (or age) have been assessed. It is seen that the incorporation of slag contributes to both short- and long-term strength, whereas fly ash requires comparatively longer time to contribute to the compressive strength. The relationship between compressive strength and age and between the modulus of elasticity and compressive strength has been discussed.

Ternary blended cement: An eco-friendly alternative to improve resistivity of high-performance self-consolidating concrete against elevated temperature

The unique fresh and hardened properties of high-performance self-consolidating concrete (HPSCC) led to an extensive application of this mixture in high-rise buildings. In this paper, the elevated temperature resistivity of 19 HPSCC mixtures incorporating binary and ternary blends of fly ash, silica fume, natural zeolite, and metakaolin was investigated. Changes in mass, compressive strength and ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) of the mixtures were measured at different temperatures (20, 300, 500, and 700 °C). A life cycle assessment (LCA) was also employed to explore the environmental performance of the mixtures. The test results revealed that in ambient temperature, ternary mixtures incorporating natural zeolite and fly ash or natural zeolite and metakaolin have lower compressive strength than that of the control mixture. The residual compressive strengths of fly ash-silica fume-incorporated mixture was similar to those in binary mixtures. The UPV test results revealed a larger than 50% reduction in transition velocity when the temperature was above 500 °C, and there is a strong association between the UPV and compressive strength test results of the mixtures at different temperatures, but the correlation decreased inversely proportional to the exposure temperature. Among the ternary mixtures, those mixtures that incorporate natural zeolite indicate the most significant mass loss after exposing to elevated temperature. The environmental results indicate that the substitution of pozzolanic materials with Portland cement may not always be beneficial. The ecosystem quality results of binary fly ash mixtures were larger than the control mixture due to the extensive transportation distance of import. In addition, metakaolin binary mixture exposes larger damage to the resources. Silica fume-incorporated mixtures had significant damage to human health. The ternary blended mixtures can be a remedy to obtain the optimized fire-resistant results and to compensate the environmental burdens of the inferior pozzolan in all the damage categories.

Prediction of the durability performance of ternary cement containing limestone powder and ground granulated blast furnace slag

Abstract This study highlights the influence of the combination of limestone powder (LP) and Ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) on the mechanical properties and durability performance of ternary blended cement. Mortars samples have been subjected to flexural and compressive tests and to 1% HCl, 3% H2SO4, 5% Na2SO4 and 5% MgSO4 attacks. The obtained results show that the incorporation of GGBFS in the cement containing LP is very useful to the sulfate and acid resistances. An empirical equation is proposed to predict the durability performance for ternary cement preserved in sulfate and acid solution taking into account the compressive strength. The comparison between the experimental results and those calculated by the proposed equation shows a good agreement in the estimation of the durability performance of ternary cement.

The engineering performance of concrete containing high volume of ground granulated blast furnace slag and pulverized fly ash with polycarboxylate-based superplasticizer

This experimental investigation was conducted to study the development of ternary blended concrete that containing high cement replacement level of ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) and pulverised fly ash (PFA) with the polycarboxylate-based superplasticizer (PCE). In order to make this GGBS-PFA ternary blended cement system at high cement replacement level suitable for practical production, measures need to be developed to enable acceptable early strength development for concrete produced using the materials to be achieved. An optimum combination ratio of GGBS and PFA in ternary blended cement system was prior determined in this study for consistent production control. Besides, an optimum dosage of M-PEG type PCE was determined by using marsh funnel test as well for the compatible use in this GGBS-PFA ternary blended cement system. Experimental results indicated that the optimum ratio for GGBS and PFA was 4:1 at 50% cement replacement level by total binder’s weight while the optimum dosage of PCE was 1.0% by total binder’s weight in this ternary blended cement system. Mechanical properties such as flexural and compressive strengths and UPV were then examined on hardened concretes at 7, 28, 56 and 90 days. In addition, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) techniques combined with Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) had been performed for better understanding the phase changes and microstructures development of maturing GGBS-PFA ternary blended cement system. In this study, the GGBS-PFA ternary blended concrete with 60% cement replacement achieved the optimum performance with the inclusion of 1.0% of PCE superplasticizer by total binder’s weight.

An approach to study the inter-relationship between mechanical and durability properties of ternary blended cement concrete using linear regression analysis.

This paper deals with the experiments conducted to study the effect of copper slag, GGBFS (Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag), metakaolin on the properties of concrete. While GGBFS and metakaolin are used as partial substitutes for cement, copper slag is used as a partial substitute for fine aggregate. This study investigates the mechanical strength of the concrete in terms of compressive strength, flexural strength, split tensile strength, bond strength and durability performance such as water absorption, porosity and sorptivity. In addition the effect of cement and fine aggregate substitution on the microstructure of concrete is also discussed. The results indicated improved strength properties with decreased cost consumption leading to greater efficiency and reduced river sand consumption as an additional benefit.

Study on strength and durability characteristics of lime sludge based blended cement concrete

The present investigation is focused on developing ternary blended cement concrete mix of different grades 30 MPa, 50 MPa and 70 MPa containing fly ash, silica fume and lime sludge in different proportions. The optimum content of these materials was obtained after several trails. Mechanical properties such as compressive, flexural and split tensile strength of ternary blended cement concrete were determined and compared with the control mix (without any supplementary cementitious material). The chemical resistance of ternary blended cement concrete was also studied by exposing it to acids HCl and H2SO4 at 5% concentration. Acid mass loss factors (AMLF), acid strength loss factor (ASLF) and acid durability factor were determined, and the results were compared with control mix. Short term chloride ions penetration was also investigated like rapid chlorination penetration test and accelerated corrosion penetration test on control mix and ternary blended cement concrete. The results indicated that there is a significant improvement in the mechanical properties, shown better resistance in an acid environment and chloride ion penetration.

Properties of nanosilica-reinforced green architectural cement composites incorporating ground granulated blast furnace slag with low activity

The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of combination of ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) with low pozzolanic activity index and nanosilica as a highly reactive pozzolan on different properties of cement mortar applicable for architectural purposes. The properties studied include mechanical performances (in terms of compressive and flexural strengths), durability (by electrical resistivity, water absorption, and chloride penetration tests), and microstructural characteristics (through thermogravimetric analysis, X-ray diffraction test, and scanning electron microscopy). The results revealed that the addition of nanosilica could compensate for mechanical strength and durability losses brought about through the utilization of GGBFS with low pozzolanic performance. Considering compressive and flexural strengths, the optimal percentage of nanosilica was 1%; however, the employment of 2% nanosilica performed more efficient concerning durability characteristics. Moreover, synergistic effect of the application of ternary cementitious blends of low pozzolanic activity GGBFS and nanosilica was noticed in the results of compression, electrical resistivity, and rapid chloride penetration tests.

Comparison of fluidity of cement paste incorporating mineral admixtures with polycarboxylate superplasticizers

In this study, the effects of five commercially available polycarboxylate superplasticizers (PCEs), which are WP30/RM, SR/RM, ACE 8109, SKY 8705 and MG 8728 on ternary blended cement system have been studied based on the marsh cone test. Results are presented for cement pastes with Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBS) and Pulverised Fuel Ash (PFA) as mineral admixtures. The ratio of GGBS and PFA was fixed at 4:1 according to the optimization. The water to binder ratio was fixed at 0.30. It was observed that the behaviour of polycarboxylate superplasticizers varies from one brand to another even though their chemical family are same. By using marsh cone test, the properties of those commercial polycarboxylate superplasticizers have been compared and the optimum dosages of certain polycarboxylate superplasticizers were defined as well. Based on the result, WP30/RM possesses the best fluidity performance compared to others with the solid content of 53%.