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Effect of Additives/Admixtures on the Properties of Concretes and Cementitious...
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Effect of Additives/Admixtures on the Properties of Concretes and Cementitious Composites

A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Construction and Building Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 September 2024 | Viewed by 2334

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Mengjun Chen

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Geotechnical and Structural Engineering Research Center, School of Qilu Transportation, Xinglong Mountain Campus, Shandong University, No. 12550, East Second Ring Road, Jinan 250002, China
Interests: low-carbon cementitious materials; functional admixtures for cement-based/solid waste-based materials; new materials for tunnelling and underground construction
Dr. Jiwen Bai

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor Assistant
Geotechnical and Structural Engineering Research Center, School of Civil Engineering, Civil Engineering Building, Qianfoshan Campus, Shandong University, No. 17923, Jingshi Road, Jinan 250061, China
Interests: development of grouting materials and the mechanism of reinforcement diffusion; investigation of cementitious materials derived from solid waste and their practical implementation

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In today's cement and concrete industry, chemical admixtures have become one of the essential components of cement-based materials. The addition of a certain amount of chemical admixture to cement concrete can improve the defects of the cementitious material itself or improve the performance of the cementitious material.

There is a wide range of chemical admixtures in cement concrete, such as water-reducing agents, retarders, early strength agents, accelerators, quick setting agents, air-entraining agents, etc. However, regardless of the admixture added to achieve a particular effect, the addition of admixture will affect the cement hydration process. With the high performance of cement and concrete and the wide application of various chemical admixtures and mineral admixtures, the systematic study of the effect of various admixtures on cement hydration is of great theoretical and engineering significance in terms of understanding the interaction between different chemical admixtures and cement and regulating the hydration process of cement.

This Special Issue will bring together the latest developments in the field of concrete admixtures. Articles in this Special Issue will cover a variety of topics including, but not limited to, the preparation of new concrete admixtures, alkali-activated material admixtures, and high-performance composite admixtures.

Dr. Mengjun Chen
Dr. Jiwen Bai
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Materials is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • concrete admixtures
  • chemical admixture
  • cement hydration
  • cementitious materials
  • solid waste utilization
  • property modulation

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

34 pages, 3848 KiB  
Article
Study on Static Mechanical Properties and Numerical Simulation of Coral Aggregate Seawater Shotcrete with Reasonable Mix Proportion
by Yuxuan Peng, Liyuan Yu, Wei Li, Tao Zhang, Linjian Ma, Dongyang Wu, Changan Wu and Linjie Zhou
Materials 2024, 17(10), 2353; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma17102353 - 15 May 2024
Viewed by 100
Abstract
This study aims to explore the static mechanical characteristics of coral aggregate seawater shotcrete (CASS) using an appropriate mix proportion. The orthogonal experiments consisting of four-factor and three-level were conducted to explore an optimal mix proportion of CASS. On a macro-scale, quasi-static compression [...] Read more.
This study aims to explore the static mechanical characteristics of coral aggregate seawater shotcrete (CASS) using an appropriate mix proportion. The orthogonal experiments consisting of four-factor and three-level were conducted to explore an optimal mix proportion of CASS. On a macro-scale, quasi-static compression and splitting tests of CASS with optimal mix proportion at various curing ages employed a combination of acoustic emission (AE) and digital image correlation (DIC) techniques were carried out using an electro-hydraulic servo-controlled test machine. A comparative analysis of static mechanical properties at different curing ages was conducted between the CASS and ordinary aggregate seawater shotcrete (OASS). On a micro-scale, the numerical specimens based on particle flow code (PFC) were subjected to multi-level microcracks division for quantitive analysis of the failure mechanism of specimens. The results show that the optimal mix proportion of CASS consists of 700 kg/m3 of cementitious materials content, a water–binder ratio of 0.45, a sand ratio of 60%, and a dosage of 8% for the accelerator amount. The tensile failure is the primary failure mechanism under uniaxial compression and Brazilian splitting, and the specimens will be closer to the brittle material with increased curing age. The Brazilian splitting failure caused by the arc-shaped main crack initiates from the loading points and propagates along the loading line to the center. Compared with OASS, the CASS has an approximately equal early and low later strength mainly because of the minerals’ filling or unfilling effect on coral pores. The rate of increase in CASS is swifter during the initial strength phase and decelerates during the subsequent stages of strength development. The failure in CASS is experienced primarily within the cement mortar and bonding surface between the cement mortar and aggregate. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effect of Additives/Admixtures on the Properties of Concretes and Cementitious Composites)
21 pages, 39666 KiB  
Article
The Influence of the Addition of Basalt Powder on the Properties of Foamed Geopolymers
by Michał Łach, Barbara Kozub, Sebastian Bednarz, Agnieszka Bąk, Mykola Melnychuk and Adam Masłoń
Materials 2024, 17(10), 2336; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma17102336 - 14 May 2024
Viewed by 147
Abstract
Geopolymers are binder materials that are produced by a chemical reaction between silica or aluminum compounds with an alkaline activating solution. Foamed geopolymer materials are increasingly being cited as a viable alternative to popular organic insulation materials. Since the foaming process of geopolymers [...] Read more.
Geopolymers are binder materials that are produced by a chemical reaction between silica or aluminum compounds with an alkaline activating solution. Foamed geopolymer materials are increasingly being cited as a viable alternative to popular organic insulation materials. Since the foaming process of geopolymers is difficult to control, and any achievements in improving the performance of such materials are extremely beneficial, this paper presents the effect of the addition of basalt powder on the properties of foamed geopolymers. This paper presents the results of physicochemical studies of fly ash and basalt, as well as mechanical properties, thermal properties, and structure analysis of the finished foams. The scope of the tests included density tests, compressive strength tests, tests of the thermal conductivity coefficient using a plating apparatus, as well as microstructure tests through observations using light and scanning microscopy. Ground basalt was introduced in amounts ranging from 0 to 20% by mass. It was observed that the addition of basalt powder contributes to a reduction in and spheroidization of pores, which directly affect the density and pore morphology of the materials tested. The highest density of 357.3 kg/m3 was characterized by samples with a 5 wt.% basalt powder addition. Their density was 14% higher than the reference sample without basalt powder addition. Samples with 20 wt.% basalt addition had the lowest density, and the density averaged 307.4 kg/m3. Additionally, for the sample containing 5 wt.% basalt powder, the compressive strength exceeded 1.4 MPa, and the thermal conductivity coefficient was 0.1108 W/m × K. The effect of basalt powder in geopolymer foams can vary depending on many factors, such as its chemical composition, grain size, content, and physical properties. The addition of basalt above 10% causes a decrease in the significant properties of the geopolymer. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effect of Additives/Admixtures on the Properties of Concretes and Cementitious Composites)
24 pages, 10851 KiB  
Article
Influence of TiO2 Nanoparticles on the Physical, Mechanical, and Structural Characteristics of Cementitious Composites with Recycled Aggregates
by Carmen Teodora Florean, Horațiu Vermeșan, Timea Gabor, Bogdan Viorel Neamțu, Gyorgy Thalmaier, Andreea Hegyi, Alexandra Csapai and Adrian-Victor Lăzărescu
Materials 2024, 17(9), 2014; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma17092014 - 25 Apr 2024
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Abstract
The aim of this study is to analyze the effect of the addition of TiO2 nanoparticles (NTs) on the physical and mechanical properties, as well as the microstructural changes, of cementitious composites containing partially substituted natural aggregates (NAs) with aggregates derived from [...] Read more.
The aim of this study is to analyze the effect of the addition of TiO2 nanoparticles (NTs) on the physical and mechanical properties, as well as the microstructural changes, of cementitious composites containing partially substituted natural aggregates (NAs) with aggregates derived from the following four recycled materials: glass (RGA), brick (RGB), blast-furnace slag (GBA), and recycled textolite waste with WEEE (waste from electrical and electronic equipment) as the primary source (RTA), in line with sustainable construction practices. The research methodology included the following phases: selection and characterization of raw materials, formulation design, experimental preparation and testing of specimens using standardized methods specific to cementitious composite mortars (including determination of apparent density in the hardened state, mechanical strength in compression, flexure, and abrasion, and water absorption by capillarity), and structural analysis using specialized techniques (scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS)). The analysis and interpretation of the results focused primarily on identifying the effects of NT addition on the composites. Results show a decrease in density resulting from replacing NAs with recycled aggregates, particularly in the case of RGB and RTA. Conversely, the introduction of TiO2 nanoparticles resulted in a slight increase in density, ranging from 0.2% for RTA to 7.4% for samples containing NAs. Additionally, the introduction of TiO2 contributes to improved compressive strength, especially in samples containing RTA, while flexural strength benefits from a 3–4% TiO2 addition in all composites. The compressive strength ranged from 35.19 to 70.13 N/mm2, while the flexural strength ranged from 8.4 to 10.47 N/mm2. The abrasion loss varied between 2.4% and 5.71%, and the water absorption coefficient varied between 0.03 and 0.37 kg/m2m0.5, the variations being influenced by both the nature of the aggregates and the amount of NTs added. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) analysis showed that TiO2 nanoparticles are uniformly distributed in the cementitious composites, mainly forming CSH gel. TiO2 nanoparticles act as nucleating agents during early hydration, as confirmed by EDS spectra after curing. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effect of Additives/Admixtures on the Properties of Concretes and Cementitious Composites)
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11 pages, 4780 KiB  
Article
Experimental Study of the Moisture Resistance of Cement Mortar Using Pozzolan Materials and Calcium Stearate
by Jang Hyun Park and Chang Bok Yoon
Materials 2024, 17(5), 1014; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma17051014 - 22 Feb 2024
Viewed by 674
Abstract
Nanosilica and diatomite are pozzolanic resources rich in SiO2. In this study, the purpose of this study was to improve the moisture resistance of the specimen by producing a mixed material using pozzolanic materials and calcium stearate and adding it to [...] Read more.
Nanosilica and diatomite are pozzolanic resources rich in SiO2. In this study, the purpose of this study was to improve the moisture resistance of the specimen by producing a mixed material using pozzolanic materials and calcium stearate and adding it to cement mortar while stirring. The results showed that the hydration reaction was not activated when calcium stearate adhered to the fine particles of nanosilica; it existed simply in the form of a filler inside the specimen. Diatomite, due to its atypical particles and porosity, may have greater water tightness than nanosilica because of the pozzolanic reaction in particles to which calcium stearate is not attached. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effect of Additives/Admixtures on the Properties of Concretes and Cementitious Composites)
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19 pages, 5067 KiB  
Article
Analysis of Durability of Watertight Concretes Modified with the Addition of Fly Ash
by Janina Adamus and Bogdan Langier
Materials 2023, 16(17), 5742; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16175742 - 22 Aug 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 702
Abstract
The growing demand for watertight concrete structures is conducive to the development of research in this area, but their results are rarely published. In order to partially fill this gap, the authors of the publication present the results of research into the effect [...] Read more.
The growing demand for watertight concrete structures is conducive to the development of research in this area, but their results are rarely published. In order to partially fill this gap, the authors of the publication present the results of research into the effect of fly ash addition on the watertightness of concrete. Prior to the tests, a recipe for a concrete mix with the addition of a sealing admixture modified with fly ash was developed. The following properties were analyzed: consistency of the concrete mix, air content in the concrete mix, compressive strength of concrete, depth of penetration of water under pressure, and frost resistance of concrete for F150 level. The work meets the expectations of the construction industry with respect to the production of concrete structures resistant not only to the penetration of water into concrete but also resistant to aggressive substances dissolved in water that accelerate the destruction of concrete and corrosion of reinforcement bars. Based on the test results, it was found that the addition of fly ash to the concrete mix enhances the positive impact of the applied sealing admixture, increasing the tightness of the concrete. It reduces the depth of penetration of water under pressure and therefore increases the frost resistance of concrete. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effect of Additives/Admixtures on the Properties of Concretes and Cementitious Composites)
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