Evaluating cement hydration by non-conventional DTA; An Application to Waste Solidification

This paper presents a method to study cement hydration at ambient temperatures by using a micro processed non-conventional differential thermal analysis (DTA) system, which was used to evaluate the solidification/stabilization process of tannery wastes produced in the leather industry. The DTA curves of pastes composed by slag cement, Wyoming bentonite and waste are obtained in real time and used to analyze the heat effects of the reactions during the first 24 h of hydration. By applying a deconvolution method to separate the overlapped DTA peaks, the energy released in the several hydration stages may be estimated and consequently, the effects of each component on the solidification process. The highest separated DTA peak occurs during the several early stages of cement hydration and is due mainly to tricalcium silicate hydration. Very good correlation shows that the greater is the waste content in the paste composition, the higher is its effect on the rates of reactions occurring during the induction (dormant) period of cement hydration. The presence of bentonite used as a solidification additive in the stabilization process has a similar but less dramatic effect on the dormant period. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

A Study on the Hydration of Portland Limestone Cement by Means of TG

Subject of this paper is to investigate the hydration process of Portland limestone cement containing 10-35% limestone. Cements, produced by co-grinding of clinker, limestone and gypsum, were hydrated for periods 6 h to 28 d and were studied by means of TG and XRD. The Ca(OH)₂ content of the cements containing limestone is higher than in pure cements, specifically for 10% limestone content and ages more than 1 day. These results are in accordance with the strength development of the studied cements. In earlier ages the Ca(OH)₂ content is slightly lower in the limestone cements and independent of the limestone content. After 1 day curing, the increase of limestone addition causes a relative increase of the non evaporable water. The XRD patterns indicated the presence of carboaluminates in the hydrated limestone cements. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Hydration of Cement Slurry in The Presence of Spent Cracking Catalyst

The physicochemical properties of spent fluidized bed cracking catalyst and its influence on hydration process of cement slurry were studied. The samples were cement slurries prepared with water/solid=0.5 and additions of used catalyst amounted to 0, 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25%with resp. to the solid. After definite time they were subjected to thermogravimetric analysis (TG, DTG, DTA) and, in order to determine the progress of reaction with water, the heat of hydration was measured by means of isotherm calorimetry. The studies disclosed that the spent cracking catalyst is not merely an inactive filler in cement slurries, but it modifies the course of the hydration process. The spent catalyst is a pozzolana additive and its presence leads to a decrease of calcium hydroxide contents in the system. The spent catalyst affect on the heat of cement hydration. Small amounts additive accelerate the process of binding. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Hydration studies of modified OPC pastes by differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetry

Thermal methods are used extensively in investigating cements and effects of additives on their hydration behaviour. Calcium chloride is the most effective and widely used accelerator for cement hydration, but the result is largely dependent on the rate at which it is added. In this study the influence of calcium chloride dosage on the hydration behaviour of OPC pastes aged for different periods has been investigated by means of differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetry (TG) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) methods. The results are discussed in relation to the relative amounts of calcium hydroxide and total reaction product formed. Chloroaluminate was a product of hydration in the samples dosed with greater than 1% calcium chloride. XRD was unable of itself to differentiate between monochloroaluminate and the calcium aluminate hydrate C₄AH₁₃ when present in small amounts. Thermal methods proved effective in characterising the products of hydration in the presence of chloride.

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Zusammenfassung Bei der Untersuchung von Zement und des Einflusses von Additiven auf das Hydratationsverhalten von Zement finden thermoanalytische Methoden eine breite Anwendung. Der effektivste und meistbenutzte Beschleuniger für die Hydratation von Zement ist Calciumchlorid, aber die Ergebnisse hängen stark von der Dosiergeschwindigkeit ab. In vorliegender Studie wird mittels DSC-, TG- und Röntgendiffraktionsmethoden der Einflu\ der Dosierung von Calciumchlorid auf das Hydratationsverhalten von verschieden alten OPC-Zementbreiproben untersucht. Die Ergebnisse wurden in Bezug auf die relativen Mengen Calciumhydroxid und das gebildete Gesamtreaktionsprodukt gewertet.Bei Dosen von mehr als 1% Calciumchlorid konnte als Hydratationsprodukt Chloraluminat festgestellt werden. Sind Monochloraluminat und das Calciumaluminathydrat C₄AH₁₃ in geringen Mengen vorhanden, kann man zwischen den beiden mittels Röntgendiffraktion nicht unterscheiden. Thermoanalytische Methoden erwiesen sich als effektives Hilfsmittel bei der Charakterisierung der Produkte der Hydratation in Gegenwart von Chlorid.

     

A Conduction Calorimeter for Measuring the Heat of Cement Hydration in the Initial Hydration Period

A new-design conduction microcalorimeter is described, which has been used to measure the heat of cement hydration evolved in the initial period of hydration. The calorimeter is 30 cm³ in volume; the heat loss coefficient is 27.270±0.015 W V^–1, the time constant is 300 s. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Application of Geopolymer in Stabilization/Solidification of Hazardous Pollutants: A Review

Geopolymers, as a kind of inorganic polymer, possess excellent properties and have been broadly studied for the stabilization/solidification (S/S) of hazardous pollutants. Even though many reviews about geopolymers have been published, the summary of geopolymer-based S/S for various contaminants has not been well conducted. Therefore, the S/S of hazardous pollutants using geopolymers are comprehensively summarized in this review. Geopolymer-based S/S of typical cations, including Pb, Zn, Cd, Cs, Cu, Sr, Ni, etc., were involved and elucidated. The S/S mechanisms for cationic heavy metals were concluded, mainly including physical encapsulation, sorption, precipitation, and bonding with a silicate structure. In addition, compared to cationic ions, geopolymers have a poor immobilization ability on anions due to the repulsive effect between them, presenting a high leaching percentage. However, some anions, such as Se or As oxyanions, have been proved to exist in geopolymers through electrostatic interaction, which provides a direction to enhance the geopolymer-based S/S for anions. Besides, few reports about geopolymer-based S/S of organic pollutants have been published. Furthermore, the adsorbents of geopolymer-based composites designed and studied for the removal of hazardous pollutants from aqueous conditions are also briefly discussed. On the whole, this review will offer insights into geopolymer-based S/S technology. Furthermore, the challenges to geopolymer-based S/S technology outlined in this work are expected to be of direct relevance to the focus of future research.     

聚羧酸减水剂在水泥水化过程中的微观表现

采用SEM、IR、XRD、pH值和电导率等分析手段研究了聚羧酸减水剂对水泥水化初期的影响,结果表明,聚羧酸减水剂具有减缓水泥的初期水化作用,水泥水化产物的聚合度随水化时间增加而增大,但晶型不改变。在水泥中添加0．3％聚羧酸减水剂,32．5#水泥3d、7d和28d的抗压强度分别提高了50．9％、40．4％、35％。     

Study of Semi-Dry High Target Solidification/Stabilization of Harmful Impurities in Phosphogypsum by Modification

Phosphogypsum (PG) treatment is one of the research hotspots in the field of environmental protection. Many researchers both at home and abroad have devoted themselves to studies on harmless resource treatment of PG, but the treatment technology is unable to meet the demand of PG consumption due to the huge production and storage demands. In order to solve the problem of PG pollution, this study explored the different solidified effects of various modification formulations on the hazardous components in PG, using industrial solid waste calcium carbide slag (CCS) as an alkaline regulator; Portland cement (PC), polyaluminum chloride (PAC) and CaCl₂ as the main raw materials of the solidification and stabilization formula and the water content in PG as the reaction medium. The results showed that CCS (0.5%), PC (0.4%) and PAC (0.3%) had a more significant solidified effect on phosphorus (P) and fluoride (F). PAC was added in two steps and reacted under normal temperature and pressure, and its leaching toxicity meets the requirements of relevant standards, which laid an excellent foundation for PG-based ecological restoration materials and filling materials, with low economic cost, simple process and strong feasibility. This will provide great convenience for the later mining and metallurgy.     

Effect of Alkaline Salts on Calcium Sulfoaluminate Cement Hydration

This work analyzes the effect of the presence of 5 wt.% of solid sodium salts (Na₂SO₄, Na₂CO₃, and Na₂SiO₃) on calcium sulfoaluminate cement (CSA) hydration, addresses hydration kinetics; 2-, 28-, and 90-d mechanical strength, and reaction product microstructure (with X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, (FTIR). The findings show that the anions affect primarily the reactions involved. Ettringite and AH₃, are the majority hydration products, while monosulfates are absent in all of the samples. All three salts hasten CSA hydration and raise the amount of ettringite formed. Na₂SO₄ induces cracking in the ≥28-d pastes due to post-hardening gypsum and ettringite formation from the excess SO₄^2– present. Anhydrite dissolves more rapidly in the presence of Na₂CO₃, prompting carbonation. Na₂SiO₃ raises compressive strength and exhibits strätlingite as one of its reaction products.     

Influence of Submicron Fibrillated Cellulose Fibers from Cotton on Hydration and Microstructure of Portland Cement Paste

This paper reports the influence of submicron hydrophilic fibers on the hydration and microstructure of Portland cement paste. Submicron fibrillated cellulose (SMC) fibers was prepared by the acid hydrolysis of cotton fibers in H₂SO₄ solution (55% v/v) for 1.5 h at a temperature of 50 °C. The SMC fibers were added into cement with a dosage of 0.03 wt.%, and the effect of SMC on the hydration and microstructure of cement paste was investigated by calorimeter analysis, XRD, FT-IR, DSC-TG, and SEM. Microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) fibers were used as the contrast admixture with the same dosage in this study. The results show that the addition of SMC fibers can accelerate the cement hydration rate during the first 20 h of the hydration process and improve the hydration process of cement paste in later stages. These results are because the scale of SMC fibers more closely matches the size of the C-S-H gel compared to MCC fibers, given that the primary role of the SMC is to provide potential heterogeneous nucleation sites for the hydration products, which is conducive to an accelerated and continuous hydration reaction. Furthermore, the induction and bridging effects of the SMC fibers make the cement paste microstructure more homogeneous and compact.     

Hydration Behaviour of Mixtures of Cement and Fly Ash with High Sulphate and Chloride Content

DTA/TG thermoanalytical investigations and X-ray diffractometry were carried out which demonstrate the effect of MSW fly ash on the hydration reactions of pozzolanic cement. The MSW fly ash has high content of calcium sulphate, alkali chlorides and heavy metals. During the first curing period the calcium aluminate reacts with the sulphate to form ettringite. In that period also the presence of syngenite is noted in the pastes. With the growth of the fly ash content of the mixture there is a lengthening of the period in which the hydration reactions of the calcium silicates are inhibited. Subsequently with the progress of hydration in the pastes the CSH phase develops and the formation of calcium chloroaluminate phase is observed. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Solidification/stabilization of lead with the aid of bagasse as an additive to Portland cement

Solidification/stabilization (S/S) of hazardous waste is a widely used technology; therefore, it is crucial to evaluate its effectiveness and make attempts to improve the technique. A better matrix for S/S of hazardous waste was designed that is effective and economically feasible. This was accomplished by adding bagasse (byproduct of milling or diffusing sugar cane) to the waste/cement matrix. Lead nitrate was used as the model heavy metal waste with a 10 or 15% lead by weight to cement loading. Samples were cured for 7, 14, and 28 days at 24°C. Samples containing bagasse typically resulted in TCLP (modified) extract lead concentrations of approximately 0.5 mg/l of lead for all samples, while samples containing no bagasse had lead extract concentrations of approximately 5 mg/l for 10% samples and 45 mg/l for 15%. Results indicate that using bagasse as an additive to cement effectively improved the S/S of lead.     

The Role of Titanium Dioxide on the Hydration of Portland Cement: A Combined NMR and Ultrasonic Study

Titanium dioxide (TiO₂) is an excellent photocatalytic material that imparts biocidal, self-cleaning and smog-abating functionalities when added to cement-based materials. The presence of TiO₂ influences the hydration process of cement and the development of its internal structure. In this article, the hydration process and development of a pore network of cement pastes containing different ratios of TiO₂ were studied using two noninvasive techniques (ultrasonic and NMR). Ultrasonic results show that the addition of TiO₂ enhances the mechanical properties of cement paste during early-age hydration, while an opposite behavior is observed at later hydration stages. Calorimetry and NMR spin–lattice relaxation time T₁ results indicated an enhancement of the early hydration reaction. Two pore size distributions were identified to evolve separately from each other during hydration: small gel pores exhibiting short T₁ values and large capillary pores with long T₁ values. During early hydration times, TiO₂ is shown to accelerate the formation of cement gel and reduce capillary porosity. At late hydration times, TiO₂ appears to hamper hydration, presumably by hindering the transfer of water molecules to access unhydrated cement grains. The percolation thresholds were calculated from both NMR and ultrasonic data with a good agreement between both results.     

Simultaneous IR/TG study of calcium carbonate in two aged cement pastes

Two aged cement pastes (7 years) were studied for H₂O and CO₂ evolution, the combined amounts of which were measured by TG and identified by thermo-IR analysis. This indicated the presence of three forms of carbonates, which decomposed at different temperatures. The displacement with time of the evaporation of sorbed water to higher temperatures (500–700°C, TG, MS) shows the possibility of its incorporation into carbonate hydrates and/or hydroxy hydrates, postulated previously. The decomposition of all the hydration products needed a thermal energy increasing with ageing (increased temperature measured by TG). The carbonation process proceeded for 7 years in the weaker paste, whereas it terminated before 5 years in the stronger one. The CSH water content did not change with ageing, whereas that of portlandite was lowered, which though did not account for the increase in carbonate content (TG). Possibly some Ca²⁺ from the CSH gel was involved in this process. In the stronger paste the growth with time of organic matter was found (IR, TG/DTG).     

The Effect of an Accelerator on Cement Paste Capillary Pores: NMR Relaxometry Investigations

Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) relaxometry is a valuable tool for investigating cement-based materials. It allows monitoring of pore evolution and water consumption even during the hydration process. The approach relies on the proportionality between the relaxation time and the pore size. Note, however, that this approach inherently assumes that the pores are saturated with water during the hydration process. In the present work, this assumption is eliminated, and the pore evolution is discussed on a more general basis. The new approach is implemented here to extract information on surface evolution of capillary pores in a simple cement paste and a cement paste containing calcium nitrate as accelerator. The experiments revealed an increase of the pore surface even during the dormant stage for both samples with a faster evolution in the presence of the accelerator. Moreover, water consumption arises from the beginning of the hydration process for the sample containing the accelerator while no water is consumed during dormant stage in the case of simple cement paste. It was also observed that the pore volume fractal dimension is higher in the case of cement paste containing the accelerator.     

影响改性聚苯乙烯废塑料高效水泥减水剂减水增强性能因素的研究

通过化学改性反应将废旧聚苯乙烯塑料改性成为可提高水泥混凝土流动性能和强度的高效水泥减水增强剂。研究了改性废旧聚苯乙烯塑料减水剂中离子含量、减水剂的添加量对水泥混凝土的减水率和水泥强度的影响     

Influence of Doping of NaNO3 on the Solid Phase Thermal Decomposition of Bitumen and Cement

The thermal stability of solidified NaNO₃ salts in bitumen and cement has been investigated for safety considerations in the field of solidification of radioactive waste. The thermal decomposition of bitumen and cement in presence of NaNO₃ in a temperature range 22–650°C has been studied. The fraction decomposed of the pure samples and mixtures showed slow linear reactions followed by acceleratory and decay stages. Data are analyzed according to both Freeman-Carroll and Coats-Redfern kinetics to evaluate the activation energy and the order of reactions of all mixtures. It is found that the activation energies of bitumen and cement were 594 and 203 kJ mol^-1, respectively. The order of reactions of bitumen and cement was 2 and 4, respectively. The addition of NaNO₃ shortens the duration of the induction period in all mixtures. It was concluded that solidification of radioactive waste containing NaNO3 in bitumen and cement should be applied in the temperature range 22–300°C. At temperature higher than300°C solidification should be in cement. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

The influence of temperature and different storage conditions on the stability of supersulphated cement

The stability of supersulphated cement (SSC) is investigated. The hydration products of cement pastes prepared at a water cement ratio of 0.27 were determined by thermogravimetry (TG) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Ettringite, one of the initial hydration products, is shown to be stable under conditions of storage at 25, 50 and 75°C and when subject to relative humidities of 100, 53 and 11% of water vapour in each case. The effect of drying on ettringite stability at the higher temperatures is discussed in relation to the relative humidity. In celebration of the 60^th birthday of Dr. Andrew K. Galwey     

The Stabilization Effect of CO2 in Lithium–Oxygen/CO2 Batteries

The lithium (Li)–air battery has an ultrahigh theoretical specific energy, however, even in pure oxygen (O₂), the vulnerability of conventional organic electrolytes and carbon cathodes towards reaction intermediates, especially O₂^?, and corrosive oxidation and crack/pulverization of Li metal anode lead to poor cycling stability of the Li‐air battery. Even worse, the water and/or CO₂ in air bring parasitic reactions and safety issues. Therefore, applying such systems in open‐air environment is challenging. Herein, contrary to previous assertions, we have found that CO₂ can improve the stability of both anode and electrolyte, and a high‐performance rechargeable Li–O₂/CO₂ battery is developed. The CO₂ not only facilitates the in situ formation of a passivated protective Li₂CO₃ film on the Li anode, but also restrains side reactions involving electrolyte and cathode by capturing O₂^?. Moreover, the Pd/CNT catalyst in the cathode can extend the battery lifespan by effectively tuning the product morphology and catalyzing the decomposition of Li₂CO₃. The Li–O₂/CO₂ battery achieves a full discharge capacity of 6628 mAh g^?1 and a long life of 715 cycles, which is even better than those of pure Li–O₂ batteries.     

水／AOT／正庚烷微乳体系中磺酸根水化作用的FT—IR研究

运用傅立叶变换红外光谱（FT－IR）对水／琥珀酸（乙基已基）磺酸钠（AOT）／正庚烷微乳体系中磺酸根的水化作用进行了研究．由于微乳体系中水分子与表面活性剂分子的相互作用，S＝O对称伸缩振动的红外吸收峰向低频方向移动．体系中的加水量W0（水与AOT的摩尔比）由0.5增大至25时，磺酸根对称伸缩振动的红外吸收峰由1051．39cm－1向低频移动至1046．15cm－1．同时，由于Na 的不对称作用，AOT分子中磺酸根反对称伸缩振动分裂成两个吸收峰，分别位于正215cm-1及1245cm－1附近，两个劈裂峰的距离及各自的峰面积均随体系中加水量的变化而变化，应用二阶导数、傅立叶退卷积及曲线拟会等分辨率增强技术可更清楚地反映出这个二重峰的变化情况．固体AOT分子中碳酸根反对称伸缩振动分裂的两个峰之间频率的差值约为42cm－1，形成微乳液以后，这两个峰的差值变小，W0为20时，这两个峰频率的差值逐渐减小到29cm-1，这些变化与磺酸根的水化程度直接相关