K. Arbi Ghanmi
Please Note
19 records found
1
RILEM TC 247-DTA round robin test
Carbonation and chloride penetration testing of alkali-activated concretes
Many standardised durability testing methods have been developed for Portland cement-based concretes, but require validation to determine whether they are also applicable to alkali-activated materials. To address this question, RILEM TC 247-DTA ‘Durability Testing of Alkali-Activated Materials’ carried out round robin testing of carbonation and chloride penetration test methods, applied to five different alkali-activated concretes based on fly ash, blast furnace slag or metakaolin. The methods appeared overall to demonstrate an intrinsic precision comparable to their precision when applied to conventional concretes. The ranking of test outcomes for pairs of concretes of similar binder chemistry was satisfactory, but rankings were not always reliable when comparing alkali-activated concretes based on different precursors. Accelerated carbonation testing gave similar results for fly ash-based and blast furnace slag-based alkali-activated concretes, whereas natural carbonation testing did not. Carbonation of concrete specimens was observed to have occurred already during curing, which has implications for extrapolation of carbonation testing results to longer service life periods. Accelerated chloride penetration testing according to NT BUILD 443 ranked the tested concretes consistently, while this was not the case for the rapid chloride migration test. Both of these chloride penetration testing methods exhibited comparatively low precision when applied to blast furnace slag-based concretes which are more resistant to chloride ingress than the other materials tested.
In this paper, the natural laboratory carbonation of alkali-activated fly ash (FA) and blast furnace slag (BFS)-based pastes was studied. The aim of experiments was to investigate the influence of the binder composition on the carbonation mechanism. The microscope techniques, i.e. polarization, fluorescent and Environmental Scanning Electron Microscope (ESEM) enabled the identification of the carbonation front and local defects due to carbonation, such as microcracks, and pore structure changes. The pH of the simulated pore solution in carbonated and noncarbonated samples was analyzed. The pore structures after carbonation were characterized in terms of capillary and gel pores by Mercury Intrusion Porosimetry (MIP) and nitrogen sorption. The effect of the change in the porosity on the mechanical properties was examined by Nanoindentation tests.
Results show that the natural carbonation did not reduce the alkalinity of the pore solution to below the pH 9. The pH was kept above 10.5 in all the mixtures. The samples with 50 wt% and less BFS content, were uniformly carbonated. The increase of the total porosity in those samples has been attributed to the simultaneous effect of the carbonation and drying shrinkage of the pastes. The change in the porosity for a consequence has a reduction in the modulus of elasticity. The samples containing more than 50 wt% of BFS were fully resistant to carbonation or carbonation was induced along the cracks as observed from the microscopic analysis. ...
In this paper, the natural laboratory carbonation of alkali-activated fly ash (FA) and blast furnace slag (BFS)-based pastes was studied. The aim of experiments was to investigate the influence of the binder composition on the carbonation mechanism. The microscope techniques, i.e. polarization, fluorescent and Environmental Scanning Electron Microscope (ESEM) enabled the identification of the carbonation front and local defects due to carbonation, such as microcracks, and pore structure changes. The pH of the simulated pore solution in carbonated and noncarbonated samples was analyzed. The pore structures after carbonation were characterized in terms of capillary and gel pores by Mercury Intrusion Porosimetry (MIP) and nitrogen sorption. The effect of the change in the porosity on the mechanical properties was examined by Nanoindentation tests.
Results show that the natural carbonation did not reduce the alkalinity of the pore solution to below the pH 9. The pH was kept above 10.5 in all the mixtures. The samples with 50 wt% and less BFS content, were uniformly carbonated. The increase of the total porosity in those samples has been attributed to the simultaneous effect of the carbonation and drying shrinkage of the pastes. The change in the porosity for a consequence has a reduction in the modulus of elasticity. The samples containing more than 50 wt% of BFS were fully resistant to carbonation or carbonation was induced along the cracks as observed from the microscopic analysis.
Cation Miscibility and Lithium Mobility in NASICON Li1+xTi2-xScx(PO4)3 (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.5) Series
A Combined NMR and Impedance Study
Rhombohedral NASICON compounds with general formula Li1+xTi2-xScx(PO4)3 (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.5) have been prepared using a conventional solid-state reaction and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and impedance spectroscopy. The partial substitution of Ti4+ by Sc3+ and Li+ in pristine LiTi2(PO4)3 increases unit-cell dimensions and the number of charge carriers. In Sc-rich samples, the analysis of XRD data and6Li/7Li,31P, and45Sc MAS NMR spectra confirms the presence of secondary LiScO2 and LiScP2O7 phases that reduce the amount of lithium incorporated in the NASICON phase. In samples with x <0.3, electrostatic repulsions between Li ions located at M1 and M3 sites increase Li mobility. For x ≥ 0.3, ionic conductivity decreases because of secondary nonconducting phases formed at grain boundaries of the NASICON particles (core-shell structures). For x = 0.2, high bulk conductivity (2.5 × 10-3 S·cm-1) and low activation energy (Ea = 0.25 eV) measured at room temperature make Li1.2Ti1.8Sc0.2(PO4)3 one of the best lithium ionic conductors reported in the literature. In this material, the vacancy arrangement enhances Li conductivity.
The feasibility of a waste glass powder residue (GP) from glass recycling as partial mineral precursor to produce alkali-activated materials is investigated. GP served as powder coal fly ash (PCFA) replacement within a reference system composed of 50% PCFA and 50% ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS). Compared with PCFA, GP was better involved in the alkali activation process by having a higher silica and Ca dissolution. Furthermore, increasing GP replacement up to 30% prolonged the induction period, facilitated the gel formation and yielded a 35% higher 28-day compressive strength. These observations are similar to the effect of using both sodium hydroxide and sodium silicate as alkali activator in alkali-activated slag/fly ash systems. A higher polymerization of the gel network was also observed. Microstructure analysis indicated that the main reaction product is a calcium silicate hydrate type gel substituted with Al and Na (C-(N)-A-S-H type gel). This work largely contributes to the understanding of the reactivity and potential of GP and promotes its practical utilization as a mineral precursor in the production of alkaline cements.
A Review on the Durability of Alkali-Activated Fly Ash/Slag Systems
Advances, Issues, and Perspectives
Alkali-activated materials (AAMs) have high potential as alternative binder to ordinary portland cement (OPC), because of their high performance beside lower CO2 emissions. While there is a general consensus about their strength advantages over OPC, there is a widespread debate regarding their durability. Some groups believe that the availability of wide scientific/technical background, together with the already-known OPC durability problems, are sufficient for their commercialization; however, others consider the durability of AAMs to be an unproven issue. This controversy represents one of the limitations facing their bulk applications. The present work provides an overview of the latest developments on durability of fly ash/slag-based AAMs with the aim to update recent findings regarding their behavior under aggressive conditions (sulfates, freeze-thaw, chloride, carbonation, acid, efflorescence). This review will provide a better understanding of the durability issues of AAMs, which will stimulate further research to develop the appropriate testing methods and help to promote their commercialization.
The NASICON series, with formula Bax/2Li1-xTi2(PO4)3 (0.4 ≤ x ≤ 1), has been prepared by solid-state reaction and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), Raman, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and impedance spectroscopy (IS). XRD patterns of samples indicated the formation of single phases with rhombohedral structure (space group R-3c). The Rietveld analysis of XRD patterns was performed to deduce location of Li and Ba ions. FTIR, Raman, and NMR techniques showed the only presence of isolated PO4 groups in analyzed phosphates. 31P MAS-NMR spectra were used to investigate Li and Ba distribution and 7Li MAS-NMR spectra to discriminated Li ions with different mobility in conduction paths. A maximum total conductivity of 2.5 × 10−7 S cm−1 and a minimum activation energy of 0.47 eV were obtained at room temperature for Ba0.3Li0.4Ti2(PO4)3 (x = 0.6).