Hong Zhang,Ming Chen,Tiantian Liang,Zanpeng Zhang,Changhui Yang
The use of nanocarbon materials to enhance the toughness of fragile cementitious materials has attracted increasing attention for investigation. This study examines the effects of incorporating graphene oxide (GO) into NaOH-activated slag (AAS) pastes and mortars, focusing on workability, phase composition, mechanical properties, and the local mechanical properties of the interfacial transition zone (ITZ) between sand and paste. The experimental results indicate that the addition of GO decreases the flowability of NaOH-AAS pastes, with noticeable aggregation at concentrations above 0.03 wt%. Furthermore, GO enhances the hydration degree of ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS), leading to an increased amount of C-A-S-H gel without introducing new phases. In terms of macro performance, incorporating 0.03 wt% GO significantly improves the compressive and flexural strengths of NaOH-AAS mortars by 10.6 % and 17.9 %, respectively. Additionally, the presence of GO reduces the ITZ thickness from 30 to 15 micrometres in NaOH-AAS mortars, which likely contributes to the enhanced mechanical performance.
Wang Tianyu,Yang Lang,Rao Feng,Jiang Kaixi,Byrynnai Choduraa
Adding organics in the process of geopolymer synthesis can combine the functional groups of organics with the three-dimensional structure of geopolymer, thus changing the properties of geopolymer such as compressive strength, flexural strength, and acid resistance. In this work, excellent mechanical properties and acid resistance of metakaolin-blast furnance slag (Mk-BFS)-based geopolymer were synthesized by the incorporation of chitosan. The formation of sodium-alumino-silicate-hydrate (N-A-S–H) gel and calium-alumino-silicate-hydrate (C-A-S–H) gel in geopolymerization were characterized by 29 Si nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). At 5% of chitosan, the compressive strength of Mk-BFS-based geopolymer could reach to 33.7 MPa. The results could be ascribed to that chitosan reacts with geopolymer to generate new C-O-Si structure meanwhile adhesion produced by the combination of positively charged cations and negatively charged ions makes the structure of geopolymer denser. After 7 days of sulfuric acid immersion, the reduction of compressive strength is less than 3 MPa, demonstrating its great acid resistance. The acid resistance of Mk-BFS-based geopolymer could attribute to that the free amino groups in chitosan preferentially react with acid solution and weakened the erosion of sulfuric acid. This study optimizes the compressive strength and acid resistance of geopolymer by adding appropriate amount of chitosan.
Xing Ming,Qing Liu,Miaomiao Wang,Yongqing Cai,Binmeng Chen,Zongjin Li
Chloride-induced corrosion in reinforced concrete is a primary durability issue that causes large economic loss every year. To improve the intrinsic chloride binding capacity and realize a favorable corrosion protection of cement-based materials are thus crucial to prolong the service life of concrete structures. Here, alumina nano particles (ANPs) were incorporated to improve the chloride binding capacity of cement pastes in chloride solutions and the anti-corrosion performance of mortars under accelerated corrosion process. The ANPs facilitated the formation of alumino-ferrite-mono (AFm)-type phases, thereby improved the content of chemically bound chlorides. Solution calcium (Ca) ions benefited the chloride captured by calcium-(alumino-)silicate-hydrates (C-(A-)S-H) in the assistance of ANPs, especially at high initial chloride concentrations , and further evoked a pH-related chloride binding response. Moreover, the enhanced corrosion resistance was finally realized by incorporating appropriate amount of ANPs because of the filling and chemical effects induced low permeability of mortars. In general, the ANPs possess dual functions in the aspects of chloride binding and corrosion inhibition . These findings are expected to advance the design of high-durable cement-based materials serviced in the marine environment.