Corrosion Behaviour and Chloride Attack of Reinforcing Steel in Presence of Concrete Admixtures

Corrosion and electrochemical behaviour of reinforcing steel embedded in cement pastes with and without concrete admixtures used in Egypt to modify concrete properties have been studied. The influence of the admixtures on the corrosion resistance of the steel against chloride attack has been studied by using impressed current and impressed voltage techniques. The results indicate that the type and concentration of the used admixture have an important effect on the extent of chloride induced corrosion of the steel. The mechanism of corrosion of steel due to chloride attack was discussed. (Edited author abstract) 16 Refs.

STRENGTH EFFECT OF F MINERAL ADMIXTURE ON CEMENT CONCRETE

F mineral admixture (FMA) is made of the fin- ely divided powder of natural zeolite with a bit of other agent. When FMA is used to displace about 10% (by weight) of the ordinary portland cement (OPC) (strength grade 575#) in concrete and mixed with a suitable amount of super plasticizer (w/c =0.31-0.35), then a high-strength concrete with compressive strength about 80 MPa and slump about 180 MM can be obtained. The strength of this concrete is about 10-15% higher than that of the corresponding concrete mixing with pure OPC, and its bleeding decreases greatly. It makes no segre- gation and separation, and thus it satisfies the requirement of pumping concrete in construction.

Influence of Polycarboxylic-type Admixture on the Strength of Autoclaved Aerated Concrete

The influence of polycarboxylic-type admixture on the strength of autoclaved aerated concrete（AAC） was investigated. The flexural strength and compressive strength of AAC with polycarboxylic admixture（PA） were tested. The microstructure of AAC reinforced by PA was analyzed using scanning electron microscopic（SEM） methods. The crystal structure analysis of AAC with PA was also carried out using X-ray diffraction（XRD）. The results showed that the compressive strength and flexural strength of AAC were increased by 43.9% and 42.8%, respectively, when 1.5wt% of PA was mixed. In addition, the dosage of admixture influenced the reinforcing effect. Admixture affected pore structure and surface characteristic of the products in autoclaved curing process and improved the formation of high crystallite tobermorite which led to the enhancement of the compressive and flexural strength of AAC.

Improvement of Concrete Properties and Reinforcing Steel Inhibition Using a Natural Product Admixture

The use of a natural white juice, taken from magrabe banana stem, as concrete admixture to improve mechanical and physicrvchemical properties of concrete has been studied. The compressive strength, bulk density the free lime liberated during hydration and the combined water content were determined. The results indicate that the admixture acts as a retarder in most cases and as accelerator in some ones. Also, the admixture effect on the corrosion resistance of the reinforcing steel against surrounding aggressive media has been investigated using galvanostatic polarization technique. The addition of 0.2% admixture leads to the more inhibition of the steel

Adsorption Mechanism of Polycarboxylate-Based Superplasticizer in CFBC Ash-Portland Cement Paste

Circulating fluidized bed combustion （CFBC） ash exhibits the desirable pozzolanic activity which makes it a potential supplementary cementitious material to replace cement for concrete production. However, the high unburnt carbon content and porous surface structure of CFBC ash may adsorb water reducer and thereby significantly reduce the efficiency of water-reducing agents. The adsorption mechanism of polycarboxylate superplasticizer in CFBC ash-Portland cement paste was investigated by ultraviolet-visible spectrophotometer, and the conception of ＂invalid adsorption site＂ of CFBC ash was presented. The results show that the adsorption behavior of polycarboxylate superplasticizer in coal ash-Portland cement paste can be described by Langmuir isothermal adsorption equation. The adsorption capacity of CFBC ash-Portland cement paste is higher than that of pulverized coal combustion （PCC） fly ash-Portland cement paste. Moreover, the adsorption amount of polycarboxylate superplasticizer increases with the ratio of ash-to-cement in the paste. At last, the fluidity of CFBC ash-Portland cement paste is lower than that of the PCC fly ash paste. This work suggests that when CFBC ash is used as concrete admixture, the poor flowability of the cementitious system due to the high adsorption of water and water-reducing agent should be taken into consideration.