Synthesis and hydration of tricalcium silicate

During the last few years several computer models has been developed to simulate the evolution of cement microstructure during hydration. In the model, µic, that is been developed in our laboratory the evolution of the microstructure of cement and its main component, alite, is calculated based on the hydration of individual particles rather than the entire system. The study of the hydration kinetics plays a major role in the development of this modelling work. This paper reports the synthesis protocol and the characterization of pure tricalcium silicate and alite and their separation into discrete fractions of particle size distribution. The hydration of these fractions was studied by isothermal calorimetry and chemical shrinkage. Individual kinetic coefficients for incorporation into the model have been derived. It was shown that the hydration of any particle is not affected by psd of the hydrating powder and is independent from the hydration of its neighbours.

Author: M. Costoya, Sh. Bishnoi, E. Gallucci, K. L. Scrivener

Section: Science and production

Keywords: cement microstructure; hydration; computer model; kinetics; tricalcium silicate; alite; isothermal calorimetry; chemical shrinkage