Hydration and stain resistance of blended cements in presence of nano-TiO2
摘要
Sustainable development, minimizing consumption of raw materials, energy, and CO2 emissions during the production of ordinary Portland cement as well as improving concrete performance, are now becoming the main goal of the construction industry. Blended cements, such as Portland pozzolana cement (PPC) and Portland slag cement (PSC), are the most appropriate solution to address these issues. However, blended cements give poor early mechanical properties. To overcome the deficiencies of blended cements (PPC and PSC), certain suitable additives are added. In this paper, the effect of nano-TiO2 (NT) on the hydration properties of blended cement has been studied in detail. Stain resistance activity of blended cements in the presence of NT has also been investigated. Various experiments are carried out as per Indian standards and testing protocols for assessing the mechanical performance at different dosages of NT (0%, 1.0%, 1.5%, and 2.0%). XRD (X-ray diffraction), TG-DTA (Thermogravimetric-Differential Thermal Analyzer), SEM (Scanning Electron Microscope), and durability studies have been made. The stain resistance of the blended cement was investigated with different concentrations of Methylene Blue at various time intervals in exterior and interior environments in the presence of NT. The results show significant improvement in the initial mechanical properties of blended cement, and the stain of methylene blue disappears faster in the exterior environment than in the interior in the presence of 1% NT in the blended cement. It was found that PSC has better mechanical performance and stain resistance activities than PPC in the presence of NT. It is concluded that PPC and PSC with NT can be a game-changing material to decarbonize the construction industry and reduce cleaning efforts with attractive cost economics.