Performance assessment of Alccofine with silica fume, fly ash and slag for development of high strength mortar

Abstract

Previous studies on concrete have identified silica fume (SF) as the most effective supplementary material, whereas fly ash (FA) and slag have been identified as economical materials with long term strength potential. Development of blended cement mortar referred to as blended mortar (BM) requires similar assessment. The present study explores the application of Alccofine (AL) as supplementary material and compares its performance with conventional materials namely SF, FA and ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS). The mortar specimens with binder to fine-aggregates (b/f ) ratio of 1:2 are prepared at water to binder (w/b) ratios of 0.4 and 0.35. The strength values and stress-strain curve for control and BM specimens are obtained at 7, 28, 56, and 90 d curing periods. The assessment based on strength activity index, k-value method and strength estimation model confirms that AL, despite lower pozzolanic activity, contributes to strength gain, due to reduced dilution effect. Assessment of stress-strain curves suggests that the effect of w/b ratio is more dominant on the elastic modulus of BM specimens than on control specimens. The observations from the study identify enhanced strength gain, improved elastic modulus and higher energy absorption as key contributions of AL making it a potential supplementary material.

Graphical abstract

Keywords

Alccofine / high strength mortar / efficiency factor / dilution effect

References

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