Effect of hydration aging and water binder ratio on microstructure and mechanical properties of sprayed concrete

Abstract

In order to study the durability of sprayed concrete (shotcrete), effects of different hydration aging and water-binder ratio (w/b) on the microstructure of cement paste and basic mechanical properties of test specimens were investigated. The phase composition, mass percentage of ettringite and portland in hydration production and microstructure were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermo gravimetry-differential scanning calorimetry (TG-DSC) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), respectively. The experimental results showed that changes in phase composition was more significant than those of water-binder ratio. With hydration aging and water-binder ratio increased, the mass percentage of ettringite and portland was decreased from 4.42%, 1.49% to 3.31%, 1.35%, respectively and the microstructure of paste was significantly compacted. Likewise, the mechanical properties including cubic compressive strength and splitting tensile strength were rised obviously.

Keywords

hydration aging / water binder ratio (w/b) / sprayed concrete(shortcrete) / microstructure / mechanical properties

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