Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Background: Since the introduction of glass ionomer cements (GICs) in the 1970s, many attempts have been made to improve them and expand their application in restorative dentistry. Recently, GC America introduced a new glass ionomer restorative system called EQUIA. The manufacturer claims that this material has improved wear resistance by coating the surface of high-strength GIC with a nano-filled resin coating. Objective: The objective of this study was to measure the wear resistance and hardness of EQUIA and to compare it to other current restorative materials. Materials and Methods: Four different materials were used in this study: EQUIA, Fuji IX GP Extra, Fuji II LC and Z-100. Six specimens of each material were made and then tested in a toothbrush abrasion machine for 20,400 cycles, after which the amount of volume loss was calculated. Eight specimens of each material were made and tested in a three-body Alabama wear testing machine under a load of 75 N for 400,000 cycles. Four surface profiles were obtained from each specimen and volume loss was calculated using computer software. Five specimens of each material were made and Knoop microhardness was determined by using the mean of the three values from the top surface of the specimen. Results of each test were collected and compared with the other materials using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) at a significance level of 0.05. Results: Wear-resistance results showed that EQUIA has wear-resistance values comparable to composite resin and higher values than those for the high-strength GIC. The results also showed that Fuji II LC had the highest wear among all tested materials. Microhardness results showed that EQUIA has significantly lower microhardness than Fuji IX GP Extra and Z-100. Conclusion: Based on the results of the present study, it can be concluded that coating the surface of glass ionomer restorations with a nano-filled resin coat results in increasing the wear resistance and decreasing the microhardness of the material. Within the limitations of this study, EQUIA has comparable wear resistance to composite resin.

A relatively new method used to reduce the amount of cement-treated base (CTB) shrinkage cracking is microcracking of the CTB shortly after construction. Three portable instruments used in this study for monitoring the microcracking process include the heavy Clegg impact soil tester (CIST), portable falling-weight deflectometer (PFWD), and soil stiffness gauge (SSG). The specific objectives of this research were 1) to evaluate the sensitivity of each of the three portable instruments to microcracking, and 2) to compare measurements of CTB stiffness reduction obtained using the three devices. The test locations included in this study were Redwood Drive and Dale Avenue in Salt Lake City, Utah; 300 South in Spanish Fork, Utah; and a private access road in Wyoming. Experimental testing in the field consisted of randomized stationing at each site; sampling the CTB immediately after the cement was mixed into the reclaimed base material; compacting specimens for laboratory testing; and testing the CTB immediately after construction, immediately before microcracking, immediately after each pass of the vibratory roller during the microcracking process, and, in some instances, three days after microcracking. Several linear regression analyses were performed after data were collected using the CIST, PFWD, and SSG during the microcracking process to meet the objectives of this research. Results from the statistical analyses designed to evaluate the sensitivity of each of the three portable instruments to microcracking indicate that the PFWD and SSG are sensitive to microcracking, while the CIST is insensitive to microcracking. Results from the statistical analyses designed to compare measurements of CTB stiffness reduction demonstrate that neither of the instrument correlations involving the CIST are statistically significant. Only the correlation between the PFWD and SSG was shown to be statistically significant. Given the results of this research, engineers and contractors should utilize the PFWD or SSG for monitoring microcracking of CTB layers. The heavy CIST is unsuitable for monitoring microcracking and should not be used. For deriving target CTB stiffness reductions measured using either the PFWD or SSG from specified targets measured using the other, engineers and contractors should utilize the correlation chart developed in this research.

Idag är det viktigare än någonsin att koldioxidutsläppen börjar minska. Över hela världens sätts idag visioner, mål och regleringar som ska motverka de enorma klimatutsläppen som utges varje år. Byggbranschen är en stor bov och i Sverige står dem för nästan en femtedel av utsläppen. I EU står cementtillverkningen för nästan 3 procent av alla koldioxidutsläpp.  Cementa, Sveriges största cementtillverkare, har jobbat hårt sedan 2020 med att lägga upp en plan – Nollvision 2030. Med hjälp av CCS-tekniken kommer Cementas koldioxidutsläpp inte ta sig ut i atmosfären och därför bli noll. Utsläppen kommer istället lagras och förvaras under havsbotten och därför inte bidra till klimatförändringarna negativt. Denna CCS-fabrik kommer utvecklas på Slite, Gotland, under Cementas redan befintliga cementfabrik.  I detta arbete kommer utsläppen från dagens betong och framtidens betong presenteras samt jämföras. Med hjälp av Cementa och flera andra aktörer har data samlats in som lagt grunden till en livscykelanalys (LCA). En livscykelanalys är ett verktyg som visar hur stor klimatpåverkan en produkt har under sin livstid. I detta arbete har en helt ny LCA gjorts för framtidens betong där värdena jämförs med en LCA för dagens betong. Med hjälp av denna jämförelse går det att se hur positivt Slite kommer påverka klimatmålen för framtiden. Ett tidigare examensarbete har använts för att hitta en LCA för ett betonghus och trähus. Där framkom data för ett trähus som också kommer användas vid ena frågeställningen. Där är målet att se ifall framtidens betonghus skulle kunna släppa ut mindre koldioxid än trähus, vilket det sedan framkommer att det gör. När LCA:erna var färdiga och redo att jämföras framkom det tydligt att framtidens betong har betydligt lägre utsläpp än dagens betong. Utsläppen från framtidens betong var även mindre än trähus om jämförelsen gjordes från vagga till grav. Jämförelserna har gjorts i kg koldioxidekvivalent/m2 tempererad area. / Today, it is more important than ever that carbon dioxide emissions begin to decrease. Visions, goals, and regulations are being set all over the world today to counteract the enormous climate emissions that are released every year. The construction industry is a big culprit and in Sweden, they account for almost a fifth of emissions. Of these carbon dioxide emissions, cement production accounts for almost 8%, with the worst emissions occurring during the production state. Cementa, Sweden's largest cement manufacturer, has worked hard since 2020 to set up a plan - Agenda 2030. With the help of CCS technologies, Cementa's carbon dioxide emissions will not be released into the atmosphere and therefore have zero emissions. The emissions will instead be compressed and stored under the seabed and therefore not contribute to climate change negatively. This CCS manufactory will be developed on Slite, Gotland, under Cementa's already existing cement factory.In this rapport, the emissions from today's concrete and the concrete of the future will be presented and compared. With the help of Cementa and several other contributors, data has been collected that laid the foundation for a life cycle assessment (LCA). A life cycle assessment is a tool that shows how much of a climate impact a product has during its lifetime. In this work, a completely new LCA has been made for the concrete of the future where the values have been compared with an LCA for today's concrete. With this comparison, it is possible to see how positively Slite will affect the climate goals in the future.  A previous degree project has been used to find an LCA for a concrete house and a wood house. There was data for a wooden house that will also be used for one issue. The goal here is to see if the concrete houses of the future could emit less carbon dioxide than wooden houses, which will then be proven to be true.  When the LCAs were done and ready to be compared, it became clear that the concrete of the future will have a significantly lower emission value than today's concrete. The emissions from the concrete of the future were also lower than wooden houses, if the comparison was made from cradle to grave. The comparisons have been made in kg carbon dioxide equivalent/m2 temperate area.

Globally the emissions of carbon dioxide from anthropogenic activities are an issue regarding the future of our planet. Today the building industry is a large contributor with approximately 10 percent of the total emissions coming from energy usage in the building industry, where about 7 percent of the global CO2 emissions are connected to the cement industry. Since cement is important and today, a non-replaceable material in concrete mixture considering the mechanical properties this is considered as a problem. Concrete is essential to the building and infrastructure industry and therefore it is of great value for society. To be able to lower the impact of concrete manufacturing, different materials are investigated to replace a part of the cement. Today, alternative materials are implemented in the cement compositions to improve the environmental impact. One material commonly used is fly ash, a waste material from coal combusting industries. However, a renewable and carbon emission sinking product could have a great impact on the total emissions from concrete manufacturing. A product that could be suitable for this is biochar, a product from pyrolysis of biomass. Previous studies show properties that could be desirable in concrete manufacturing such as high specific surface area, low bulk density, low thermal conductivity, and sound-absorbing function. Also, there are studies of biochar in cementitious material with promising results. To further investigate the biochar impact on concrete this thesis is conducted. A literature review of previous studies of biochar applications and biochar addition to concrete was conducted. This is to analyse the properties of biochar and the effect of the application on the concrete properties. Also, an experimental study was conducted to further analyse the concrete and compare the findings to previous studies. In this thesis concrete with biochar ratios of 5, 8, and 10 percentages according to the weight of the cement were compared to evaluate the performance properties. This was conducted by a laboratory test where 100 mm cubes were cast and tested for their compressive strength after 28 and 56 days. Other properties which were evaluated were the workability, density, microstructure, and chemical properties. The result showed that the workability was significantly lower for concrete mixtures with biochar addition. Also, the density decreased as the ratio of biochar increased. The same happened to the compressive strength where the comparison species had a compressive strength of 72 MPa after 28 days and the sample with 10 percent had a compressive strength of 52 MPa. However, the sample with 10 percent of biochar had the highest increase of compressive strength after additional 28 days of curing. The FTIR could not show any significant changes between samples with zero biochar addition and the samples with biochar addition / Utsläpp av koldioxid är ett globalt problem som hotar framtiden för vår planet. Idag är byggindustrin en stor bidragande faktor till dessa utsläpp där omkring 10 % av de globala utsläppen kan kopplas till energiförbrukningen i byggindustrin. 7% av de globala utsläppen kommer från cementindustrin. Då cement är ett så pass viktigt material och det saknas ersättande material med samma egenskaper anses detta vara ett problem. Betong är grundläggande för bygg- och infrastrukturmarknaden och är därför viktigt för samhället. För att kunna minska påverkan av betongtillverkningen så utreds olika material för att kunna minska cementandelen i betongen.  Idag finns alternativa material som ersätter en del av cementen för att minska klimatavtrycket. Ett sådant material är flygaska, vilket är ett restmaterial från industrier. Att i stället ersätta detta med ett förnybart bio-baserat material med koldioxidsänkande egenskaper skulle kunna innebära en förbättring av de miljöpåverkande egenskaper som finns hos betongtillverkningen. En produkt som skulle kunna vara lämplig för detta är biokol vilket är en produkt från anaerob förbränning av biomassa. Tidigare studier visar att egenskaper som skulle kunna vara fördelaktiga vid betongtillverkning finns hos biokol. Dessa egenskaper är hög specifik ytarea,låg skrymdensitet, låg värmekonduktivitet och ljudabsorberande egenskaper. Det finns även tidigare studier där biokol har applicerats till betong där resultatet har varit lovande.  Detta examensarbete har skrivits för att ytterligare analysera biokolets inverkan på betongen. För att göra detta har en litteraturstudie sammanställts med tidigare studier av biokol och biokolets inverkan på betong. Detta för att analysera biokolets karaktärsdrag och vilka effekter det har på betongens egenskaper. Till detta har även en experimentell studie gjorts för att ytterligare analysera betongens beteende vid applicering av biokol och för att kunna jämföra resultat från tidigare studier. I detta examensarbete har cementet i betongen ersatts med 5, 8 och 10% biokol av cementets vikt för att kunna jämföra egenskaperna mellan de olika proverna. Detta gjordes genom ett laboratorietest där 100 mm kuber gjöts och testades för tryckhållfastheten efter 28 och 56 dagar. Andra egenskaper som kontrollerades var konsistensen, densiteten och mikrostrukturen genom FTIR test. Resultatet visade att konsistensen påverkades kraftigt då biokol adderades till betongen. Densiteten minskade desto större andel av cementet som byttes ut. Liknande resultat uppmättes för tryckhållfastheten där den minskade från 71,9 MPa för proverna utan biokol till 51,6 MPa för betongen med 10% biokol, detta efter 28 dagar. Dock så kunde det ses att den största tillväxten av hållfasthet efter ytterligare 28 dagars härdning kunde uppmätas i provet med högst andel biokol (10%). Resultatet från FTIR testet kunde inte visa några tydliga skillnader mellan proverna med och utan biokol.

This thesis explores the environmental and social responsibilities being increasingly shouldered by cement manufacturing sector and outlines a new approach for these companies to accept their responsibilities and to utilise professional approaches to address the economic, environmental and social dimensions of sustainable business. Managing these three dimensions in business translates corporate responsibility into an integrated responsibility for doing business profitably, ethically and in sustainable manner. This three-pronged approach is sometimes called the Triple Bottom Line. It helps companies to fulfil their more holistic Corporate Social Responsibility. A critical review of the literature led the thesis author to develop the theoretical framework for environmental and social reporting to proceed on TBL/CSR journey within the cement industry. Data were collected from TBL/CSR reports from cement companies on key environmental and social performances. Based upon those data, a questionnaire was developed to obtain more information from the leading worldwide cement companies. The combined results of the responses to the questionnaire and the quantitative data derived from the TBL/CSR reports were used to establish best practice benchmarks to serve as performance targets for the author¿s case study company, Oman Cement Company (OCC). The contribution to knowledge of this research is the summarisation and prioritisation of the cement industry¿s implementation of TBL/CSR management systems, which integrate the elements of TBL/CSR into their strategic plans and daily operational procedures. Guidelines were derived from the Global Reporting Initiative, the United Nations Global Compact and the new ISO 26000 standard, which promotes a new way of working towards innovation, value creation and incremental actions for transforming businesses to become more responsible. The contributions to practice of this research are the practical and procedural insights, gained by quantitative analysis of environmental and social indicators, into how cement companies are making improvements in their processes and products in response to climate change, economic, governmental regulations and social pressures for improvement. Based upon the findings, recommendations and timetables were developed and are being implemented within the OCC as it progresses on its TBL/CSR journey.

In any underground facilities especially tunnels, it is essential to seal the area against water ingress and leakage of reserved materials. Grouting is a common method used to seal rocks around tunnels, successful grouting reduces the duration and cost of the construction, guarantees better working environment and higher safety, minimizes the maintenance and most important decreases the corresponding environmental hazards significantly. Achieving a sufficient grout spread is one of the prerequisites for a successful and efficient sealing, the penetration of a grout is defined as the length of how far grout penetrates in the rock through fractures from a bore hole. Chemical grouts and cement-based grouts are the prevailing ones among the grouting materials. Despite the better penetrability of chemical grouts, they are unfavorable to use due to environmental hazards associated to them, whilst cement-based grouts are more convenient to use because of their low cost and low environmental impact.The major drawback with cement-based grouts is their limited ability to penetrate the very narrow fractures which is directly related to their filtration tendency which is defined as the tendency of cement grains to agglomerate and build an impermeable filter cake during the flow. Many previous studies investigated the factors that affect the filtration tendency. They drew different conclusions and suggested various methods to improve the penetrability of cement-based grouts.The mixing method is one of the factors that have a great influence on the penetrability of the grout. An effective mixing method improves the dispersion of cement particles in the mixture, thus the penetrability of the grout. As it is known from previous studies, the finer the cement particles the harder to disperse. Grouts based on micro-fine cement (< 30 μm) are essential for the development of grouts that can seal very narrow fractures (20-50) μm compared to (70-80) μm at the present.In this study, the dispersion efficiency of three different mixing methods was evaluated, a conventional lab dissolver equipped with 90-mm disk, a conventional lab dissolver equipped with R/S system and an ultrasound UP400St device. Two cement types, INJ30 and UF12, that are similar in chemical composition but differ in degree of milling were tested. Dispersion was tested with filter pump.The results showed that the conventional lab dissolver equipped with 90-mm disk is ineffective method. The conventional lab dissolver equipped with R/S system is a better method compared to the 90-mm disk but still not effective enough especially when it comes to grouts based on ultra-fine cement (UF12). The ultrasound dispersion is not only the best method between the three methods in comparison, but even more stable and reliable. The best result obtained was grout based on UF12 passing through the 54 μm filter. This could mean that fracture aperture down to 55 μm now can be sealed. This is a significant improvement but there is still a marginal for further improvements. In combination with the dispersion efficiency of different dispersion methods, the study investigated the effect of additives on dispersion in particular and penetrability in general. Results showed that additives do not directly contribute to better dispersion, but they are necessary for better spread since they affect the flow properties.

Betong är ett av de vanligaste byggnadsmaterialen och har goda egenskaper som hög beständighet, god formbarhet och lång livslängd. Huvudbeståndsdelen cement orsakar däremot en negativ klimatpåverkan där tillverkningen av bindemedlet cement står för cirka 8 procent av världens koldioxidutsläpp. För att minska de stora koldioxidutsläppen finns det alternativa bindemedel där de vanligaste är flygaska och masugnsslagg, vilket är restprodukter från kolkraft- och stålindustrin. Alternativa bindemedel är det mest effektiva sättet på kort sikt att minska klimatpåverkan. Däremot kan inte de alternativa bindemedlen ersätta cement helt utan att tryckhållfastheten försämras, vilket gör att upp till 20 procent vanligtvis ersätts. För att byggbranschen i en större utsträckning ska tillämpa betong med lägre klimatpåverkan är det viktigt att egenskaperna är minst lika bra som hos traditionell betong. Uttorkningsegenskaperna är av stor vikt då uttorkningstiden är styrande för applicering av golvmaterial. När det kommer till hållfasthet tillverkas idag komponenter med överkvalité, vilket gör att en onödigt stor mängd cement används. Ett klimatsmart alternativ skulle vara att ändra nuvarande norm på klassificeringen av hållfastheten. Dagens norm klassificerar hållfastheten vid 28 dygn efter gjutning. Betong fortsätter dock att öka i hållfasthet efter 28 dygn, men ökningen är inte stor hos traditionell betong, medan betong med alternativa bindemedel fortsätter att härda i en högre grad efter 28 dygn. Skulle en klassificering av hållfastheten hos betong med lägre klimatpåverkan bestämmas i ett senare skede som 56 eller 91 dygn, skulle konstruktionens krav fortfarande uppfyllas samtidigt som mängden cement kan reduceras. Idag behöver byggprojekt vänta på uttorkningstiden, vilket medför att ett projekt sällan är färdigt redan vid 28 dygn. Det gör att byggnaden inte belastar betongplattan fullt ut vid 28 dygn och den potentiella hållfastheten behöver inte uppfyllas förrän i ett senare skede. Om hållfasthetsklassen sänks tillkommer dock ett högre vattencementtal, vilket gör att krav på uttorkningsegenskaperna ökar. Tillsammans med Skanska jämfördes i föreliggande arbete betongrecept med lägre klimatpåverkan i tryckhållfasthet och uttorkning. Det var två Portlandkompositcement av typen CEM II/B-M, med cirka 20 procent slagg eller flygaska. De jämfördes även mot en referensbetong av typen CEM II/A-LL. Provkropparna gjöts vid Skanskas betonglabb i Farsta och testades sedan för uttorkning och hållfasthet av auktoriserade företag. Studien tyder på att det inte finns någon anledning att välja bort slagg eller flygaska när det kommer tilltryckhållfasthet och uttorkning. Det går att argumentera för att betong med alternativa bindemedel har högre hållfasthet vid 7 och 28 dygn i jämförelse med traditionell betong i föreliggande arbete, där slaggbaserad betong är cirka 16 procent högre och betong med flygaska är cirka 5 procent högre. Hållfasthetsutvecklingen från 28 till 91 dygn tyder på att betong med alternativa bindemedel ökar med cirka 12 procent medan traditionell betong nästan stannar av, där hållfasthetsutvecklingen är cirka 4 procent. Det går att argumentera för att slaggbaserad betong har cirka 2 och 5 procent snabbare uttorkning vid 35 och 85 dygn i jämförelse med traditionell betong, medan betong med flygaska tenderar att torka ut minst lika bra vid 35 dygn och cirka 3 procent snabbare vid 85 dygn. Resultaten tyder på att vid en minskad hållfasthetsklass skulle betong med lägre klimatpåverkan inte medföra samma förlängda uttorkningstid som en traditionell betong. En klassificering i ett senare skede som 56 eller 91 dygn för betong med lägre klimatpåverkan indikerar på att konstruktionens krav fortfarande skulle uppfyllas, cementanvändningen reduceras och klimatpåverkan minskas. / Concrete is one of the most common building materials and possesses favorable properties such as high durability, good workability, and long lifespan. However, its main component, cement, has a negative climate impact, with cement production accounting for approximately 8 percent of the world's carbon dioxide emissions. To reduce these CO2 emissions alternative binders can be used. The most common being fly ash and blast furnace slag, which are by-products of the coal power and steel industries. Alternative binders are the most effective way to reduce climate impact. Alternative binders cannot completely replace cement without lose strength, which means that up to 20 precent is usually replaced. For the construction industry to more widely adopt concrete with lower climate impact, it is important that the properties are at least as good as those of traditional concrete. Drying properties are crucial since drying time dictates the application of flooring materials. In terms of strength, components are currently manufactured with high qualities, leading to unnecessary large amounts of cement being used. A climate-smart alternative would be to change the current norm for strength classification. Today strength classifies at 28 days after casting. Concrete continues to gain strength beyond 28 days, but the increase is not significant in traditional concrete, whereas concrete with alternative binders continues to cure to a greater extent after 28 days. If the strength classification were determined at a later stage, such as 56 or 91 days, the construction's requirements would still be met while reducing the amount of cement used. Today construction projects need to wait for the drying time, meaning a project is rarely completed at 28 days. This means the building does not fully load the concrete slab at 28 days, and the potential strength does not need to be achieved until a later stage. However, if the strength class is lowered the demands on drying increases. In collaboration with Skanska, concrete with lower climate impact was compered in terms of strength and drying. Two Portland composite cements of the type CEM II/B-M, around 20 percent of slag or fly ash, were compared to a reference concrete of the type CEM II/A-LL. The test specimens were cast at Skanska's concrete lab in Farsta and tested for strength and drying by authorized companies. The study suggests that there is no reason to avoid slag or fly ash concerning compressive strength and drying. It can be argued that concrete with alternative binders has higher strength at 7 and 28 days compared to traditional concrete, with slag-based concrete being approximately 16 percent stronger and fly ash concrete about 5 percent stronger. The strength development from 28 to 91 days indicates that concrete with alternative binders increases by about 12 percent, while traditional concrete almost levels off, with a strength development of about 4 percent. It can also be argued that slag-based concrete has about 2 and 5 percent faster drying at 35 and 85 days compared to traditional concrete, while fly ash concrete tends to dry at least as well at 35 days and about 3 percent faster at 85 days compared to traditional concrete. The results indicate that with a reduced strength class, concrete with lower climate impact would not entail the same extended drying time as traditional concrete. Classification at a later stage, such as 56 or 91 days, for concrete with lower climate impact indicates that the construction's requirements would still be met, cement usage would be reduced, and climate impact minimized.

[ES] En el ámbito de los materiales compuestos o composites para la construcción, el cemento reforzado con fibras de vidrio (GRC, del inglés glass fiber reinforced cement) es el más extensamente utilizado, por sus excelentes propiedades mecánicas (resistencia a flexión y tenacidad). Sin embargo, la durabilidad de estos composites se ha demostrado crítica, y es necesario proponer alternativas. Las fibras usadas, de carácter álcali-resistente (fibras AR, formadas por agrupación de filamentos), son atacadas por el medio agresivo que impone el cemento hidratado. Una alternativa interesante, desde el punto de vista tecnológico, es la incorporación de materiales cementantes suplementarios de carácter puzolánico. El objetivo del presente trabajo es estudiar la influencia de las diferentes adiciones activas en morteros de GRC, observando el comportamiento de los elementos constitutivos del material en condiciones normales de curado, y también al ser sometidos a procesos de envejecimiento controlado. Asimismo, se analiza el comportamiento de los nuevos composites sometidos a diferentes medios agresivos, evaluando la durabilidad y la mejora de los compuestos por medio de la determinación de sus propiedades mecánicas, químicas y físicas. Se han elaborado probetas de GRC a través del procedimiento de premezcla (premix) y se han determinado sus propiedades mecánicas (resistencia a flexión, tenacidad y módulo de elasticidad). Adicionalmente, se han cuantificado las ganancias de resistencia al comparar composites GRC basados en cemento Portland (especímenes control) con otros en los que se ha sustituido hasta el 60% de dicho cemento por adiciones puzolánicas. Al objeto de mejorar la reactividad de las puzolanas, en algunos casos se ha implementado un aumento de su finura a través de la molienda (cenizas volantes molidas, CVm) o de procesos de sonicación (humo de sílice sonicado, HSS). Los especímenes de GRC han sido sometidos a un proceso de envejecimiento (tratamiento en agua a 55ºC durante un período prolongado) y se ha observado un empeoramiento muy importante de la resistencia a flexión y la tenacidad de aquellos que poseen solamente cemento Pórtland como componente cementante. Los composites GRC que contienen cantidades elevadas de puzolana (60% de CVm) o mezclas de puzolanas (50%CVm / 10%HSS, 50%CVm / 10%FCC) presentan una mejora sustancial de las propiedades mecánicas con respecto a los GRC control. La mejora de estos sistemas GRC con elevados porcentajes de puzolanas reactivas se han confirmado a través de estudios físicos y físico - químicos: evaluación de densidad, absorción, estudios microscópicos (lupa y microscopía electrónica de barrido) y análisis termogravimétrico. En cuanto a la respuesta de los composites GRC frente a diferentes disoluciones agresivas, se ha demostrado el efecto beneficioso de la presencia de puzolanas. Después de la exposición de los morteros de GRC a una disolución de NH4Cl, el comportamiento mecánico de los morteros puzolánicos se mantiene por encima del mortero GRC control: esto se debe a la relación directa existente con el incremento de la densidad y la disminución de grado de absorción del composite con la sustitución puzolánica. Al evaluar las propiedades de los morteros de GRC después de su exposición a una disolución de H2SO4, se observan diferencias muy importantes en la evolución de la masa, resistencia a flexión y tenacidad: los composites control son más afectados por la acidez del medio, de modo que la pérdida de masa es muy significativa si se compara con los GRC que presentan puzolanas. La estancia en la empresa Saint Gobain Vetrotex, ha permitido confirmar una gran similitud en los resultados obtenidos mediante los procedimientos seguidos en el laboratorio de la UPV (compuestos de GRC premezclado) comparados con las prácticas desarrolladas por el laboratorio de materiales de la empresa (composites de GRC proyectado). Se han evaluado / [CAT] En l'àmbit dels materials compostos o compòsits per a la construcció, el ciment reforçat amb fibres de vidre (GRC, de l'anglès glass fiber reinforced cement) és el més extensament utilitzat, per les seves excel·lents propietats mecàniques (resistència a flexió i tenacitat). No obstant això, la durabilitat d'aquests compòsits s'ha demostrat crítica, i cal proposar alternatives. Les fibres usades, de caràcter àlcali-resistent (fibres AR, formades per agrupació de filaments), són atacades pel medi agressiu que imposa el ciment hidratat. Una alternativa interessant des del punt de vista tecnològic és la incorporació de materials cimentants suplementaris de caràcter putzolànic. L'objectiu d'aquest treball és estudiar la influència de les diferents addicions actives en morters de GRC, observant el comportament dels elements constitutius del material en condicions normals de curat, i també quan son sotmesos a processos d'envelliment controlat. Així mateix, s'analitza el comportament dels nous compòsits sotmesos a diferents mitjans agressius, avaluant la durabilitat i la millora dels compostos mitjançant la determinació de les seves propietats mecàniques, químiques i físiques. S'han elaborat provetes de GRC a través del procediment de mescla prèvia (premix) i s'ha determinat les seves propietats mecàniques (resistència a flexió, tenacitat, mòdul d'elasticitat). Addicionalment s'han quantificat els guanys de resistència al comparar compòsits GRC basats en ciment Portland (espècimens control) amb altres en què s'ha substituït fins al 60% d'aquest ciment per materials putzolànics. A l'objecte de millorar la reactivitat de les putzolanes, en alguns casos s'ha implementat un augment de la seva finor a través de la mòlta (cendres volants mòltes, CVm) o de processos de sonicació (fum de sílice sonicat, HSS). Els espècimens de GRC han estat sotmesos a un procés d'envelliment (tractament en aigua a 55ºC durant un període prolongat) i s'ha observat l'empitjorament molt significatiu de la resistència a flexió i la tenacitat d'aquells que posseeixen solament ciment Pòrtland com a component cimentant. Els compòsits GRC que contenen quantitats elevades de putzolana (60% de CVm) o mescles de putzolanes (50% CVm / 10% HSS, 50% CVm / 10% FCC) presenten una millora substancial de les propietats mecàniques respecte als GRC control. La millora d'aquests sistemes GRC amb elevats percentatges de putzolanes reactives s'han confirmat a través d'estudis físics i fisicoquímics: avaluació de densitat, absorció, estudis microscòpics (lupa i microscòpia electrònica de rastreig) i anàlisi termogravimètric. Pel que fa a la resposta dels compòsits GRC enfront de diferents dissolucions agressives, s'ha demostrat l'efecte beneficiós de la presència de putzolanes. Després de l'exposició dels morters de GRC a una dissolució de NH4Cl, el comportament mecànic dels morters putzolànics es millor que el morter GRC control: això es deu a la relació directa existent amb l'increment de la densitat i la disminució del grau d'absorció del compòsit amb la putzolana. Quan s¿ha avaluat les propietats dels morters de GRC després de la seva exposició a una dissolució H2SO4, s'observen diferències molt importants en l'evolució de la massa, resistència a flexió i tenacitat: els compòsits control són més afectats per l'acidesa del medi, de manera que la pèrdua de massa és molt significativa si es compara amb els GRC que presenten putzolanes. L'estada a l'empresa Saint Gobain Vetrotex, ha permès confirmar una gran similitud en els resultats obtinguts mitjançant els procediments seguits en el laboratori de la UPV (compostos de GRC amb premescla) comparats amb les pràctiques desenvolupades pel laboratori de materials de l'empresa (compostos de GRC projectat). S'han avaluat prototips per a la indústria de l'GRC projectat. / [EN] In the field of composite materials for construction, glass fiber reinforced cement (GRC) is the most widely used, due to its excellent mechanical properties (resistance to bending and toughness). However, the durability of these composites has been demonstrated to be critical and alternatives need to be proposed. The used fibers, alkali-resistant (AR fibers, formed by grouping of filaments), are attacked by the aggressive medium imposed by the hydrated cement. An interesting alternative, from a technological point of view, is the incorporation of supplementary cementitious materials of pozzolanic behaviour. The purpose of this research is to study the influence of the different mineral additions in GRC mortars, observing the behaviour of the constituent elements of the material under normal curing conditions and controlled aging processes. Likewise, the behaviour of new composites subjected to different aggressive environments is analyzed, evaluating the durability and improvement of the compounds by determining their mechanical, chemical and physical properties. GRC specimens have been produced through the premix procedure and their mechanical properties (flexural strength, toughness, and modulus of elasticity) have been determined. Additionally, resistance gains have been quantified when comparing GRC composites based on Portland cement (control specimens) with others in which up to 60% of that cement has been replaced by pozzolanic additions. In order to improve the reactivity of pozzolans, in some cases an increase in its fineness has been implemented through grinding (ground fly ash, CVm) or sonication processes (sonicated silica fume, HSS). The GRC specimens have been subjected to an aging process (treatment in water at 55ºC for an extended period) and worsening of the flexural strength and toughness of those who only have Portland cement as cementitious component has been observed. GRC composites containing high amounts of pozzolan (60% CVm) or mixtures of pozzolans (50% CVm / 10% HSS, 50% CVm / 10% FCC) show a substantial improvement in mechanical properties compared to the control GRC. The improvement of these GRC systems with high percentages of reactive pozzolans have been confirmed through physical and physical-chemical studies: evaluation of density, absorption, microscopic studies (magnifying glass and scanning electron microscopy), and thermogravimetric analysis. Regarding the response of GRC composites against different aggressive solutions, the beneficial effect of the presence of pozzolans has been demonstrated. After the exposure of the GRC mortars to a NH4Cl solution, the mechanical behavior of pozzolanic mortars remains above that of the control GRC mortar: this is due to the direct relationship existing with the increase in density and the decrease in the absorption of the composite with the pozzolanic replacement. When evaluating the properties of GRC mortars after exposure to an H2SO4 solution, very important differences are observed in the evolution of the mass, flexural strength and toughness: the control composites are more affected by the acidity of the medium, so that the loss of mass is very significant when compared to the GRCs that present pozzolans. The stay at the Saint Gobain Vetrotex company has confirmed a great similarity to the results obtained by the procedures followed at the UPV laboratory (premixed GRC compounds) compared to the practices developed by the company's materials laboratory (composites of projected GRC). Scalable prototypes have been assessed for the projected GRC industry. / Lalinde Castrillón, LF. (2020). Estudio de compuestos de GRC y adiciones activas: Propiedades mecánicas, envejecimiento acelerado y durabilidad [Tesis doctoral]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/157637

Concrete, one of the world’s most important building materials is formed when cement is mixed with aggregates and reacts with water. The reaction is called hydration. Production of cement involves conversion of limestone and clay minerals into cement clinker in a kiln at high temperatures. The process requires high amounts of energy and causes substantial carbon emissions due to calcination of limestone and combustion of fuels, and the need for carbon neutral clinker products have never been greater. Heidelberg Materials Cement Sverige AB has multiple ongoing projects to reduce the carbon footprint of their clinker products. In essence, this is made possible by diluting the clinker with supplementary cementitious materials (SCM), electrification of the kiln, and carbon capture and storage (CCS). During tests of such applications in pilot and industrial scales it is necessary to evaluate the cement clinker manufactured for its ability to act as a binder in concrete. Such properties are collectively termed hydraulic reactivity and depend on the rate and extent to which the anhydrous components (alite, belite, aluminate, ferrite) in the cement react with water to form structural strength. The primary hydration products are Calcium-silicate-hydrate (C-S-H) and portlandite (CH). Due to lack of routines for clinker reactivity testing, especially for small batches, new methods and guidelines for reactivity tests has become highly sought after. Therefore, this work has aimed to develop a method for laboratory grinding of clinkers and then to study their hydration reactions by isothermal conductive calorimetry (ICC), Rietveld refinement quantitative x-ray diffraction (XRD) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The goal of the work has been to provide a grinding method for laboratory cement preparation and a protocol for clinker reactivity evaluation. A fundamental requirement has been that the results of the methods must be comparable with Heidelberg Materials’ conventional standard methods. The work was initiated with a literature review on cement clinker manufacture, its hydration kinetics and reactivity tests. Industrial reference clinkers were used to develop the grinding method, and finally, reactivity tests with ICC, XRD and TGA were conducted on multiple clinkers of different origins. The grinding method developed in this work gave a fineness resembling the conventional grinding method but slightly coarser. Consequently, the heats measured in ICC for the clinkers studied were also comparable to previous analyses by conventional methods. This was a direct result of the reactivity being dependent on the specific surface area of the cement particles. Thanks to this, the newly developed grinding method and reactivity test by ICC may be incorporated into Heidelberg Materials standard methods. Hydrates formation and clinker mineral consumption were studied in XRD and TGA. The two techniques were used as cross-validation of one another. In summary, these yielded more in-depth information about the hydration of cements than provided by ICC and gave insights into what minerals and reactions were responsible for each clinker’s reactivity. However, the XRD and TGA results contained significant errors at some times, and further development is necessary before using them as part of a standard routine. This was mainly due to errors tied to sample preparation. Some necessary improvements are better Rietveld refinement, prevention of XRD sample carbonation, and addition of a separate ettringite analysis in TGA. Despite this, the methods show great promise, as highly correlating results were reached between methods when the sources of error were managed. For future work, it is suggested that the protocol is expanded and applied to also evaluate SCM’s. / Betong är ett av världens viktigaste byggmaterial och bildas när cement blandat med aggregat reagerar med vatten. Reaktionen kallas hydratation. Cement i sin tur tillverkas genom omvandling av kalksten och lermineraler till cementklinker vid hög temperatur i en roterugn. Denna process är mycket energikrävande och genererar stora koldioxidutsläpp från råmaterialen och bränslet. Till följd av detta har ett starkt och omedelbart behov av klimatvänliga klinkerprodukter uppstått. Heidelberg Materials Cement Sverige AB arbetar ständigt med att hitta nya lösningar till produktionen för att minska dess klimatavtryck. En viktig del i denna minskning är att späda ut klinkern med alternativa bindemedel (SCM), elektrifiering av bränningsprocessen och uppfångning samt lagring av koldioxid (CCS). Förändringar i den industriella processen förändrar dock klinkern vilket kan påverka cementets förmåga att agera som bindemedel i betong. Dessa egenskaper kallas kollektivt för hydraulisk reaktivitet, och beror på både hastigheten och i vilken utsträckning klinkermineralerna alit, belit, aluminat och ferrit hydratatiseras för att bilda calcium-silikat-hydrat (C-S-H) och portlandit (CH) och på så vis skapa tryckhållfasthet. I och med försök på industriell- och pilotnivå har det blivit önskvärt att kunna utvärdera reaktiviteten hos klinker. Eftersom det idag delvis fattas rutiner för detta, så har detta arbete syftat till att utveckla en metod för laboratoriemalning av klinker i små batcher, samt att studera hydratationen av den malda klinkern med isotermisk konduktions kalorimetri (ICC), kvantitativ röntgendiffraktion med Rietveld metoden (XRD) och termogravimetrisk analys (TGA). Projektets mål har varit att färdigställa en sådan malningsmetod och att förse företaget med ett protokoll för utvärdering av reaktiviteten. Ett grundläggande krav för de utvecklade metoderna är att deras resultat ska vara jämförbara med Heidelberg Materials konventionella standardmetoder. Arbetet sjösattes med en litteraturstudie på ämnet klinkerproduktion, cementhydratation och reaktivitetstester av cement och alternativa bindemedel. Därefter utvecklades malningsmetoden med hjälp av industriell referensklinker. Slutligen testades dessa och ett antal andra klinkers, både framställda i laboratorieugn och industriellt, för reaktivitet med ICC, XRD och TGA. Malningsmetodens resultat blev något grövre, men ändå i hög grad jämförbart med dagens konventionella metod. Denna skillnad är dock liten och förutsägbar. Därför blev också uppmätt värme i ICC jämförbart med tidigare värden från den konventionella metoden. På grund av den något grövre malningen, vilket leder till mindre reaktionsyta för cementet-vatten-fasen, så blev värmeutvecklingen i ICC alltid något lägre jämfört med den konventionella metoden, dock aldrig utanför gränserna för vad standardmetodens reproducerbarhet är. Tack vare detta dras slutsatsen att protokollet kommer vara relevant och lämpligt för introduktion i industrin. Cementens reaktivitet studerades också i högre detalj med hjälp av TGA och XRD, vilka användes för extern validering av varandra. Medan dessa metoder ger viktig information om varje enskild fas i den åldrande pastan, så är slutsatsen att de är i fortsatt behov av utveckling. Detta har mest att göra med provberedningen. Nödvändiga förbättringar är bättre Rietveld kvantifiering med fler prover och försiktigare provberedning för att förhindra karbonatisering av cementpastorna. TGA metoden kan enkelt förbättras och uppnå avsevärt bättre resultat endast genom införandet av en separat analys av ettringit. Trots detta så visar de två metoderna hög korrelation mellan varandra då provberedningen fungerat som avsett, vilket är lovande och innebär att man med dessa enkla förslag kan skapa en metod som ger information om ett cements reaktivitet i mycket högre detalj än vad som är möjligt med dagens standardmetoder. Som förslag till framtida arbeten ges att protokollet bör utökas till att även bedöma prestandan av alternativa bindemedel vid spädning av klinker. / Cemzero

Yes / This paper investigates the effect of cement based grout rheology on the injection process through coarse aggregate for producing preplaced aggregate concrete. Four different sands were used in the grout production at different water-cement ratios and cement-sand ratios. Superplasticiers and pulverised fuel ash were also employed in the grout production. Coarse aggregate of known weight was compacted into 150 mm cubic forms, and then the grout was injected through a plastic pipe under self weight into the stone ‘skeleton’. It has been found that there are threshold values of the rheological parameters beyond which full injection is not possible. In particular, all grout mixes with and without additives and admixtures exhibited the same yield stress threshold value for full injection, whereas the threshold values for other rheological properties including the grout plastic viscosity, flow time and speed were different according to the materials added to the mix.