| Summary: | Thesis (MTech (Civil Engineering))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2016. === The addition of certain fillers and additives in conventional concrete is imperative for improving its rheological properties. The effect of additives, namely limestone (LS) and superplasticisers (SP), on the hydration kinetics of self-compacting concrete (SCC) was investigated on cement paste scale. These additives interact mostly with cement paste, since aggregates are considered to be inert materials. An understanding of the effect of these additives on the hydration kinetics of cement paste is paramount to the design of an SCC with excellent properties.
Four CEM I 52.5N Portland cements from one supplier but produced at different factories, LS and two types of SP, were used in this research. The hydration kinetics were evaluated by monitoring the elastic modulus growth of the cement pastes. Different coefficients of the self-acceleration kinetics equation – the self-acceleration constant, characteristic time and real time of hydration – were used to establish the effect of different concentrations of SP with and without the optimum concentration of limestone (30%) on the hydration kinetics of cement pastes. As far as can be ascertained, this is the first time the rheokinetic model has been used to describe the initial hydration of SCC paste.
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