ACI Materials Journal, vol.108, no.5, pp.493-500, 2011 (SCI-Expanded)
This paper presents the results of an experimental investigation on the consistency, compressive strength, water sorptivity, chloride ion permeability, electrical resistivity, and sulfate resistance of mortars made with plain and blended cements. Plain (CEM 142.5 R) and blended cements, including portland pozzolana cements (CEM II A-P 42.5 R and CEM II B-P 32.5 R) and portland limestone cements (CEM II A-LL 42.5 and CEM II B-LL 32.5 R), were used in this study. Mortars with three different water-cement ratios (w/c) of 0.420, 0.485, and 0.550 were produced by using the plain and blended cements. In all the mixtures, the cement:.sand ratio was kept constant at 1:2.75 by weight. The compressive strengths of the mortar specimens were tested at 1, 3, 7, 28, 90, and 180 days. Moreover, the water sorptivity, chloride ion permeability, and electrical resistivity of the mortar specimens were measured at 7, 28, 90, and 180 days. The sulfate resistance of the mortars was evaluated by the length change of the mortar specimens up to 30 weeks of exposure. The test results revealed that the use of blended cements decreased the water sorptivity and chloride ion permeability while increasing the electrical resistivity and sulfate resistance of the mortars at later ages compared to the normal portland cements. Copyright © 2011, American Concrete Institute. All rights reserved,.