Blast furnace slag (BFS) is a mortar additive in which the utilization of varied curing conditions and the basicity of BFS determine the fineness of the resulting mortar and, thereby, its salt prevention properties. This study evaluates and compares the salt-prevention properties of mortar prepared by either steam curing or water curing. The physical properties, for example, the BFS fineness, revealed the factors significantly affected by basicity that influence the salt-preventive properties of mortar in the specimens examined, such as the lead time and diffusion coefficient. Furthermore, these factors were also significantly affected by differences in curing conditions and other physical properties. However, few studies have examined its use in reducing chloride ion permeability as the main factor of corrosion reactions. Thus, this study evaluates specific surface, water/binder ratio (W/B), and curing conditions on the chloride penetration in cementitious materials with blast furnace slag as cement addition in terms of delaying chloride ion penetration, which affects corrosion reactions. Results of the study are intended to guide development of products for use in the precast concrete industry, toward extending the life of concrete structures, especially reinforced concrete structures in marine environments. In addition, the resulting durability measurements from the experiment conducted are illustrated. This study indicates that differences in Blaine size properties significantly influence water curing. Furthermore, results reveal the effects of combining BFS with various Blaine values and ratio-affecting properties on mortar. In conclusion, concrete materials that decrease durability against chloride attack and improve mechanical properties for precast manufacturer industrial applications are successfully developed in this study. In addition, the use of water-curing conditions, high Blaine value, high cement replacement ratio, and W/B tend to improve the general mechanical property performance and durability against chloride ion attack.
Accelerated curing is used for mass production in the precast concrete industry. Autogenous shrinkage and drying shrinkage occur in concrete, during and after accelerated curing. Thus, thermal cracks may occur in concrete due to both heating and cement hydration at early age, whereas drying shrinkage causes cracks after demolding. Ground granulated blast-furnace slag cement (GGBS), a byproduct in steel manufacture, has been used to improve concrete strength development during accelerated curing but poses a challenge of increased shrinkage. In this paper, two types of granulated blast-furnace slag cements were used to study mechanical and shrinkage properties of water cured and concrete subjected to accelerated curing. Limestone powder and gypsums, with two different types of fineness, were other additives used. An accelerated one day curing cycle was adopted that consisted of a 3 h delay period, heating to 65 °C, a peak temperature maintained for 3 h, and, finally, cooling. The results indicated that increment in gypsum fineness increased concrete expansion at one day for both sealed and accelerated cured concrete. In drying condition, similar shrinkage was observed. The addition of gypsum provided slightly lower shrinkage, and this may help to reduce cracking of concrete. Limestone powder improved concrete strength at early age. The difference in blast-furnace cement fineness did not have significant differences in compressive strengths, especially at 28 days.
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