The hydration and durability of cementitious materials are largely determined by the interaction between solid hydration products and water in the pores. This paper shows that drying shrinkage and sorption isotherms during early hydration can be explained by a progressive densification of the cement hydrates at sub-micrometre length scales. A simple conceptual model is presented to support this statement. The model predicts the evolution of self-desiccation during early hydration. The model predictions also align with recent results on C-S-H densification from proton nuclear magnetic resonance experiments. Overall, this indicates how nanoscale modelling can inform the current macroscopic models of concrete hygro-mechanics. This goes beyond the current state of the art, in that self-desiccation and sorption isotherms can now be predicted from the mix design, without other empirical inputs.

THE IMPACT OF C-S-H NANOSTRUCTURE ON AUTOGENOUS SHRINKAGE AND SORPTION ISOTHERMS

E. Masoero;G. Di Luzio;
2018-01-01

Abstract

The hydration and durability of cementitious materials are largely determined by the interaction between solid hydration products and water in the pores. This paper shows that drying shrinkage and sorption isotherms during early hydration can be explained by a progressive densification of the cement hydrates at sub-micrometre length scales. A simple conceptual model is presented to support this statement. The model predicts the evolution of self-desiccation during early hydration. The model predictions also align with recent results on C-S-H densification from proton nuclear magnetic resonance experiments. Overall, this indicates how nanoscale modelling can inform the current macroscopic models of concrete hygro-mechanics. This goes beyond the current state of the art, in that self-desiccation and sorption isotherms can now be predicted from the mix design, without other empirical inputs.
2018
SynerCrete’18: Interdisciplinary Approaches for Cement-based Materials and Structural Concrete: Synergizing Expertise and Bridging Scales of Space and Time
978-2-35158-212-1
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11311/1066657
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