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Using Quasielastic Neutron Scattering Techniques To Quantify Freezable Water In Portland Cement Paste

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 February 2011

D.L. Gress
Affiliation:
University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire, USA
T. El-Korchi
Affiliation:
Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA
R.A. Livingston
Affiliation:
Federal Highway Administration, McLean Virginia, USA
D.A. Neumann
Affiliation:
National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA
J.J. Rush
Affiliation:
National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA
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Abstract

Quasi-elastic neutron scattering provides detailed information of the atomic and molecular interactions responsible for a material's properties and is a direct and nondestructive method of measuring the motion of hydrogen. This technique was utilized to evaluate the state of water in a cementitious material. The relative amount of freezable water that existed in a saturated type I portland cement paste with water/cement ratios of 0.3, 0.4, and 0.5 was determined over a temperature ranging from +3 C to - 40 C. The amount of frozen water relative to the total water content was related to the water filled pore size predicted to be freezable at each temperature. The proportion of immobilized water increased for all water cement ratios gradually with decreasing temperatures below 0 C until most of the water was immobile at -40 C. The relative proportion of immobile water at 3 C was found to be inversely related to the water/cement ratio, which suggested a smaller fraction of large pores for small water/cement ratios. The findings also suggested the immobilization water was independent of water/cement ratio for pores smaller than 15nm.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1995

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References

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