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Influence of fly ash fineness and shape on the porosity and permeability of blended cement pastes

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Abstract

The effects of the fineness and shape of fly ash on the porosity and air permeability of cement pastes were investigated. Pulverized coal combustion (PCC) fly ash and fluidized bed coal combustion (FBC) fly ash classified into three different finenesses were used. River sand with particle size distribution similar to that of fly ash was also used for comparison. Portland cement was replaced with fly ash and ground sand at the dosages of 0, 20wt%, and 40wt%. A water-to-binder ratio (w/b) of 0.35 was used throughout the experiment. The results show that the porosity and air permeability of the pastes are influenced by the shape, fineness, and replacement level of fly ash. The porosity and air permeability of FBC fly ash pastes are higher than those of PCC fly ash pastes. This is due to the higher irregular shape and surface of FBC fly ash compared to the spherical shape and relatively smooth surface of PCC fly ash. The porosity increases with the increase in fly ash replacement level and decreases with the increase in its fineness. The permeability of PCC fly ash pastes decreases with the increase in replacement level and fineness, while for FBC fly ash, the permeability increases with the increase in replacement level. Decreases in porosity and permeability are due to a combined effect of the packing of fine particles and the reaction of fly ash.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Civil Engineering, Suranaree University of Technology, Nakhon Ratchasima, 30000, Thailand

    Theerawat Sinsiri

  2. Department of Civil Engineering, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, 40002, Thailand

    Prinya Chindaprasirt

  3. Department of Civil Engineering, King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi, Bangkok, 10140, Thailand

    Chai Jaturapitakkul

Authors
  1. Theerawat Sinsiri
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  2. Prinya Chindaprasirt
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  3. Chai Jaturapitakkul
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Correspondence to Theerawat Sinsiri.

Additional information

This work was financially supported by the Thailand Research Fund (TRF) under TRF Senior Research Scholar Contact (No.RTA5080020) and the Ministry of Education of Thailand through Commission on Higher Education under the Ministry Staff Development Project.

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Sinsiri, T., Chindaprasirt, P. & Jaturapitakkul, C. Influence of fly ash fineness and shape on the porosity and permeability of blended cement pastes. Int J Miner Metall Mater 17, 683–690 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12613-010-0374-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12613-010-0374-9

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