Early-Age Properties of Cement-Based Materials: II. Influence of Water-to-Cement Ratio

Published

September 1, 2009

Author(s)

Dale P. Bentz, Max A. Peltz, John A. Winpigler

Abstract

The influence of water-to-cement mass ratio (w/c) on early-age properties of cement-based materials is investigated using a variety of experimental techniques. Properties that are critical to the early-age performance of these materials are tested, including heat release, semi-adiabatic temperature, setting time, strength development, and autogenous deformation. Measurements of these properties using a single cement are presented for four different w/c, ranging from 0.325 to 0.425. Some of the measured properties are observed to vary widely within this range of w/c ratios. The heat release and setting time behaviors of cement pastes are contrasted. While early-age heat release is relatively independent of w/c, the measured setting times vary by several hours between the four w/c investigated in this study, indicating the fundamental differences between a physical process such as setting and heat release which is purely a quantification of chemical reaction. While decreasing w/c certainly increases compressive strength at equivalent ages, it also significantly increases autogenous shrinkage and semi-adiabatic temperature rise, both of which can increase the propensity for early-age cracking in cement-based materials.

Citation

Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering

Volume

21

Issue

9

Pub Type

Journals

Download Paper

Local Download

Keywords

autogenous deformation, building technology, calorimetry, cement-based materials, early-age cracking, water-to-cement ratio

Citation

Bentz, D. , Peltz, M. and Winpigler, J. (2009), Early-Age Properties of Cement-Based Materials: II. Influence of Water-to-Cement Ratio, Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=861488 (Accessed April 26, 2024)