Influence of limestone on the hydration of ternary slag cements

The hydration kinetics, microstructure and pore solution composition of ternary slag-limestone cement have been investigated. Commercial CEM I 52.5 R was blended with slag and limestone; maintaining a clinker to SCM ratio of 50:50 with up to 20% slag replaced by limestone. The sulphate content was maintained at 3% in all composite systems. Hydration was followed by a combination of isothermal calorimetry, chemical shrinkage, scanning electron microscopy, and thermogravimetric analysis. The hydration of slag was also followed by SEM image analysis and the QXRD/PONKCS method. The accuracy of the calibrated PONKCS phase was assessed on slag and corundum mixes of varying ratios, at different water/solid ratios. Thus, the method was used to analyse hydrated cement without dehydrating the specimens. The results show that the presence of limestone enhanced both clinker and slag hydration. The pore volume and pore solution chemistry were further examined to clarify the synergistic effects. The nucleation effects account for enhanced clinker hydration while the space available for hydrate growth plus the lowering of the aluminium concentration in the pore solution led to the improved slag hydration.