Full Text

Title
Properties of mortars with binary and ternary blended

cementitious materials
Advisor(s)
Kwan, AKH
Author(s)
Li, Yan;
Citation
Issued Date
URL
Rights
2012
http://hdl.handle.net/10722/173879
The author retains all proprietary rights, (such as patent rights)

and the right to use in future works.
PROPERTIES OF MORTARS WITH BINARY AND

TERNARY BLENDED CEMENTITIOUS MATERIALS
LI YAN
M.PHIL. THESIS
THE UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG

2012

by
LI YAN
(
)
B.Eng. (Civil Engineering),

Huazhong University of Science and Technology
A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for

the Degree of Master of Philosophy
at The University of Hong Kong
September 2012
Abstract of thesis entitled

Submitted by
LI Yan
for the Degree of Master of Philosophy

at The University of Hong Kong
in September 2012
During the past few decades, concrete technology has been developing
rapidly followed with huge popularity of high-performance concrete (HPC).
However, the mix design for HPC still remains a major challenge due to the wide
adoption of mineral and chemical admixtures, the effects of which are rather
complicated and not yet fully understood. To resolve this issue, this thesis
presents a comprehensive experimental study focused on the physical effects of
some supplementary cementitious materials (SCM) on the fresh and hardened
properties of mortar. Based on the experimental results, some fundamental
parameters governing the performance of mortar were investigated.
It has been postulated by some researches that increasing the packing

density of the particle system would improve the rheology and strength of
concrete. Through adding SCM finer than cement to increase the packing density,
the voids between solid particles will be reduced so that more excess water can be
released to provide better lubrication. Through adding two kinds of SCMs with
different fineness, the packing density will be further enhanced by the successive
filling action. In this study, a wet packing method, which is newly developed at
the University of Hong Kong, was used to directly measure the packing densities
of mortars with binary and ternary blended cementitious materials. The filling
effect and successive filling action were both quantified through the packing
density results.
The study revealed that the addition of fine SCM will, not only increase
the packing density, but also increase the solid surface area, which will have
negative effect on the rheology of mortar. To combine the effects of water content,
packing density and solid surface area together, we proposed a new parameter
called water film thickness (WFT), defined as the average thickness of water films
coating the solid particles and evaluated as the excess water to solid surface area
ratio. The results demonstrated that the WFT plays a key role in controlling the
rheology and strength of mortar. Hence, it is the WFT, rather than the packing
density, that should be maximized at given water content in the mix design of
HPC. The addition of fine SCM will increase both the excess water content and
solid surface area. The effects on the both sides can be quantified by the WFT no
matter how complex the cementitious system is. Therefore, the WFT could be
used as an effective indicator to adjust the SCM content. Joint addition of fine
SCM at different level finer than cement to make a ternary cementitious system
can effectively increase the packing density without excessively increasing the
solid surface area. As a result, the ternary cementitious system has higher
effectiveness than the binary cementitious system in improving the performance
of mortar.
(446words)
Dedicated to My Beloved Family
DECLARATION
I declare that this thesis represents my own work, except where due
acknowledgement is made, and that it has not been previously included in a thesis,
dissertation or report submitted to this University or to any other institution for a
degree, diploma or other qualification.
Signed
LI Yan
Date
-i-
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The author is particularly grateful to his supervisor, Professor A.K.H.

Kwan, for his invaluable advice and guidance throughout the study. The author
learnt and grew a lot during the many times of talks with him. His insightful
inspiration, far vision and generous encouragement benefited the author greatly
during the past two years and will remain precious wealth in the authors life.
Without his unconditional support, the authors postgraduate study will never be
achievable.
The author would like to thank all the staff members in the Department of
Civil Engineering, the undergraduate student research assistants and final year
project students for their assistance in the experimental works. Sincere thanks are
also to the authors fellow postgraduate colleagues in the University of Hong
Kong, including J.J. Chen, H.W. Zhang, C.C.Y. Leung, L.G. Li, M. McKinley,
K.W. Chan and V. Wong, for their kind collaboration. The author would like to
thank the Research Grants Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region for the studentship it offered.
The last but not the least, words cannot express the authors immense
gratitude to his beloved parents and girlfriend for their understanding and support
throughout the authors postgraduate study.
- ii -
CONTENTS
DECLARATION
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
ii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
iii
LIST OF TABLES
vi
LIST OF FIGURES
vii
LIST OF SYMBOLS
viii
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
ix
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
1.1
Background
1.2
Development of High-Performance Concrete
1.3
Three-Tier Mix Design Approach
1.4
Development of Green Concrete
1.5
Objectives of Research
1.6
Organization of Thesis
CHAPTER 2: EXPERIMENTAL PROGRAM

2.1
Measurement of Packing Density
10
2.2
Determination of Water Film Thickness
11
2.3
Measurement of Flowability
12
2.4
Measurement of Rheological properties
13
2.5
Measurement of Adhesiveness
15
2.6
Measurement of Strength
15
CHAPTER 3: BINARY CEMENTITIOUS SYSTEM CONTAINING FLY

ASH MICROSPHERE
3.1
Introduction
19
3.2
Materials
22
3.3
Experimental Program
23
3.4
Test Methods
24
- iii -
3.5
Experimental Results
25
3.5.1 Packing density and voids ratio
25
3.5.2 Water film thickness
26
3.5.3 Flow spread and flow rate
27
3.5.4 Yield stress and apparent viscosity
28
3.5.5 Correlation between flowability and rheological properties
28
3.5.6 Adhesiveness
29
3.5.7 Cube strength
30
3.6
Concurrent Strength-Flowability Performance
32
3.7
Conclusions
32
CHAPTER 4: TERNARY CEMENTITIOUS SYSTEM CONTAINING FLY

ASH MICROSPHERE AND CONDENSED SILICA FUME
4.1
Introduction
47
4.2
Materials
50
4.3
51
4.4
Test Methods
52
4.5
53
53
54
4.5.3 Flow spread
56
4.5.4 Flow rate
57
4.5.5 Yield stress
58
4.5.6 Apparent viscosity
59
4.5.7 Adhesiveness
60
4.5.8 Cube strength
61
4.6
Concurrent Strength-Flowability Performance
62
4.7
Conclusions
62
CHAPTER 5: TERNARY CEMENTITIOUS SYSTEM CONTAINING

SUPERFINE CEMENT AND CONDENSED SILICA FUME
5.1
Introduction
77
5.2
Materials
80
5.3
81
- iv -
5.4
Test Methods
82
5.5
83
5.5.1 Packing density and water film thickness
83
85
86
5.5.4 Adhesiveness
86
5.5.5 Cube strength
86
Roles of Water Film Thickness
87
5.6.1 Effects of WFT on flow spread and flow rate
88
5.6.2 Effects of WFT on yield stress and apparent viscosity
89
5.6.3 Effect of WFT on adhesiveness
90
5.6.4 Effect of WFT on cube strength
91
Conclusions
91
5.6
5.7
CHAPTER 6: CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

6.1
Summary of Study
104
6.1.1 Role of packing density
105
6.1.2 Role of water film thickness
105
6.1.3 Effects of fly ash microsphere
106
6.1.4 Effects of superfine cement
107
6.1.5 Effects of condensed silica fume
107
6.1.6 Effects of ternary blended system
108
6.2
Conclusions
108
6.3
Recommendations for Future Work
111
REFERENCES
112
LIST OF PUBLICATIONS DURING CANDIDATURE
118
-v-
List of Tables
Table
Page
3.1
Chemical compositions of OPC and FAM
34
3.2
Mix proportions, packing density and WFT
35
3.3
Flowability, rheological properties, adhesiveness and strength
36
4.1
64
4.2
66
5.1
93
5.2
94
- vi -
List of Figures
Figure
Page
2.1
(a) Mini slump cone; (b) Mini V-funnel
16
2.2
Rheometer, shear vane and container
17
2.3
Details of apparatus for stone rod adhesion test
18
3.1
Particle size distributions of FAM, OPC and fine aggregate
37
3.2
Scanning electron microscope image of FAM
38
3.3
Variations of packing density and voids ratio with FAM content
39
3.4
Variation of WFT with W/S ratio at different FAM contents
40
3.5
Flowability versus WFT
41
3.6
Rheological properties versus WFT
42
3.7
Correlation between flowability and rheological properties
43
3.8
Adhesiveness versus WFT
44
3.9
Cube strength versus W/CM ratio and WFT
45
3.10 Concurrent strength and flowability performance
46
4.1
Particle size distributions of CSF, FAM, OPC and fine aggregate
68
4.2
Variation of WFT with W/S ratio at different FAM and CSF contents
69
4.3
Flow spread versus W/S ratio and WFT
70
4.4
Flow rate versus W/S ratio and WFT
71
4.5
Yield stress versus W/S ratio and WFT
72
4.6
Apparent viscosity versus W/S ratio and WFT
73
4.7
Adhesiveness versus W/S ratio and WFT
74
4.8
Cube strength versus W/S ratio and WFT
75
4.9
Concurrent cube strength and flowability performance
76
5.1
Particle size distributions of CSF, SFC, OPC and fine aggregate
95
5.2
Variation of WFT with W/S ratio at different SFC and CSF contents
96
5.3
Flowability versus W/S ratio
97
5.4
Rheological properties versus W/S ratio
98
5.5
Adhesiveness versus W/S ratio
99
5.6
Flowability versus WFT
100
5.7
Rheological properties versus WFT
101
5.8
Adhesiveness versus WFT
102
5.9
Cube strength versus WFT
103
- vii -
List of Symbols
, ,
Symbols Denoting Different Types of Cementitious Materials
Solid Concentration
max
Maximum Solid Concentration
Shear Rate
Solid Density of Cementitious Material
Solid Density of Fine Aggregate
Density of Water
Shear Stress
Yield Stress
Specific Surface Area of Cementitious Material
AM
Specific Surface Area of Solid Particles in Mortar
As
Specific Surface Area of Fine Aggregate
Mass of Mixture inside Container
Volumetric Ratio of Material to Total Solid Content
Rs
Volumetric Ratio of Fine Aggregate to Total Solid Content
Volume of Container
Empirical Rheological Coefficient (Non-Dimensional)
Voids Ratio
uw
Water Ratio
uw
Excess Water Ratio
- viii -
List of Abbreviations
CSF
Condensed Silica Fume
FAM
Fly Ash Microsphere
HPC
High-Performance Concrete
HSC
High-Strength Concrete
OPC
Ordinary Portland Cement
SCM
Supplementary Cementitious Material
SFC
Superfine Cement
SP
Superplasticizer
W/C ratio
Water/Cement Ratio
W/CM ratio
Water/Cementitious Materials Ratio
W/S ratio
Water/Solid Ratio
WFT
Water Film Thickness
- ix -
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background
In less than one century, concrete has rapidly gained its popularity and it is
nowadays the most widely used construction material in the world. According to
CEMBUREAU, in 1900, the total world production of cement was about 10
million tonnes; in 1998 it was 1.6 billion tonnes. Glavind and Munch-Petersen
[2002] calculated and reported that the annual consumption of concrete was about
5 billion m3 in 2002 world widely. Almost at the same time, Mehta [2001]
predicted that the demand of concrete would double every decade. Time has
proved Mehtas prediction and now it is estimated that over 10 billion m3 of
concrete are produced each year. Due to the huge quantity of consumption, its
performance and environmental footprint on the earth are of great importance.
The use of concrete can be traced back to the Roman Empire, when
Roman concrete was made from quicklime, pozzolana and an aggregate of pumice.
After the Empire passed, use of concrete became scarce until the technology was
re-pioneered in the mid-18th century. The past 50 years has witnessed the
significant evolvement in concrete technology. Before the 1960s, concrete was
still a mixture of only cement, water and aggregates. The concrete produced then
was mostly 1:2:4 or 1:1:2 (Portland cement: fine aggregate: coarse aggregate)
nominal mix whose compressive strength was usually between 15 to 25 MPa.
Although the water/cement (W/C) ratio had been known as the controlling factor
governing the strength, the water content was not specified in the common mix
design of concrete. Hence, the poor and varied quality of concrete could be
expected.
The earliest need for concrete was from the aspect of a higher strength.
Lowering the W/C ratio is an effective way but limited by the workability
requirement. There should be sufficient workability for the concrete to achieve
-1-
adequate compaction at the low W/C ratio [Neville, 1995]. It was reported that
Parrott [1969] had produced concrete with 28-day cube strengths of 80-110 MPa
using just ordinary Portland cement (OPC), rock aggregate and water. But due to
the adoption of the very low W/C ratios of 0.20-0.30, the concrete mixes only had
a slump smaller than 25 mm. Until the high-range water reducers or known
presently as superplasticizers (SP) was developed almost simultaneously in Japan
and Germany in the 1970s [Hattori, 1978; Meyer, 1979], this situation started a
great change. The SP could significantly improve the workability of concrete or
reduce the water demand so that the W/C ratio could be reduced to achieve higher
strength. In recent years, with the newest generation polycarboxylate-based SP
being developed and applied, the strength or workability performance of concrete
is further improved and now much higher than ever before [ACI Committee 212,
2004; Collepardi and Valente, 2006].
The condensed silica fume (CSF), which is a by-product of semiconductor

industry, was found to be an excellent mineral admixture to effectively enhance
the performance of concrete especially when it was added together with SP. The
CSF is not only a highly reactive pozzolan, but also of high fineness, the particles
of which are about 100 times smaller than the ones in cement. Both of the two
attributes are beneficial to the strength of concrete. The extremely fine particles of
CSF can pack tightly against the surface of the aggregate and fill in the voids
between cement particles thus greatly improve the packing. As a result, the size
and volume of voids near the surface of the aggregate was reduced, the quality of
transition zone was improved so as the bond between the aggregate and cement
paste. Hence, the strength was significantly increased as well as the durability due
to the decreased permeability. With proper addition of SP and CSF, a very high
concrete strength of up to 150 MPa can be produced, being mainly limited by the
aggregate used [Kwan et al., 1995].
The high strength of concrete allows the designer to use smaller columns
and, therefore, reduce the total weight of tall buildings, and hence, decrease the
load on the foundations. Moreover, the horizontal area occupied by the columns
would be reduced so that there would be more usable area, which is of high
economical value in the place where land is scarce, like in Hong Kong. The
-2-
development of high-strength concrete (HSC) was very fast after first introduced
in 1990 [Read and MacArthur, 1990]. Later, Grade 100 HSC was used in 1996 in
Hong Kong [MacArthur and Read, 1996]. Besides the pleasant high strength, the
early HSC was considered to have two major problems, high cement content and
brittle failure respectively. The high cement content resulted in large thermal
expansion/contraction at the early age and large dying shrinkage at the later age,
hence, unsatisfactory dimensional stability of the HSC. On the other hand, the
brittleness of HSC would reduce the ductility to a dangerously low level. To avoid
such brittle failure, the concrete strength is suggested not to exceed 80% of the
ceiling strength in the mix design [Kwan, 2003]. To avoid the high cement content
in concrete, other ways to lower the water/cementitious materials (W/CM) ratio,
besides single increasing the cement content, should be established.
After many years of development of HSC, the emphasis has moved from
the very high strength to other properties under different circumstances. The
market has been demanding the concrete that has not only high strength but also
all around high performance in terms of workability, dimensional stability and
durability, which promoted a dramatic advancement of high-performance concrete
(HPC) since 1990s. Now it is not difficult to produce a HPC having a
characteristic cube strength higher than 100 MPa, a workability high enough for
pumping up to higher than 300 m and placing without vibration, a temperature
rise small enough to render cooling during curing unnecessary and a durability
good enough to endure more than one century even for the concrete structures in
marine environment. There is no doubt that concrete technology is one of the most
rapidly advancing areas in civil engineering in the last twenty years.
1.2 Development of High-Performance Concrete

To produce HPC, a low W/CM is still an essence due to the requirements
of strength and durability. However, it is not possible to unlimitedly reduce the
W/CM ratio since the water should be more than sufficient to fill the voids
between the cement grains so that provide the water-solid mixture workability.
-3-
Powers [1963] proposed a similar excess paste theory, indicating that it is the
excess paste (paste in excess of that needed to fill the voids between aggregate
particles) that gives the mortar or concrete workability. Hence, how low the
W/CM ratio could be reduced is dependent on the workability requirements
whereas the workability of concrete mixes is dependent on the packing density of
solid particles and water content together. In general, the most difficult part in
producing HPC lies on the facts that the various required performance attributes,
like high strength, high workability, high durability and high dimensional stability
and so on, usually impose contradictory requirements on the mix parameters to be
adopted. For example, increasing the strength usually leads to decrease in
workability and vice versa, and increases in both strength and workability might
have to be achieved at the expense of a lower dimensional stability. As a result,
the mix design has remained a difficult task since the very beginning of the
development of HPC.
Supplementary cementitious materials (SCM) were found of great benefits

in producing HPC. Firstly, the fine SCM can increase the packing density so that
improve the flowability of concrete at a low W/CM ratio. Since the fine SCM
blended with cement will fill the voids between the cement grains so that the
water trapped in those voids will be released as excess water (water in excess of
that needed to fill up the voids) to provide better lubrication [Feng et al., 2000;
Kwan, 2000; Yahia et al., 2005]. Secondly, partly replacement of cement by SCM
will improve the dimensional stability at the same time maintain sufficient
strength and workability. The use of fly ash to replace cement in concrete was
recorded about forty year ago in many countries [ACI Committee 226, 1987]. In
2000, the utilization rate of fly ash in Hong Kong is 93.7%, which ranked the
highest in the world according to Malhotras study [2000]. Other SCM, including
ground granulated blast slag, rice husk ash, metakaolin, etc., are added more
commonly than before in the production of HPC. Due to they are usually industry
by-products, addition of SCM can not only reduce the costs and improve the
performance of concrete, but also benefits the greening of concrete industry in the
long run.
-4-
However the effects of SCM on the fresh state properties of concrete are
still elusive as reflected by the different or even contradictory results reported by
different researchers. In 1986, Kohno and Komatsu [1986] reported that the
addition of CSF would, at same W/CM ratio and SP dosage, decrease the
flowability of a mortar. Later in 1998, Duval and Kadri [1998] yet demonstrated
that the addition of CSF had no adverse effect on concrete workability if the
replacement content was no more than 10% by mass. In 1999, Collins and
Sanjayan [1999] found that the addition of ultrafine fly ash could increase the
flowability but the addition of ultrafine slag would slightly decrease the
flowability. Then, in 2001, Gao et al. [2001] reported that replacement of cement
by superfine slag up to 20% could improve the workability. These studies focused
on the single addition of one kind of SCM whereas situation might be more
complex when a ternary cementitious system is used. Without a clear and
fundamental understanding of the mechanism that how SCM influence concretes
rheology, it is never possible to develop a scientific and systematic design method
to use SCM in HPC.
Based on the experimental results obtained during the authors

postgraduate study, it is found that not only the packing density of the particle
system but also the solid surface area would majorly govern the rheology of
cement paste/mortar/concrete. This is considered to be one of the reasons that the
addition of SCM might or might not improve the flowability, due to the relative
magnitudes of the two opposite effects. Actually these two major governing
parameters could be simply combined into one single parameter called water film
thickness, taken as the average thickness of water films coating the solid particles
and evaluated as the excess water to solid surface area ratio. Besides the water
film thickness, the effects of particle interaction, for example, the ball bearing
effect of some SCM particles would also play important roles in the rheology of
concrete. The afore-mentioned theories of packing of solid particles, water film
thickness, and particle interaction lie on the scope of particuology, which refers to
the science of particle systems. Research on these theories is still preliminary but
in the authors belief, could transform the traditional concrete technology, which
is more know-how oriented, into modern concrete science, which is more know-
-5-
why oriented. The roles of these new concepts in the performances of HPC will be
presented and discussed in details in the later chapters.
1.3 Three-Tier Mix Design Approach

To systematically develop a mix design guideline for HPC, the authors
research team launched a three-tier system, which categorizes the concrete mix
into three tiers, as depicted below:
Cement paste: cementitious materials + water + SP

Mortar: cement paste + aggregate particles smaller than 1.2 mm
Concrete mix: mortar + aggregate particles larger than 1.2 mm
Compared with the conventional two-tier system, which categorizes the

concrete mix into only cement paste and concrete mix, this new developed threetier system has one additional tier the mortar. This categorization comes from
the observation that even when the concrete mix is showing serious signs of
segregation, the aggregate particles smaller than 1.2 mm tend to stay with the
cement paste. Therefore, it is believed that the aggregates with particles smaller
than 1.2 mm behave differently from the ones with particles larger than 1.2 mm.
The coherent mixture of cement paste and aggregate particles smaller than 1.2 mm,
which is the mortar formed, should have great impact on the performance of
concrete mix. But the common definition of fine aggregate is that aggregate with
particles smaller than 4.75 mm, which, from the authors point of view, should be
further divided. When the aggregates size ranges between 1.2 and 4.75 mm, they
wont be cohered with the cement paste to form mortar so that they should be
taken into consideration separately with the aggregates smaller than 1.2mm in the
mix design. This finer division into three tiers is also from the hope of developing
a more optimum mix design method. The authors postgraduate study focuses on
the mortar tier to investigate the effects of different SCM through the concepts of
packing density, water film thickness and particle interaction.
-6-
1.4 Development of Green Concrete

With the increasing public concerns about sustainable development, the
concept of green concrete is raised with high frequency. In the authors point of
view, the HPC itself, which consists of high volume replacing SCM and renders
less total volume of concrete for structural needs and longer service life, is also a
kind of green concrete and the experience of developing HPC would be of high
value in the development of green concrete. In general, green concrete can be
defined as concrete with less cement consumption due to its energy-intensive
production process together with the large amount of carbon emissions it accounts
for. It is widely accepted that producing one ton of cement releases approximately
one ton of carbon dioxide, and the yearly cement production would be responsible
for about 7-8% of global loading of carbon dioxide released the atmosphere
finally [Malhotra, 1999; Mehta, 1999]. Using SCM to replace cement in the
production of HPC would be of great potential to mitigate this problem. There
have been extensive proposals to develop new SCM to minimize the cement
consumption. On the other hand, the conservation of aggregate should be also
concerned in green concrete. Researches on recycled concrete, post-consumer
glass, recycled tires and other recycled materials have been in progress. Moreover,
Mehta [2001] pointed out that by better aggregate grading and by expanding the
use of SCMs and SP, the yearly global mixing water amount, which is 1 trillion
litres by then, can be cut in half. In a word, green concrete will be the major trend
of concrete industry and the use of SCM and the science of particuology will play
important roles in the development of green concrete for future.
1.5 Objectives of Research

The objectives of this research are summarized as follows:
To estimate a comprehensive mechanism explaining how the SCM
improve the overall performance of mortar.

2
To investigate the role of packing density, water film thickness and
-7-
particle interaction in the fresh and hardened properties of mortar.

3
To study the effects of fly ash microsphere (FAM) on improving the
packing density, rheology and strength of mortar.

4
To study the effects of superfine cement (SFC) on improving the packing
density, rheology and strength of mortar.

5
To study the effects of ternary blending FAM and CSF on improving the

6
To study the effects of ternary blending SFC and CSF on improving the

7
To investigate the combined effects of the particle interaction and water
film thickness on rheology and strength of mortar.
1.6 Organization of Thesis

The organization of this thesis is established as follows:
Chapter 2 presents the experimental program of measurement of packing

density, rheology and strength of mortar. The test methods adopted for these
measurements are stated in detail in this chapter. A new wet packing method is
developed and a new parameter, water film thickness, is proposed and evaluated
from the packing density result.
Chapter 3 investigates the effects of fly ash microsphere (FAM) on

packing density, rheology and strength of mortar through 22 mortar samples with
different FAM contents at various W/CM ratios. The effects of FAM on the fresh
and hardened properties in mortar are illustrated and the concurrent strengthflowability performance of FAM mortar is examined. The effect of FAM on water
film thickness and the role of water film thickness in various performances of
mortar are discussed in the in-depth analysis.
Chapter 4 extends the study in Chapter 3 to further evaluates the effects of

combined addition of FAM and CSF on packing density, rheology and strength of
-8-
mortar through 42 mortar samples with different FAM and CSF contents at
various W/CM ratios. The effects of FAM and CSF on these properties under
varying W/CM ratios are illustrated and the overall strength-flowability of mortar
is examined. The effects of FAM and CSF on water film thickness and the role of
water film thickness on various performances of mortar are discussed with indepth analysis. The filling effect, ball bearing effect and CSF-slurry effect are
studied preliminarily in this chapter.
Chapter 5 studies the effect of combined addition of SFC and CSF on

packing density, rheology and strength of mortar through 27 mortar samples with
different SFC and CSF contents at various W/CM ratios. The effects of SFC and
CSF on water film thickness and the role of water film thickness on various
performances of mortar are discussed with in-depth analysis.
-9-
CHAPTER 2
EXPERIMENTAL PROGRAM
2.1 Measurement of Packing Density

The packing density of the particle system was measured by a wet packing
method with the solid particles mixed with water so that the solid particles were
under wet condition. Basically, the wet packing method determines the packing
density of the solid particles in a mortar as the maximum solid concentration of
the solid particles that can be achieved at different water/solid (W/S) ratios. This
method usually starts the measurement at a relatively high W/S ratio and reduces
the W/S ratio until the measured solid concentration had increased to a peak value
and started to decrease. Usually six to eight samples would be made to conduct
this measurement. The detailed procedures are summarized as below:
i)
Set the W/S ratio at which the test is to be carried out. Weigh the required
amounts
of
water,
cementitious
materials,
fine
aggregate
and
superplasticizer and dose each ingredient into a separate container.

ii)
Pre-mix the cementitious materials with fine aggregate in dry for 2

minutes to improve the uniformity of the aggregate sample.
iii)
Add all the water into the mixing bowl.
iv)
Add half of the cementitious materials, fine aggregate and superplasticizer

into the mixing bowl and run the mixer at low speed for 3 minutes.
v)
Add
the
remaining
cementitious
materials,
fine
aggregate
and
superplasticizer in four times with four equal portions and after each
addition run the mixer for 3 minutes.
vi)
Transfer the mixture to a cylindrical container and fill the container in

three to five layers. In each layer, compaction is applied to rule out the
trapped air. After the last layer, remove the excess mortar with a straight
edge. Weigh the amount of mixture in the container.
vii)
Repeat steps (i) to (vi) at successively lower W/S ratios until the maximum
solid concentration has been obtained.
- 10 -
From the test results obtained, the solid concentration of the solid particles
in the mortar can be determined as follows. Define M as the mass of the mixture
in the container while V as the volume of the cylindrical container which has been
known. The wet bulk density of the mortar mix is equal to M/V and the solid
concentration can be worked out as:
M V
wuw + R + R + R + s Rs
(2.1)
where w is the density of water, , and are the densities of the cementitious
material , and , s is the solid densities of fine aggregate, uw is the water ratio
(same as the W/S ratio by volume) and R, R, R and Rs are the volumetric ratios
of , , and fine aggregate to the total solid content. The maximum value of so
obtained is taken as the packing density of the solid particles in mortar.
2.2 Determination of Water Film Thickness

Based on the packing density result, the voids ratio of the particle system
can be determined as:
u=
1 max
(2.2)
max
where u is the voids ratio (the ratio of the volume of voids in the bulk volume to
the solid volume of the solid particles) and max is the maximum solid
concentration of the solid particles. From the voids ratio so determined, the excess
water ratio of the mortar can be evaluated as:
u w = uw u
(2.3)
where uw is the excess water ratio and uw is the water ratio (same as the W/S ratio
by volume) of the mortar. This excess water ratio has the physical meaning of
- 11 -
being the amount of excess water in the mortar per solid volume of the particles.
Meanwhile, the specific surface area (defined as solid surface area per unit solid
volume) in the mortar AM can be calculated as:
AM = A R + A R + A R + As Rs
(2.4)
in which A, A, A and As are respectively the specific surface areas of

cementitious materials , and and fine aggregate, while R, R, R and Rs are
respectively the volumetric ratios of , , and fine aggregate to the total solid
volume. With the values of uw and AM so obtained, the water film thickness (WFT)
can be calculated as:
WFT =
u w'
AM
(2.5)
2.3 Measurement of Flowability

The flowability of each mortar sample was evaluated in terms of flow
spread and flow rate using the mini slump cone test and mini V-funnel test
respectively. Both of the mini slump cone and mini V-funnel tests for mortar
could be considered as reduced scale versions of the slump and V-funnel tests for
concrete. In this study, the mini slump cone and mini V-funnel tests adopted were
the same as those used by Okamura and Ouchi [2003]. The mortar samples to be
tested are prepared by the same mixing procedure as in the wet packing test. The
dimensions of the slump cone and V-funnel are shown in Figure 2.1(a) and Figure
2.1(b) respectively.
The procedures of the mini slump cone test are detailed as follows:
i)
Place the slump cone at the centre of a leveled, flat and smooth steel plate.
- 12 -
ii)
Pour the mortar slowly into the slump cone until the slump cone is
completely filled up and trowel flat the mortars top surface with a straight
edge.
iii)
Lift the slump cone gently and allow the mortar to flow and spread till
stoppage.
iv)
Measure the diameters of the mortar patty formed at two perpendicular

directions, calculate the average diameter and take the average diameter
minus the base diameter of the slump cone as the flow spread of the mortar.
The procedures of the mini V-funnel test are detailed as follows:
i)
Mount the V-funnel on a stable stand and keep the opening at the bottom
closed.
ii)
Pour the mortar into the V-funnel slowly along the inner surface until the
V-funnel is completely filled up. Trowel flat the mortars top surface with
a straight edge.
iii)
Open the opening of the V-funnel and start timing. Take the time from the
start of the flow to the first appearance of light through the opening as the
flow time of the mortar.
As the flowability of the mortar is inversely proportional to the flow time,

the test result is transferred in terms of the flow rate, which can be calculated as
the volume of the mortar in the V-funnel divided by the flow time.
2.4 Measurement of Rheological properties

The shear vane test was used to evaluate the rheological properties of the
mortar samples. It was carried out using a speed-controlled rheometer equipped
with a shear vane, measuring 20 mm in width and 40 mm in length, and a
cylindrical container, having an inner diameter of 40 mm, as shown in Figure 2.2.
The inner wall of the container was profiled with grooves of which the asperity
- 13 -
was larger than the largest particle in the mortar to minimize slippage of the
mortar during shearing.
At the onset of the test, the shear vane was concentrically inserted into the
mortar sample in the cylindrical container and then set to rotate at controlled
rotation speed, following a shearing sequence which consisted of two shearing
cycles. The first shearing cycle, called pre-shearing cycle, was to ensure all the
samples tested had undergone the same shearing history before measurement. The
second shearing cycle, called data-logging cycle, was the cycle in which actual
measurement was carried out. In each shearing cycle, the rotation speed N
(measured in terms of rpm, i.e. rotation per minute) was increased from 0 to 50
rpm in 75 seconds and then decreased to 0 rpm in another 75 s. In other words, the
corresponding shear rate was increased from 0 to 14 s-1 in 75 s and then decreased
from 14 to 0 s-1 in another 75 s. The shear stress-shear rate curves obtained at
decreasing shear rate, which is generally more consistent and repeatable, was used
for evaluating the rheological properties of the mortar sample.
Due to the mortar is non-Newtonian, it is customary to describe its

rheological properties by either the Bingham model or the Herschel-Bulkley
model. The first one assumes the shear stress-shear rate curve is linear while the
later one assumes the shear stress-shear rate curve follows the power equation.
Through curve fitting using both models, it is found that the experimental results
agrees better with the Herschel-Bulkley model, whose shear stress-shear strain
equation is given by:
= 0 + k n
(2.6)
where is shear stress (Pa), is shear rate (s-1), 0 is yield stress (Pa), and K
(Pasn) and n (non-dimension) are empirical coefficients. For each mortar sample,
the best-fit curve based on the above equation was obtained by regression analysis
and from the best-fit curve so obtained, the shear stress at a shear rate of 0 s-1 and
the ratio of shear stress to shear rate at a shear rate of 14 s-1 were taken as the yield
stress and the apparent viscosity, respectively.
- 14 -
2.5 Measurement of Adhesiveness

Various tests, for example the probe tack test [Kaci et al. 2011], have been
developed to measure the adhesiveness of cement paste and mortar, but so far
none has become standardized. Herein, a new test, called stone rod adhesion test,
was developed recently by the authors research team [Li and Kwan, 2011]. The
apparatus, shown in Figure 2.3, consists of a handle with six stone rods vertically
fixed underneath and a container. The stone rods are made of granite, which is a
commonly used rock for coarse aggregate, and each stone rod has a diameter of 10
mm and an exposed length of 110 mm. Before the test, the stone rods were
immersed in water for at least 24 hours and then wiped clean by a piece of dry
cloth so that the stone rods were saturated and surface dry. During the test, the
stone rods were immersed into the mortar inside the container with an immersion
depth of 100 mm, as indicated by the mortar surface reaching the 100 mm mark
on the stone rods. The stone rods were left immersed in the mortar for 1 minute
and afterwards pulled out steadily and slowly. The handle holding the stone rods
was then placed on a stand to allow dripping to take place. After several minutes
when no more dripping occurred, the increase in weight of the handle (in other
words, the weight of mortar adhering to the stone rods) was measured and taken
as the adhesiveness of the mortar tested.
2.6 Measurement of Strength

Three 100 mm cubes were made from each mortar sample for strength
measurement. The cubes were made by placing the mortar into a cube mould,
inserting a vibrator into the mortar for compaction and covering the top surface of
the mould with a plastic sheet. After casting, the cubes were stored at a
temperature of 24 2 C. After one day, the moulds were removed and the cubes
were cured in a water tank controlled at a temperature of 27 2 C until the age of
28 days for cube compression test.
- 15 -
Figures
70 mm
60 mm
100 mm
(a)
270 mm
30 mm
240 mm
60 mm
30 mm
(b)
Figure 2.1 (a) Mini slump cone; (b) Mini V-funnel
- 16 -
Rheometer
Shear vane
Container
Figure 2.2 Rheometer, shear vane and container
- 17 -
Length
= 110 m
Diameter
= 10 mm
Immersion
depth
= 100 mm
30 mm
30
mm
30 mm
Figure 2.3 Details of apparatus for stone rod adhesion test
- 18 -
CHAPTER 3
BINARY CEMENTITIOUS SYSTEM CONTAINING FLY ASH

MICROSPHERE
3.1 Introduction
Supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) are nowadays widely used
in concrete. The addition of certain SCMs, which are by-products or wastes of
industrial manufacturing processes, such as fly ash and ground granulated
blastfurnace slag, to replace part of the cement is an effective way of reducing the
carbon footprint of our concrete production [Atcin, 2000]. If the SCM is finer
than cement, its addition to fill into the voids in cement would increase the
packing density of cementitious materials so as to improve the performance of
concrete [Atcin, 1998]. In 1994, by maximizing the packing density of
cementitious
materials,
de
Larrard
and
Sedran
[1994]
lowered
the
water/cementitious materials (W/CM) ratio to 0.14 and thus achieved a

compressive strength of 236 MPa. Many literatures also reported that concrete
containing SCM often perform better in terms of workability, robustness, strength
and durability [Khatri et al., 1995; Kwan and Ng, 2010; Lothenbach et al., 2011].
Recently, in 2011, Atcin [2011] pointed out that with SCMs finer than cement
(hereafter referred to as superfine SCMs) added to fill into the voids of the particle
system, the concrete will bleed less, shrink less and attain higher strength.
Previous studies [Kwan and Wong, 2008b; Lee et al., 2003;

Nanthagopalan et al., 2008] have revealed that the packing density of cementitious
materials is an important factor governing the flowability of cement paste,
especially at low W/CM ratio. With superfine SCMs added to fill into the voids
between cement grains, the packing density of the cementitious materials would
become higher and the volume of voids in the cementitious materials would
become smaller. As a result, the amount of water needed to fill the voids would
- 19 -
decrease and, at the same W/CM ratio, the amount of excess water (water in
excess of that needed to fill the voids) available for forming water films coating
the solid particles to provide lubrication would increase. However, it has been
found that increasing the packing density does not always increase the flowability
and that apart from the packing density and water content, the type and amount of
SCM added also have certain effects.
Collins and Sanjayan [1999] showed that ultrafine fly ash and condensed
silica fume have widely different effects on the workability and strength of
concrete. Claisse et al. [2001] concluded that the addition of silica fume could
impair the flowability of cement paste because of its large specific surface area,
which increases the water demand. Ferraris et al. [2001] postulated that the
increase in packing density and the increase in solid surface area due to the
addition of superfine SCMs have opposite effects on the rheology of cement paste.
To reflect the combined effects of packing density and solid surface area, Kwan
and Wong [2008a] proposed a new mix parameter - water film thickness (WFT),
which is defined as the average thickness of the water films coating the solid
particles and may be determined as the excess water to solid surface area ratio.
This WFT was, in subsequent studies [Fung and Kwan, 2010; Kwan et al., 2010;
Wong and Kwan, 2008a], demonstrated to be a major factor governing the
rheology of cement paste and mortar.
Due to agglomeration caused by inter-particle forces, the packing density

of fine solid particles is not easy to measure [Yu et al., 1997]. The existing dry
packing methods, which measure the packing density under dry condition, have
the major problems that the measured results are sensitive to the amount of
compaction applied [Svarovsky and Board, 1987] and that they cannot take into
account the possible effects of water and chemical admixtures. In 1999, de
Larrard [1999] proposed a wet method which takes the minimum volume of water
required to change the water-solid mixture from a solid lump to a slurry as the
voids volume for the determination of packing density. However, it is often
difficult to judge very precisely the point of transition from solid lump to slurry
because the transition is actually gradual. More recently, the authors research
team has developed a wet packing method for direct measurement of the packing
- 20 -
densities of cementitious materials [Wong and Kwan, 2008b], fine aggregate

[Fung et al., 2009] and mortar [Kwan and Fung, 2009]. Basically, this wet
packing method measures the solid concentration of the solid particles at different
water contents and takes the maximum solid concentration as the packing density
of the solid particles. Its accuracy and applicability have been verified by
comparing with theoretical results based on established packing models [Kwan
and Fung, 2009; Wong and Kwan, 2008c].
On the other hand, it is well recognized that the particle size distribution
and size range have great effects on the packing density and rheological
performance of cement paste, mortar and concrete [de Larrard and Sedran, 1999;
Fung et al., 2009; Kwan and Fung, 2009; Kwan and Wong, 2008b; Wang et al.,
1997; Wong and Kwan, 2008c]. Ideally, the particle system should have a wide
range of particle size so that the medium size particles would fill into the voids of
the larger size particles, the fine particles would fill into the voids of the medium
size particles and the superfine particles would fill into the voids of the fine
particles and so on. In theory, such successive filling of voids by a continuous
spectrum of finer and even finer particles can greatly reduce the voids volume and
increase the packing density. Atcin [2011] pointed out that there are two gaps in
the particle size distribution of the solid ingredients in high-performance concrete
and suggested to fill up these gaps to further enhance the concrete performance.
Whilst the size gap between the cement and fine aggregate can be filled by adding
limestone fine or ground sand about 50 m in size, the size gap between the
cement and condensed silica fume has to be filled by a superfine powder several
m in size.
The author is proposing that fly ash microsphere (FAM), which is a

superfine fly ash collected from the exhaust smoke of coal-fired power station,
may be a suitable material for extending the size range of the cementitious
materials or filling the size gap between the cement and condensed silica fume.
The FAM that the authors have obtained for testing is perfectly spherical in shape
and has an average diameter of about 3 m. Being superfine, it can fill into the
voids in cement to increase the packing density of the cementitious materials.
- 21 -
Compared with condensed silica fume, FAM has a much smaller specific surface
area and thus can increase the packing density without excessively increasing the
total solid surface area to be coated with water films. Herein, a comprehensive
testing program was carried out to study the effects of FAM on the packing
density and overall performance of mortar and the roles of WFT in the rheology,
adhesiveness and strength of mortar.
3.2 Materials
The cement used was an ordinary Portland cement (OPC) obtained from
the local market in Hong Kong. It was of strength class 52.5N and had been tested
to comply with BS EN 197-1: 2000. The FAM used was imported from China
which according to the supplier had been tested to comply with Chinese National
Standard GB 1596-91. The chemical compositions of OPC and FAM, as provided
by the suppliers, are presented in Table 3.1. The fine aggregate used was a local
crushed granite rock fine with a maximum size of 1.18 mm and a water absorption
of 1.02% by mass. The relative densities of the OPC, FAM, and fine aggregate
had been measured in accordance with BS EN 196-6: 2010 as 3.11, 2.52 and 2.48,
respectively. The particle size distributions of the materials were measured by a
laser diffraction particle size analyser and the results are plotted in Figure 3.1.
Based on these particle size distributions, the specific surface areas of the OPC,
FAM and fine aggregate were calculated as 1.12106 m2/m3, 3.95106 m2/m3, and
1.48105 m2/m3, respectively, and the mean particle sizes of the OPC, FAM and
fine aggregate were calculated as 14.1 m, 2.6 m and 508 m, respectively.
Compared with the angular shape of the OPC and fine aggregate particles, the
FAM particles were found to have perfectly spherical shape, as depicted by the
scanning electronic microscope image in Figure 3.2.
A superplasticizer (SP) was added to each mortar sample to disperse the

cementitious materials and reduce agglomeration. The SP employed was a
commonly used polycarboxylate-based SP with a solid mass content of 20% and a
relative density of 1.03. Since SP is a surface reactant and it is the SP dosage per
- 22 -
solid surface area that actually governs the effectiveness of the SP [Wong and
Kwan, 2008a, Kwan et al., 2012], the SP dosage was determined according to the
total surface area of the solid particles in the mortar. Before setting the SP dosage
to be used, trial cement paste mixing using different SP dosages was carried out
and it was found that the saturation dosage (the dosage beyond which further
addition of the SP yields little further increase in flowability) was 2.610-7 kg/m2
of the solid surface area. Hence, the SP dosage in terms of liquid mass of SP per
solid surface area was set as 2.610-7 kg/m2 for all the mortar samples. It is
noteworthy that since the FAM has higher fineness, the SP dosage per mass of
cementitious materials was higher at a higher FAM content.
3.3 Experimental Program

To study the effects of FAM, three different FAM contents, namely 0%,
20% and 40%, each expressed as a percentage by volume of the total cementitious
materials, were adopted for the design of the mortar samples. To exclude the
effect of variation in fine aggregate content, the total cementitious materials to
fine aggregate ratio was fixed at 0.75 by volume. The W/CM ratio by volume was
varied from 0.5 to 1.4. In total, 22 mortar samples were produced for testing. The
mix proportions of the mortar samples are summarized in Table 3.2. Each mortar
sample is assigned a designation of M-X-Y, where M denotes mortar, X denotes
the FAM content and Y denotes the W/CM ratio by volume. For reference, the
W/CM ratio by mass of each mortar sample is listed in the second column of
Table 3.2.
The experimental program consisted of two parts. The first part was to
measure the packing density of the solid particles in each mortar sample by a wet
packing method. In the second part, the flow spread, flow rate, yield stress,
apparent viscosity, adhesiveness and cube strength of the mortar samples were
measured. Each mortar sample was produced using a standard mixer by first
adding all the water and SP to the mixer and then adding the solid materials bit by
bit to the mixer while mixing. This mixing procedure has been proved to be more
- 23 -
effective than the conventional mixing procedure of adding all the water and solid
materials to the mixer in one single batch, especially when the water content is
low and/or a superfine material is added [Wong and Kwan, 2008b]. All of the
mixing and testing procedures were carried out in a laboratory maintained at a
temperature of 24 2 C.
3.4 Test Methods

The three mixes of solid samples in the mortar samples were subjected to
the packing density test. The details of the test procedures can be referred to
section 2.1 in Chapter 2.
The water film thickness (WFT) of the mortar samples, each determined as
the respective excess water to solid surface area ratio, is calculated. The details of
the calculation procedures can be referred to section 2.2 in Chapter 2.
Each of the mortar samples was subjected to the mini slump cone test and
mini V-funnel test for evaluation of its flowability in terms of flow spread and
flow rate respectively. The details of the two tests can be referred to section 2.3 in
Chapter 2.
Each of the mortar samples was subjected to the rheometer test for
evaluation of its rheological properties in terms of yield stress and apparent
- 24 -
viscosity respectively. The details of this test can be referred to section 2.4 in
Chapter 2.
Each of the mortar samples was subjected to the stone rod adhesion test for
evaluation of its adhesiveness. The details of this test can be referred to section
2.5 in Chapter 2.
Each of the mortar samples was subjected to the cube crushing test for
evaluation of its 28-day cube strength. The details of this test can be referred to
3.5 Experimental Results

The measured packing densities of the mortar mixes containing different

FAM contents are presented in Figure 3.3. From these results, it can be seen that
with no FAM added, the mortar mix was measured to have a packing density of
0.735. With 20% FAM added, the packing density increased to 0.768 while with
40% FAM added, the packing density further increased to 0.797. In other words,
the addition of 20% FAM and 40% FAM had increased the packing density by
4.5% and 8.4%, respectively. This demonstrates that the very fine FAM particles
could fill into the voids between the cement grains to effectively increase the
packing density. Although the increase in packing density (less than 9%) appears
small, the actual reduction in voids ratio is quite substantial. For better illustration,
the voids ratios of the mortar mixes are calculated by Equation (2.2) and plotted
also in Figure 3.3. It can be seen that with 20% FAM added, the voids ratio was
decreased from 0.361 to 0.302 and with 40% FAM added, the voids ratio was
- 25 -
further decreased to 0.255. In other words, the addition of 20% FAM and 40%
FAM had decreased the voids ratio by 16.3% and 29.4%, respectively. Such
reduction in voids ratio would substantially decrease the amount of water needed
to fill the voids and at the same water content, increase the amount of excess
water available for forming water films.
The WFT of the mortar mixes, each determined as the respective excess
water to solid surface area ratio as per Equation (2.5), are presented in Figure 3.4.
For the mortar samples tested, the WFT ranged from -0.182 m to 0.454 m. It
should be noted that a negative WFT value indicates that the amount of water in
the mortar was not sufficient to fill the voids between the solid particles, leading
to the entrapment of air in the mortar. It should also be noted that since the WFT
is a linear function of the W/S ratio by volume (same as the water ratio) as
depicted by Equation (2.3), all the WFT - W/S ratio curves are straight lines.
From Figure 3.4, it can be seen that at W/S ratio 0.60, the addition of up
to 40% FAM significantly increased the WFT. The increase in WFT was
generally larger at lower W/S ratio and smaller at higher W/S ratio. For instance,
at a W/S ratio of 0.26, the addition of 40% FAM increased the WFT from -0.182
m to 0.004 m (increased the WFT by 0.186 m) while at a W/S ratio of 0.60,
the addition of 40% FAM increased the WFT from 0.429 m to 0.454 m
(increased the WFT by only 0.025 m). This is because the WFT is governed by
both the excess water ratio and the total solid surface area. The proportional
increase in excess water ratio due to the addition of a superfine SCM is larger at
lower W/S ratio but smaller at higher W/S ratio whereas the proportional increase
in total solid surface area is independent of the W/S ratio. At lower W/S ratio, the
proportional increase in excess water ratio is much larger than the proportional
increase in total solid surface area and thus the increase in WFT is very substantial
whereas at higher W/S ratio, the proportional increase in excess water ratio is only
slightly larger than the proportional increase in total solid surface area and thus
the increase in WFT is just marginal.
- 26 -
Overall, it is evident that the addition of FAM has significant effects on the
packing density, solid surface area and WFT. The effects of FAM on the packing
density and solid surface area are not dependent on the W/S ratio but the effects of
FAM on the WFT are dependent on the W/S ratio. Hence, the net effects of FAM
on the properties of mortar could vary with the water content and the effects of
FAM should be evaluated in conjunction with the water content. Perhaps more
importantly, the addition of up to 40% FAM would allow the W/CM ratio to be
reduced to 0.60 by volume (or 0.20 by mass) without causing the WFT to become
negative (a negative WFT is generally not acceptable). Hence, with FAM added to
increase the packing density, the W/CM ratio may be reduced to improve the
strength and durability of the mortar/concrete produced.
The flow spread and flow rate results are tabulated in the second and third
columns of Table 3.3 and plotted against the WFT in Figure 3.5. From the curves
plotted, it is obvious that both the flow spread and flow rate increased with the
WFT. This observed phenomenon was expected, as an increase in WFT should
always improve the flowability of mortar. When the WFT was close to zero, the
flow spread and flow rate were also close to zero due to the lack of excess water
to provide lubrication. It is noteworthy that when the WFT increased, the flow
spread increased with the WFT at a gradually decreasing rate but the flow rate
increased with the WFT at a gradually increasing rate. Hence, the WFT has
different effects on the flow spread and flow rate, albeit an increase in WFT
always increases both the flow spread and flow rate.
Comparing the flow spread - WFT curves and the flow rate - WFT curves
for different FAM contents, it can be seen that at the same WFT, both the flow
spread and flow rate increased with the FAM contents. In other words, even at the
same WFT, the addition of FAM would significantly increase the flowability.
Since the effects of FAM on the packing density and solid surface area have
already been allowed for in the calculation of the WFT, there must be some other
effects of FAM not reflected by the WFT so calculated. It is postulated herein that
- 27 -
the increase in flowability at same WFT due to the addition of FAM may be
attributed to the ball bearing effect of the FAM particles. The FAM particles are
perfectly spherical in shape and finer than the cement grains. Apart from filling
into the voids between cement grains, some of the FAM particles may be located
within the narrow gaps between cement grains thus avoiding direct contact
between the angular cement grains. Being spherical in shape, the FAM particles
can roll quite easily and thereby act like ball bearings to reduce the inter-particle
friction between the cement grains.
The yield stress and apparent viscosity results of the mortar samples are
tabulated in the fourth and fifth columns of Table 3.3 and plotted against the WFT
in Figure 3.6. When the WFT was negative or close to zero, the torque required to
shear the mortar sample had occasionally exceeded the capacity of the rheometer
causing the yield stress and apparent viscosity results of some mixes (each shown
in Table 3.3 by a hyphen) to be undetermined. From the curves plotted, it can be
seen that both these two rheological properties gradually decreased as the WFT
increased. This agrees with the general observation that increasing the WFT of a
mortar would reduce the yield stress and apparent viscosity. Comparing the yield
stress - WFT curves and the apparent viscosity - WFT curves for different FAM
contents, it can also be seen that at the same WFT, both the yield stress and
apparent viscosity decreased as the FAM content increased. Such decreases in
yield stress and apparent viscosity as the FAM content increased may be
attributed to the ball bearing effect of the FAM particles, which has been
explained in the previous section.
3.5.5 Correlation between flowability and rheological properties
It is noteworthy that the effects of FAM on the yield stress and apparent
viscosity are similar to the effects of FAM on the flow spread and flow rate. A
possible reason is that the flow spread and flow rate are closely related to the yield
stress and apparent viscosity, respectively, and thus any effects of FAM on the
yield stress and apparent viscosity should also be reflected in the flow spread and
- 28 -
flow rate. To verify this expectation, the flow spread and flow rate are
respectively plotted against the yield stress and apparent viscosity in Figure 3.7.
The flow spread - yield stress curves show that the flow spread - yield
stress relation is not unique. It is dependent to some extent on the FAM content, as
indicated by the shifting downwards of the flow spread - yield stress curve with
increasing FAM content. In other words, the flow spread is dependent not only on
the yield stress but also on some other factors. During the mini slump cone tests, it
was observed that at higher FAM content, the mortar was generally more cohesive
(thicker and stickier). The higher cohesiveness at higher FAM content might have
caused the mortar to become more reluctant to flow horizontally, thus
counteracting the increase in flow spread due to the ball bearing effect of the
FAM particles. As a result, the increase in flow spread is less significant than the
decrease in yield stress and that is why the flow spread - yield stress curve shifts
downwards with increasing FAM content.
On the other hand, the flow rate - apparent viscosity curves show a clear
and unique relation. The flow rate - apparent viscosity curves for different FAM
contents overlap with each other such that a single curve may be derived to fit all
the test results, regardless of the FAM content. Regression analysis of the
correlation between the flow rate and the apparent viscosity has yielded a best-fit
curve with an R2 value of 0.944, as shown in Figure 3.7. The strong correlation
suggests that the flow rate is governed solely by the apparent viscosity. Hence, the
flow rate, which can be measured more easily by the mini V-funnel test, may be
taken as an alternative measure of the apparent viscosity.
3.5.6 Adhesiveness
The stone rod adhesion test results of the mortar samples are tabulated in
the sixth column of Table 3.3 and plotted against the WFT in Figure 3.8.
Generally, when the WFT was negative, the mortar appeared to be rather dry and
the adhesiveness was equal to or very close to zero. As the WFT increased, the
mortar became slightly wetter and the adhesiveness increased dramatically to a
certain maximum value. Then, as the WFT further increased, the mortar became
- 29 -
quite wet and the adhesiveness decreased. It may thus be said that the
adhesiveness is highest when the mortar is neither too dry nor too wet, as
indicated by its WFT, taken as a measure of wetness, falling within the narrow
range of 0.05 to 0.15 m.
Comparing the adhesiveness curves at different FAM contents, it is

apparent that the maximum adhesiveness is generally higher at higher FAM
content. In other words, the addition of FAM would, at the right wetness,
significantly increase the adhesiveness of the mortar. One probable reason is that
the FAM particles, which fill into the voids between the cement grains, would
increase the number of contact points between the solid particles and thus increase
the inter-particle attractive forces between the solid particles and the adhesive
force between the mortar and the stone rods. Moreover, the optimum WFT for
maximum adhesiveness is generally lower at higher FAM content. Such observed
effects of FAM on adhesiveness provide an important guideline for the design of
high-build mortar for rendering and concrete repair, and the design of the mortar
portion of high segregation stability concrete such as tremie concrete and selfconsolidating concrete.
3.5.7 Cube strength
The 28-day cube strength results are tabulated in the last column of Table
3.3 and plotted against the W/CM ratio by mass and the WFT in Figure 3.9. Each
cube strength result presented is the average of the three cubes casted and tested at
the same time. Generally, the cube strength varied with the W/CM ratio in such a
way that as the W/CM ratio decreased starting from a relatively high value, the
strength increased until a certain peak value was reached and then as the W/CM
ratio further decreased, the strength started to decrease. This is because when the
W/CM ratio decreased while the water was still sufficient to fill the voids between
the solid particles, the water space to be filled with gel products would decrease
and the gel/space ratio would increase, thus causing the strength to increase.
However, when the W/CM ratio decreased to such level that the water was no
longer sufficient to fill the voids, air would be entrapped inside the voids, thus
causing the strength to decrease.
- 30 -
In this particular case, with no FAM added, the maximum cube strength
attained was 96.2 MPa. With 20% FAM added, the maximum cube strength was
increased to 116.2 MPa and with 40% FAM added, the maximum cube strength
was further increased to 121.9 MPa. These results show that the addition of FAM
has great effects on the strength of mortar. It should, however, be noted that at the
same W/CM ratio, the addition of FAM did not always increase the cube strength.
As can be seen from the upper graph in Figure 3.9, at W/CM ratio by mass higher
than 0.30, the cube strength curve for 20% FAM is higher than that for 0% FAM
but the cube strength curve for 40% FAM is lower than that for 20% FAM. Hence,
the addition of FAM to replace part of cement without changing the W/CM ratio
does not necessarily increase the strength. The higher maximum strength at higher
FAM content was actually achieved at lower optimum W/CM ratio. It was the
lowering of the W/CM ratio without causing the entrapment of air made possible
by the increase in packing density due to the addition of FAM that increased the
maximum strength.
From the cube strength - WFT curves plotted in Figure 3.9, it can be seen
that the WFT has certain distinct effects on the strength. When the WFT was
negative, the water was not sufficient to fill the voids and a certain amount of air
was entrapped in the voids causing the strength to be adversely affected. Under
this situation, the strength decreased as the WFT decreased. When the WFT was
positive, the water was more than sufficient to fill the voids. Under this situation,
the strength decreased as the WFT increased because of the corresponding
increase in the W/CM ratio. Hence, the maximum strength was achieved at a WFT
very close to zero, in which case, the water was just sufficient to fill the voids. As
a general rule, therefore, to achieve the highest strength possible, the packing
density should be maximized and a positive but very small WFT should be
adopted in the mix design.
- 31 -
3.6 Concurrent strength-flowability performance

The concurrent strength - flowability performance that can be achieved at
different FAM contents is illustrated by plotting the 28-day cube strength against
the flow spread and flow rate in Figure 3.10. Comparing the performance curves
for different FAM contents, it can be seen that with FAM added, the performance
curves are always shifted upwards and to the right. Since shifting of the curve
upwards would lead to a higher strength at the same flowability and shifting of the
curve to the right would lead to a higher flowability at the same strength, this
indicates that the addition of FAM can increase the strength at the same
flowability, increase the flowability at the same strength, or increase both the
strength and flowability at the same time. Hence, FAM is an excellent SCM for
improving the strength and flowability.
3.7 Conclusions
A number of mortar samples with different FAM contents and different
W/CM ratios were produced for packing density, flowability, rheology,
adhesiveness and strength measurements. On the whole, it was found that the
addition of FAM, which is finer than OPC, could significantly increase the
packing density and WFT of the mortar mix. The increase in WFT was generally
larger at lower water content and smaller at higher water content. At the same
W/CM ratio, this would improve the flowability, or at the same flowability
requirement, this would allow the W/CM ratio to be lowered to increase the
strength.
Correlation of the flow spread, flow rate, yield stress, apparent viscosity
and adhesiveness to the WFT revealed that the WFT is an important factor
governing the fresh properties of mortar. Generally, the flow spread and flow rate
would increase and the yield stress and apparent viscosity would decrease as the
WFT increases. Even at the same WFT, the FAM content has certain beneficial
effects on these properties. Basically, a higher FAM content would at the same
- 32 -
WFT lead to larger flow spread, higher flow rate, lower yield stress and smaller
apparent viscosity. Such effects may be attributed to the ball bearing effect of the
spherical FAM particles, which reduces the inter-particle friction between the
larger size and angular particles. Furthermore, correlation between the flow spread
and yield stress indicated that they are closely related but their relation is
dependent to some extent on the FAM content. Lastly, correlation between the
flow rate and the apparent viscosity revealed that they are uniquely related with an
R2 value of 0.944.
On the other hand, the adhesiveness results showed that the adhesiveness
is highest when the mortar is neither too dry nor too wet, as indicated by its WFT,
taken as a measure of wetness, falling within 0.05 to 0.15 m. The optimum WFT
for maximum adhesiveness is generally lower at higher FAM content and the
maximum adhesiveness is generally higher at higher FAM content. In other words,
the addition of FAM would, at the right wetness, significant increase the
adhesiveness.
Finally, the strength results revealed that the strength is highest at an

optimum W/CM ratio dependent on the FAM content. At higher FAM content, the
optimum W/CM ratio for maximum strength is lower and the maximum strength
is higher. Plotting the strength against the WFT, it can be seen that the maximum
strength generally occurs at a positive but very small WFT, in which case the
water is just sufficient to fill the voids. Summarising, the effects of FAM on
strength are as follows. At the same W/CM ratio, the addition of FAM would only
marginally increase the strength. However, the addition of FAM would increase
the packing density and thus allow the W/CM ratio to be lowered without causing
the WFT to become negative to increase the strength. It is the lowering of the
W/CM ratio made possible by the increase in packing density that produces the
higher maximum strength at higher FAM content. Furthermore, plotting the
strength against the flowability for different FAM contents, it is evident that the
addition of FAM can increase the strength at same flowability, increase the
flowability at same strength or increase both the strength and flowability at the
same time.
- 33 -
Tables
Table 3.1 Chemical compositions of OPC and FAM
Proportions (%)
Chemical
OPC
FAM
Calcium oxide (CaO)
65.7
4.8
Silicon dioxide (SiO2)
21.8
56.5
Aluminum oxide (Al2O3)
5.7
26.5
Iron oxide (Fe2O3)
3.6
5.3
Magnesium oxide (MgO)
2.2
1.3
Sulfuric anhydride (SO3)
1.3
0.7
Sodium oxide equivalent (Na2O)eq
0.4
3.6
- 34 -
Table 3.2 Mix proportions of the mortar samples
Dosage of each ingredient in the mortar (kg/m3)
W/CM
ratio by
mass
OPC
FAM
Fine
aggregate
Water
SP
M-0-0.6
0.193
1061
1146
202
11.5
M-0-0.7
0.225
1026
1108
229
11.2
M-0-0.8
0.257
993
1073
253
10.8
M-0-0.9
0.289
963
1040
276
10.5
M-0-1.0
0.321
934
1009
298
10.2
M-0-1.2
0.386
881
952
338
9.6
M-0-1.4
0.450
834
901
373
9.1
M-20-0.6
0.200
849
172
1146
198
16.5
M-20-0.7
0.234
821
166
1108
225
16.0
M-20-0.8
0.267
795
161
1073
250
15.5
M-20-0.9
0.301
770
156
1040
273
15.0
M-20-1.0
0.334
747
151
1009
295
14.5
M-20-1.2
0.401
705
143
952
334
13.7
M-20-1.4
0.468
667
135
901
370
13.0
M-40-0.5
0.174
659
356
1187
166
22.2
M-40-0.6
0.209
637
344
1146
194
21.5
M-40-0.7
0.244
616
332
1108
221
20.8
M-40-0.8
0.278
596
322
1073
246
20.1
M-40-0.9
0.313
578
312
1040
269
19.5
M-40-1.0
0.348
560
302
1009
291
18.9
M-40-1.2
0.417
529
285
952
331
17.8
M-40-1.4
0.487
500
270
901
367
16.9
Mix no.
- 35 -
Table 3.3 Flowability, rheological properties, adhesiveness and strength
Mix no.
Flow
spread
(mm)
Flow
rate
(ml/s)
Yield
stress
(Pa)
Apparent
viscosity
(Pas)
Adhesiveness
(g)
28-day
cube
strength
(MPa)
M-0-0.6
0.0
0.0
0.0
8.7
M-0-0.7
0.0
0.0
0.1
57.5
M-0-0.8
0.0
0.0
0.2
95.0
M-0-0.9
5.5
0.0
2.0
96.2
M-0-1.0
92.0
23.0
47.2
19.5
39.0
89.1
M-0-1.2
182.0
192.2
20.0
6.9
15.7
71.5
M-0-1.4
210.0
405.0
6.0
3.1
7.1
61.0
M-20-0.6
0.0
0.0
0.1
48.2
M-20-0.7
0.0
0.0
0.5
116.2
M-20-0.8
57.5
0.0
23.4
109.7
M-20-0.9
111.5
67.5
32.0
14.0
48.2
107.3
M-20-1.0
151.0
151.2
19.9
8.8
39.5
91.3
M-20-1.2
210.0
378.0
7.0
3.6
19.0
81.9
M-20-1.4
225.0
691.5
3.5
1.7
14.1
66.6
M-40-0.5
0.0
0.0
0.1
117.3
M-40-0.6
0.0
0.0
0.8
121.9
M-40-0.7
62.5
59.7
41.0
22.3
75.2
109.0
M-40-0.8
121.5
143.5
20.4
11.1
43.3
100.9
M-40-0.9
153.5
241.3
14.1
8.1
28
93.0
M-40-1.0
191.0
354.4
9.6
5.0
19.9
84.3
M-40-1.2
238.5
590.6
3.9
1.9
12.9
67.7
M-40-1.4
247.5
859.1
3.2
1.2
10.3
55.4
- 36 -
Figures
Percentage passing (%) .
100
80
60
OPC
FAM
fine aggregate
40
20
0
0.1
10
100
1000
Particle size (m)
Figure 3.1 Particle size distributions of FAM, OPC and fine aggregate
- 37 -
10000
10000 magnification
Figure 3.2 Scanning electron microscope image of FAM
- 38 -
0.82
Packing density
0.80
0.78
0.76
0.74
0.72
0.70
0
20
40
FAM content (%)
0.40
Voids ratio
0.35
0.30
0.25
0.20
0
20
40
FAM content (%)
Figure 3.3 Variations of packing density and voids ratio with FAM content
- 39 -
0.50
0.40
WFT (m)
0.30
0.20
0.10
0.00
FAM= 0%
-0.10
FAM=20%
FAM=40%
-0.20
0.20
0.30
0.40
0.50
0.60
W/S ratio by volume
Figure 3.4 Variation of WFT with W/S ratio at different FAM contents
- 40 -
0.70
300
FAM= 0%
Flow spread (mm)
250
200
FAM=20%
FAM=40%
150
100
50
0
-0.20
-0.10
0.00
0.10
0.20
0.30
0.40
0.50
0.30
0.40
0.50
WFT (m)
1000
FAM= 0%
Flow rate (ml/s)
800
FAM=20%
FAM=40%
600
400
200
0
-0.20
-0.10
0.00
0.10
0.20
WFT (m)
Figure 3.5 Flowability versus WFT
- 41 -
50
FAM= 0%
Yield stress (Pa)
40
FAM=20%
FAM=40%
30
20
10
0
-0.20
-0.10
0.00
0.10
0.20
0.30
0.40
0.50
0.30
0.40
0.50
WFT (m)
25
Apparent viscosity (Pas)
FAM= 0%
20
FAM=20%
FAM=40%
15
10
5
0
-0.20
-0.10
0.00
0.10
0.20
WFT (m)
Figure 3.6 Rheological properties versus WFT
- 42 -
300
FAM= 0%
Flow spread (mm)
250
FAM=20%
FAM=40%
200
150
100
50
0
0
10
20
30
40
50
Yield stress (Pa)
1200
FAM= 0%
Flow rate (ml/s)
1000
FAM=20%
FAM=40%
800
600
y=1180x-1.02
R2=0.944
400
200
0
0
10
15
20
Figure 3.7 Correlation between flowability and rheological properties
- 43 -
25
80
FAM= 0%
FAM=20%
Adhesiveness (g)
60
FAM=40%
40
20
0
-0.20
-0.10
0.00
0.10
0.20
0.30
WFT (m)
Figure 3.8 Adhesiveness versus WFT
- 44 -
0.40
0.50
28-day cube strength (MPa)
140
120
100
80
60
FAM= 0%
40
FAM=20%
20
FAM=40%
0
0.15
0.25
0.35
0.45
W/CM ratio by mass
140
120
100
80
60
FAM= 0%
40
FAM=20%
20
FAM=40%
0
-0.20
-0.10
0.00
0.10
0.20
0.30
0.40
WFT (m)
Figure 3.9 Cube strength versus W/CM ratio and WFT
- 45 -
0.50
140
FAM= 0%
120
FAM=20%
100
FAM=40%
80
60
40
20
0
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
Flow spread (mm)
140
FAM= 0%
120
FAM=20%
100
FAM=40%
80
60
40
20
0
0
200
400
600
800
Flow rate (ml/s)
Figure 3.10 Concurrent strength and flowability performance
- 46 -
1000
CHAPTER 4
TERNARY CEMENTITIOUS SYSTEM CONTAINING FLY

ASH MICROSPHERE AND CONDENSED SILICA FUME
4.1 Introduction
High-performance concrete (HPC), with high performance in both fresh
and hardened states, has nowadays gained popularity and is considered the future
of our concrete industry [Atcin, 2000]. To produce HPC, it is essential to lower
the water/cementitious materials (W/CM) ratio; as suggested by Neville [1995],
what makes the concrete a high performance one is a very low water/cement
ratio: always below 0.35, often around 0.25, and occasionally even 0.20. Such
lowering of the W/CM ratio is made possible by the advent of superplasticizer
(SP), which provides good workability even at very low W/CM ratios. However,
since the water added must be more than sufficient to fill the voids in the bulk
volume of the cementitious materials [Powers, 1968], there is a limit to which the
W/CM ratio can be lowered, no matter how effective the SP is. This limit is not a
constant, but is dependent on the packing density of the cementitious materials [de
Larrard and Sedran, 1994; Sedran et al., 1996], which determines the volume of
voids to be filled with water.
The addition of fine supplementary cementitious materials (SCM) to fill

into the voids between cement grains is an effective way of increasing the packing
density and reducing the volume of voids to be filled with water. With fine SCM
particles filled into the voids, some of the water entrapped therein can be freed as
excess water (the water in excess of that needed to fill the voids) to form water
films coating the solid particles to provide lubrication [Kwan and Wong, 2008b].
This filling effect of fine SCM can produce a denser and more uniform mixture to
improve the strength and durability of concrete [Isaia et al., 2003]. Moreover, the
pozzolanic reaction of fine SCM can produce further gel products to improve the
- 47 -
microstructure [Lothenbach et al., 2011]. In fact, concrete produced with fine

SCMs added is often found to perform better in terms of workability, strength and
durability [Khatri et al., 1995; Papadakis, 2000; Kwan and Ng, 2010]. Various
kinds of SCM, such as fly ash, ground granulated blast furnace slag, silica fume,
metakaolin and rice husk ash, etc, have emerged. Most of the SCMs are industrial
by-products and their use can help to reduce the cement consumption and carbon
footprint of our concrete production [Glavind and Munch-Petersen, 2002; Mehta,
2001; Meyer, 2009; Zheng et al., 2009]. Hence, the addition of SCM has become
a common practice.
The challenge in the application of SCM lies in the mix design. Due to the
additional variable of SCM content, a much larger number of trial batches are
needed to obtain the optimum mixture proportion than that needed for concrete
with no SCM added [Bharatkumar et al., 2001]. A scientific and universally
applicable mix design method is desperately needed but is still lacking [Domone
and Soutsos, 1994; Alves et al., 2004]. Moreover, the effects of SCM on the fresh
properties of concrete are not easy to predict because of their dependence on the
particle size distribution and shape of the SCM. For example, Kohno and
Komatsu [1986] reported that the addition of condensed silica fume (CSF) would
impair the flowability of mortar, while Duval and Kadri [1998] demonstrated that
the addition of CSF up to 10% by mass has no adverse effect on the workability of
concrete. More recently, Kwan and Fung [2011] showed that the addition of CSF
would increase the packing density and thus improve the flowability of mortar.
These contradictory results on the effects of SCM have made the mix design of
HPC containing SCMs a very difficult task.
Although the addition of fine SCM to fill into the voids between cement
grains would no doubt increase the packing density and thus the amount of excess
water available for forming water films, it would at the same time increase the
solid surface area to be coated with water films [Claisse et al., 2001]. Ferraris et al.
[2001] suggested that the increases in packing density and solid surface area have
opposite effects on the rheology of cement paste. Whilst the increase in packing
density would make available more excess water for forming water films, the
increase in solid surface area would thin down the thickness of water films formed.
- 48 -
Therefore, the net effect of adding fine SCM is dependent on the relative
magnitudes of the increase in packing density and the increase in solid surface
area.
To combine these two effects, Kwan and his research team advocated to
use the water film thickness (WFT), the average thickness of water films coating
the solid particles, as the controlling parameter in the mix design of HPC [Kwan
et al., 2010; Wong and Kwan, 2008a]. They have also developed a wet packing
method for direct measurement of the packing density of solid particles in cement
paste and mortar [Wong and Kwan, 2008b; Kwan and Fung, 2009]. From the
packing density so measured, the excess water content may be calculated as the
water content minus the voids volume and the WFT may be determined as the
excess water to solid surface area ratio. The WFT has been found to be the single
most important mix parameter governing the fresh properties of cement paste and
mortar [Fung and Kwan, 2010; Kwan et al., 2010; Kwan and Wong, 2008a].
As mentioned before, the addition of CSF would increase the packing

density and thus release more excess water for forming water films. However, the
large increase in solid surface area due to the high fineness of CSF would thin
down the WFT. Hence, despite increase in packing density, the addition of CSF
may or may not increase the WFT. An intermediate sized SCM that is finer than
cement so as to fill into the voids between cement grains to increase the packing
density but coarser than CSF so as to avoid large increase in the solid surface area
may be more effective in increasing the WFT. Herein, it is proposed that fly ash
microsphere (FAM), which is a superfine fly ash captured from the exhaust smoke
of coal-fired power stations, may be a suitable SCM for such usage. In fact, the
combined use of FAM and CSF, or ternary blending of cement with both FAM
and CSF, may be even better because successive filling of the voids between
cement grains by first the FAM particles and then the CSF particles should further
increase the packing density.
Multiply blending of cement with two or more cementitious materials of

different fineness or pozzolanic reactivity to harvest the synergic effect of the
various cementitious materials is not new [Mehta and Gjrv, 1982; Erdem and
- 49 -
Krca, 2008]. In this regard, Atcin [2011] has pointed out that there is a size gap
between cement and CSF and that this size gap should be closed by adding an
intermediate sized SCM several micrometres in size. The author fully concurs
with this statement and is proposing to ternary blend cement with both FAM and
CSF so as to achieve a better particle size distribution. In this research, such
ternary blending was studied by testing mortar mixes with different amounts of
FAM, CSF and water added. The packing density, flowability, rheology,
adhesiveness and strength of the mortar mixes were measured and the effects of
FAM content, CSF content and WFT on the fresh and hardened properties of
mortar were investigated. It will be seen that the WFT remains a governing factor
in the properties of such kind of mortar and that ternary blending with the size gap
closed is really superior to binary blending.
4.2 Materials
Three types of cementitious materials, namely, ordinary Portland cement
(OPC), FAM and CSF, were adopted in this study. The OPC was of strength class
52.5N obtained from the local market in Hong Kong whereas the FAM and CSF
were imported from Mainland China and Europe, respectively. The OPC, FAM
and CSF had been tested to comply with British Standard BS EN 197-1: 2000,
Chinese Standard GB 1596-91 and American Standard ASTM C 1240-03,
respectively. The fine aggregate adopted was a local crushed granite rock fine
with a maximum size of 1.18 mm and a water absorption of 1.02% by mass. The
solid densities of the OPC, FAM, CSF and fine aggregate had been measured in
accordance with BS EN 196-6: 2010 as 3112 kg/m3, 2520 kg/m3, 2196 kg/m3 and
2537 kg/m3, respectively. Their particle size distributions were measured by a
laser diffraction particle size analyzer and the results obtained are plotted in
Figure 4.1. Using the method proposed by Hunger and Brouwers [2009], the
specific surface areas of the OPC, FAM, CSF and fine aggregate were calculated
from the particle size distribution results as 1.12106 m2/m3, 3.95106 m2/m3,
13.3106 m2/m3 and 0.148106 m2/m3, respectively. Unlike the cement particles
which are angular in shape, the FAM and the CSF particles are spherical in shape.
- 50 -
The SP added was a polycarboxylate type supplied in the form of an

aqueous solution with a solid mass content of 20% and a relative density of 1.03.
Since SP is a surface reactant and it is the SP dosage per solid surface area that
governs its effectiveness, the SP dosage was expressed in terms of the liquid mass
of SP per solid surface area of the solid particles in mortar [Kwan et al., in press].
Before setting the SP dosage to be used, trial cement paste mixing with various SP
dosages was carried out and it was found that the saturation dosage of the SP (the
dosage beyond which further addition of the SP yields little further increase in
flowability) was 2.610-7 kg/m2. Hence, the SP dosage in terms of liquid mass of
SP per solid surface area of cementitious materials was set constant as 2.610-7
kg/m2 for all the mortar samples. It is noteworthy that since the FAM and CSF
have higher fineness than the OPC, the SP dosage per mass of cementitious
materials was higher at higher FAM and/or CSF contents.

The experimental program consisted of three parts. The first part was to
measure the packing densities of the mortar samples having different FAM and
CSF contents in order to study the effects of FAM and CSF on the packing
density. The second part was to measure the flow spread, flow rate, yield stress,
apparent viscosity and adhesiveness of the mortar samples produced with different
FAM, CSF and water contents. The last part was to measure the 28-day cube
strength of the mortar samples. The WFT of each mortar sample was determined
from the packing density results obtained in the first part and the W/CM ratio of
the mortar. Then the testing results obtained in the second and third parts were
correlated to the WFT to study the roles of WFT in mortar with ternary blended
cementitious materials.
In this study, the FAM and CSF contents were each expressed as a volume
percentage of the total cementitious materials because the packing density is
governed by volume ratios rather than by mass ratios. Three FAM contents,
namely, 0%, 20% and 40%, and two CSF contents, namely, 0% and 10%, were
- 51 -
adopted for the design of the mortar samples. The W/CM ratio was varied from
0.4 to 1.4 by volume. The detailed mix proportions of the mortar samples are
tabulated in Table 4.1. In the first column, the mix numbers were given in the
format of M-X-Y-Z, where M denotes mortar, X and Y denote the FAM and CSF
contents, respectively, and Z denotes the W/CM ratio by volume. The
corresponding W/CM ratios by mass were listed in the second column of Table
4.1 for easy reference. In total, 42 mortar samples were produced for testing.
Each mortar sample was prepared using a standard mixer by first adding
all the water to the mixer and then adding the solid ingredients and SP bit by bit
into the mixer while mixing. This method has been found to be more effective
than the conventional mixing method of adding all the water and solid ingredients
to the mixer in one single batch, especially when the W/CM ratio is low and/or
ultrafine materials such as CSF are added [Wong and Kwan, 2008a]. All of the
mixing and testing procedures were carried out in a laboratory at a controlled
temperature of 24 2 C.
4.4 Test Methods

Measurement of packing density
The six mixes of solid samples in the mortar samples were subjected to the
packing density test. The details of the test procedures can be referred to section
2.1 in Chapter 2.
Determination of WFT
- 52 -
Chapter 2.
Chapter 2.
2.5 in Chapter 2.

The packing density and voids ratio results are tabulated in the ninth
column of Table 4.1. With only OPC and no FAM or CSF added, the mortar mix
was measured to have a packing density of 0.735. With OPC blended with FAM,
the packing density was increased to 0.768 at 20% FAM content and to 0.797 at
- 53 -
40% FAM content. With OPC blended with CSF, the packing density was
increased to 0.800 at 10% CSF content. This demonstrates that the addition of
either FAM or CSF can effectively improve the packing density of the solid
particles in mortar. Relatively, the CSF is more effective than the FAM because it
is finer and can fill into the voids between cement grains more readily without
loosening the packing of the cement grains.
When the FAM and CSF were added together, the packing density was
further improved. With FAM already added, the addition of 10% CSF increased
the packing density to 0.821 at 20% FAM content and to 0.839 at 40% FAM
content. On the other hand, with 10% CSF already added, the addition of 20% and
40% FAM increased the packing density to 0.821 and 0.839, respectively. It may
therefore be concluded that ternary blending with FAM and CSF is more effective
than binary blending with either FAM or CSF in improving the packing density.
This is due to successive filling of the voids between the cement grains by the
FAM and CSF particles.
By ternary blending with both FAM and CSF, the packing density was
increased from 0.735 to 0.839 by 14.1%, which at first sight does not appear to be
large. However, the corresponding voids ratio was decreased from 0.361 to 0.192
by 46.8%, which is very large. Such decrease in voids ratio would substantially
reduce the amount of water needed to fill the voids and increase the amount of
excess water available for forming water films.
The WFT results are listed in the last column of Table 4.1 and plotted
against the W/S ratio for different FAM and CSF contents in Figure 4.2. All the
WFT - W/S ratio curves are straight lines because the WFT is a linear function of
the W/S ratio. From the figure, it can be seen that some of mortar mixes have
negative WFT values. When the WFT is negative, it no longer has the physical
meaning as the average thickness of water films coating the solid particles. A
negative WFT value indicates that the amount of water in the mortar mix is not
- 54 -
sufficient to fill the voids between the solid particles, leading to the entrapment of
air in the mortar.
With only OPC and no FAM or CSF added, the WFT varied from -0.182
m at W/S ratio = 0.26 to 0.429 m at W/S ratio = 0.60. With 20% FAM added,
the WFT was increased to -0.066 m at W/S ratio = 0.26 and to 0.452 m at W/S
ratio = 0.60. With 40% FAM added, the WFT was further increased to 0.004 m
at W/S ratio = 0.26 and to 0.454 m at W/S ratio = 0.60. Hence, the addition of
FAM up to 40% would significantly increase the WFT within the range of W/S
covered in this study. The increase in WFT was generally larger at lower W/S
ratio. This was because of the proportionally larger increase in excess water at
lower water content. On the other hand, with 10% CSF but no FAM added, the
WFT was increased to 0.007 m at W/S ratio = 0.26 but decreased to 0.325 m at
W/S ratio = 0.60. The addition of CSF increased the WFT at W/S ratio 0.45 but
decreased the WFT at W/S ratio 0.50. Hence, the addition of CSF up to 10% did
not always increase the WFT. This was because the CSF has a very large specific
surface area and its addition has dramatically increased the solid surface area to be
coated with water films and thus thinned down the WFT, especially at high W/S
ratio when the proportional increase in excess water was relatively small. Lastly,
with CSF already added, the addition of FAM up to 40% increased the WFT at
W/S ratio < 0.40 but decreased the WFT at W/S ratio > 0.40. This was because of
the proportionally larger increase in excess water at lower W/S ratio and smaller
increase in excess water at higher W/S ratio.
From the above, it is obvious that the FAM, which is finer than OPC but
not as fine as CSF, is effective in increasing the WFT over a wider range of W/S
ratio than the CSF, while the CSF, which is the finest of all, is more effective in
increasing the WFT at very low W/S ratio. Hence, the optimum FAM and CSF
contents for maximum WFT are dependent on the W/S ratio. In this case, ternary
blending of OPC with 40% FAM and 10% CSF is the optimum at W/S ratio <
0.30 but binary blending of OPC with 40% FAM is the optimum at W/S ratio >
0.30.
- 55 -
4.5.3 Flow spread
The flow spread results are listed in the second column of Table 4.2 and
plotted against the W/S ratio in the upper half of Figure 4.3. It can be seen that the
mortar samples started to flow at different W/S ratios. For instance, the mortar
mix with 40% FAM and 10% CSF started to flow at a W/S ratio as low as 0.172
while the one with no FAM and CSF started to flow only when the W/S ratio was
increased to 0.387. Overall, blending of OPC with FAM and/or CSF had
significantly lowered the W/S ratio at which the mortar started to flow and
increased the flow spread at the same W/S ratio. Evidently, ternary blending with
both FAM and CSF is more effective than binary blending with FAM or CSF in
increasing the flow spread and lowering the W/S ratio needed for a given flow
spread requirement.
To study the role of the WFT, the flow spread results are plotted against
the WFT in the lower half of Figure 4.3. It is noted that all the mortar samples
started to flow at almost the same WFT of around 0 to 0.05 m. This finding
agrees closely with the value of 0.025 m obtained by Hunger and Brouwers
[2009] and Quercia et al. [2012]. Using this WFT value as the minimum WFT
needed for a mortar to flow, the water demand of mortar or concrete may be taken
as the volume of water needed to fill the voids and provide the minimum WFT.
Overall, as the WFT increased, the flow spread also increased at a gradually
decreasing rate. When the WFT increased to beyond 0.40 m, the flow spread
further increased only marginally.
Among the mortar mixes with binary blended OPC + FAM, the flow
spread was larger at higher FAM content even at the same WFT, indicating that
the addition of FAM improves the flow spread not only by increasing the WFT
but also by some other beneficial effects. It is postulated herein that such
beneficial effects may be attributed to the ball bearing effect of the FAM particles
located within the gaps between the larger size particles (the cement grains and
fine aggregate particles). Being spherical in shape, the FAM particles can roll like
ball bearings to reduce the inter-particle friction between the larger size particles.
- 56 -
Comparing the flow spread - WFT curves of the various mortar mixes with
or without CSF, it can be seen that the flow spread of a mortar containing CSF
was substantially larger than that of a similar mortar containing no CSF even at
the same WFT. Particularly, at the same WFT, the flow spread of mortar added
with 10% CSF but no FAM was significantly larger than that of mortar added
with 40% FAM but no CSF. Hence, the addition of CSF appears to be more
effective than the addition of FAM in increasing the flow spread at the same WFT.
Since the CSF particles are also spherical, it may be postulated that one of the
contributing factors is the ball bearing effect of the CSF particles. Moreover, the
CSF particles are ultrafine and tend to move together with the water to form a
water-CSF slurry coating the larger size particles. Since the water-CSF slurry has
a larger volume than the water itself, the presence of CSF would increase the
thickness of the slurry so as to provide better lubrication for the water-solid
mixture.
To study the combined effects of the WFT and the SCM added, multivariable regression analysis has been carried out to derive the best-fit curves for
the flow spread - WFT relation. The best-fit curves so obtained are plotted
alongside the data points and the equation is also presented in the graph. A very
high R2 value of 0.964 has been achieved, indicating that the flow spread is highly
related to the WFT, FAM content and CSF content. Generally, the WFT has the
greatest effect and is therefore considered a key factor. At the same WFT, the
FAM and CSF have additional beneficial effects on the flow spread as observed in
the graph.
4.5.4 Flow rate
The flow rate results are listed in the third column of Table 4.2 and plotted
against the W/S ratio in the upper half of Figure 4.4. Overall, blending of OPC
with FAM and/or CSF had significantly lowered the W/S ratio at which the mortar
started to flow and increased the flow rate at the same W/S ratio. Moreover,
ternary blending with both FAM and CSF is more effective than binary blending
with FAM or CSF in increasing the flow rate and lowering the W/S ratio needed
for a given flow rate requirement.
- 57 -
The flow rate results are plotted against the WFT in the lower half of
Figure 4.4. The mortar did not flow when the WFT was negative or very small,
and started to flow at a WFT of around 0 to 0.10 m, which agrees with the value
of 0.025 m obtained by Hunger and Brouwer [2009] and Quercia et al. [2012].
Due probably to the ball bearing effects of the spherical SCM particles, a mortar
sample with a higher SCM content generally started to flow at a slightly smaller
WFT. Overall, the flow rate increased with the WFT at an increasing rate and at
the same WFT, the flow rate was higher at higher FAM and/or CSF contents.
Hence, the addition of FAM and/or CSF not only increased the WFT but also
increased the flow rate at the same WFT. Such phenomena may be explained by
the same reasons given in the previous section for the effects of adding FAM
and/or CSF on the flow spread.
the flow rate - WFT relation. The best-fit curves so obtained are plotted alongside
the data points and the equation is also presented in the graph. A very high R2
value of 0.991 has been achieved, indicating that the flow rate is highly related to
the WFT, FAM content and CSF content. Generally, the WFT has the greatest
effect and is therefore considered a key factor. At the same WFT, the FAM and
CSF have additional beneficial effects on the flow rate as observed in the graph.
4.5.5 Yield stress
The yield stress results are listed in the fourth column of Table 4.2 and
plotted against the W/S ratio and the WFT in Figure 4.5. At low W/S ratio, the
torque required to shear the mortar had sometimes exceeded the capacity of the
rheometer, causing the yield stress to be undetermined (shown as a hyphen in
Table 4.2). From the yield stress - W/S ratio curves, it is evident that blending of
OPC with FAM and/or CSF had significantly lowered the yield stress, especially
at low W/S ratio. From the yield stress - WFT curves, it is found that even at the
same WFT, the yield stress was lower at higher FAM or CSF contents. Apparently,
ternary blending with both FAM and CSF is more effective than binary blending
with either FAM or CSF in reducing the yield stress at the same WFT. These
- 58 -
observed phenomena may be explained by the same reasons given in the previous
section on flow spread.
the yield stress - WFT relation. The best-fit curves so obtained are plotted
high R2 value of 0.983 has been achieved, indicating that the yield stress is highly
related to the WFT, FAM content and CSF content. Generally, the WFT has the
greatest effect and is therefore considered a key factor. At the same WFT, the
FAM and CSF have the additional effects of decreasing the yield stress.
4.5.6 Apparent viscosity
The apparent viscosity results are listed in the fifth column of Table 4.2
and plotted against the W/S ratio and WFT in Figure 4.6. Some apparent viscosity
results (each shown as a hyphen) were not obtained because the torque required to
shear the mortar had exceeded the capacity of the rheometer. The apparent
viscosity - W/S ratio curves show that blending of OPC with FAM and/or CSF
had significantly lowered the apparent viscosity, especially at low W/S ratio. On
the other hand, the apparent viscosity - WFT curves reveal that even at the same
WFT, a mortar with high FAM or CSF contents had lower apparent viscosity.
Overall, ternary blending with both FAM and CSF appears to be more effective
than binary blending with either FAM or CSF in reducing the apparent viscosity at
the same WFT. These phenomena may be explained by the same reasons given in
the previous section on flow spread.
the apparent viscosity - WFT relation. The best-fit curves so obtained are plotted
high R2 value of 0.948 has been achieved, indicating that the apparent viscosity is
highly related to the WFT, FAM content and CSF content. Generally, the WFT
has the greatest effect and is therefore considered the governing factor. At the
- 59 -
same WFT, the FAM and CSF have the additional effects of decreasing the
apparent viscosity.
4.5.7 Adhesiveness
The results of the stone rod adhesion test are listed in the sixth column of
Table 4.2 and plotted against the W/S ratio in the upper half of Figure 4.7. From
the figure, it can be seen that all the adhesiveness - W/S ratio curves follow the
trend that the adhesiveness first increased from a very low level as the W/S ratio
increased and then, after the adhesiveness had reached a certain peak value at an
optimum W/S ratio, the adhesiveness decreased as the W/S ratio further increased.
So, the water added to the mortar may be beneficial or detrimental to the
adhesiveness and to achieve maximum adhesiveness, the water content should not
be too low or too high. Generally, the optimum W/S ratio was lower and the
maximum adhesiveness was higher at higher FAM or CSF contents.
To investigate the role of the WFT, the adhesiveness results are plotted
against the WFT in the lower half of Figure 4.7. Compared to the adhesiveness W/S ratio curves, the adhesiveness - WFT curves are closer to each other. This
demonstrates that the WFT plays a more important role in the adhesiveness of
mortar than the W/S ratio. Generally, the maximum adhesiveness occurred at an
optimum WFT of around 0 to 0.10 m. In fact, when the WFT was negative, the
mortar mix appeared to be too dry to have any adhesion. On the other hand, when
the WFT was larger than 0.10 m, the mortar mix appeared to be too wet to
adhere to the stone rods. It may thus be concluded that the adhesiveness is highest
when the mortar mix has the right wetness, as indicated by the WFT falling within
0 to 0.10 m. Although there has been little research on this topic, increasing the
adhesiveness of mortar should be an effective method to produce high-build
mortar for rendering and concrete repair, and the mortar portion of concrete
requiring high cohesiveness (which is highly dependent on the ability of the
mortar to adhere to the aggregate particles).
- 60 -
4.5.8 Cube strength
The 28-day cube strength results are listed in the last column of Table 2
and plotted against the W/CM ratio by mass in the upper half of Figure 4.8. Each
cube strength result presented therein is the average of the three cubes casted from
the same batch and tested at the same time. These results show that the cube
strength increased as the W/CM ratio decreased until the W/CM ratio reached an
optimum value, and then the cube strength turned to decrease as the W/CM ratio
further decreased. The optimum W/CM ratio for maximum strength was lower
and the maximum strength was higher at higher SCM contents. With no FAM or
CSF added, the maximum cube strength attained was 96.2 MPa at a W/CM ratio
of 0.289. With 40% FAM and 10% CSF added, the maximum cube strength was
increased to 129.6 MPa at a lower W/CM ratio of 0.180. Actually, at the same and
relatively high W/CM ratio, the addition of FAM had little effect on the strength
and the addition of CSF only slightly increased the strength. It was the reduction
in optimum W/CM ratio that led to the higher maximum strength at higher FAM
or CSF contents.
The 28-day cube strength results are plotted against the WFT in the lower
half of Figure 4.8. Here, a clear trend is revealed that the maximum strength
always occurred at a WFT of around 0.00 to 0.05 m. When the WFT was
negative, the water was not sufficient to fill the voids and in such case, air was
entrapped inside the voids no matter how hard the mortar was compacted,
resulting in a relatively low strength. When the WFT was positive and higher than
0.05 m, the strength decreased as the WFT increased because of the
corresponding increase in W/CM ratio. Hence, there is a fixed optimum WFT for
maximum strength regardless of the FAM and CSF contents. The optimum WFT
is positive but very close to zero, in which case, the water is slightly more than
sufficient to fill the voids.
- 61 -
4.6 Concurrent Strength-Flowability Performance

The concurrent strength - flowability performance of the mortar mixes is
illustrated by plotting the 28-day cube strength against the flow spread and flow
rate in Figure 4.9. From the cube strength - flow spread curves, it is evident that
the addition of 20% FAM and/or 10% CSF would shift the performance curve
upwards and to the right. This indicates that the addition of 20% FAM and/or 10%
CSF would increase the strength at the same flow spread, increase the flow spread
at the same strength, or increase both the strength and the flow spread. However,
the addition of 40% FAM makes little difference to the concurrent performance
compared with the addition of 20% FAM. In other words, the addition of more
than 20% FAM offers little benefit to the concurrent cube strength - flow spread
performance. Likewise, from the cube strength - flow rate curves, it can be seen
that the addition of 20% FAM and/or 10% CSF would improve the concurrent
cube strength - flow rate performance but the addition of more than 20% FAM
offers little benefit to the concurrent cube strength flow rate performance.
4.7 Conclusions
From the previous discussions, the following conclusions can be drawn:
(1)
Blending of OPC with fine SCM can effectively improve the packing
density of the solid particles in mortar. Relatively, ternary blending with
both FAM and CSF is more effective than binary blending with either
FAM or CSF in increasing the packing density. Moreover, binary blending
with CSF is more effective than binary blending with FAM because CSF
has higher fineness.
(2)
The effect of adding fine SCM on the WFT varies with the W/S ratio. At
low W/S ratio, the proportional increase in excess water due to the increase
in packing density is larger and thus the increase in WFT would be larger.
At high W/S ratio, the WFT would increase less and might even decrease.
(3)
The optimum blending for maximum WFT is dependent on the W/S ratio.
- 62 -
At W/S ratio < 0.30, ternary blending with 40% FAM and 10% CSF is
optimum. At W/S ratio > 0.30, binary blending with 40% FAM is
optimum.
(4)
Correlations of the measured flow spread, flow rate, yield stress and
apparent viscosity to the WFT yielded very high R2 values of well above
0.9, indicating that the WFT plays an important role in the rheology of
mortar.
(5)
The addition of FAM and/or CSF has some additional effects on the
rheology of mortar, which are not reflected by the WFT. This is
considered to be caused by the ball bearing effects of the FAM and CSF
particles and the formation of water-CSF slurry coating the larger size
particles.
(6)
The addition of FAM and/or CSF has complicated effects on the

adhesiveness. Nevertheless, it is evident that the adhesiveness is highest
when the mortar is neither too dry nor too wet, as indicated by its WFT,
taken as a measure of wetness, falling within 0 to 0.10 m.
(7)
The optimum W/CM ratio for maximum strength is generally lower at

higher FAM and CSF contents. Hence, the addition of FAM and CSF
would allow the W/CM ratio to be lowered to increase the strength.
Although the optimum W/CM ratio for maximum strength varies with the
FAM and CSF contents, the optimum WFT for maximum strength is
constant at around 0 to 0.05 m.
(8)
From plots of concurrently achieved strength and flowability, it can be

seen that the addition of FAM and/or CSF would increase the strength at
the same flowability, increase the flowability at the same strength or
increase both the strength and the flowability. Considering both the
strength and flowability, ternary blending with 20% FAM and 10% CSF
seems to be the optimum.
- 63 -
Tables
Table 4.1 Mix proportions, packing density and WFT
Dosage of each ingredient in the mortar

(kg/m3)
Packing
density
(Voids
ratio)
W/CM
ratio by
mass
OPC
FAM
CSF
FA*
Water
SP
M-0-0-0.6
0.193
1061
1146
202
12
-0.182
M-0-0-0.7
0.225
1026
1108
229
11
-0.107
M-0-0-0.8
0.257
993
1073
253
11
-0.029
M-0-0-0.9
0.289
962
1040
276
11
M-0-0-1.0
0.321
934
1009
298
10
0.124
M-0-0-1.2
0.386
881
952
338
10
0.276
M-0-0-1.4
0.450
834
901
373
0.429
M-20-0-0.6
0.200
849
172
1146
198
17
-0.066
M-20-0-0.7
0.234
821
166
1108
225
16
-0.001
M-20-0-0.8
0.267
795
161
1073
250
16
Mix no.
0.735
(0.361)
WFT
(m)
0.047
0.063
0.768
(0.302)
M-20-0-0.9
0.301
770
156
1040
273
15
M-20-0-1.0
0.334
747
151
1009
295
15
0.193
M-20-0-1.2
0.401
705
143
952
334
14
0.322
M-20-0-1.4
0.468
667
135
901
370
13
0.452
M-40-0-0.5
0.174
659
356
1187
166
22
-0.052
M-40-0-0.6
0.209
637
344
1146
194
22
0.004
M-40-0-0.7
0.244
616
332
1108
221
21
0.061
M-40-0-0.8
0.278
596
322
1073
246
20
M-40-0-0.9
0.313
577
312
1040
269
20
M-40-0-1.0
0.348
560
302
1009
291
19
0.229
M-40-0-1.2
0.417
528
285
952
331
18
0.342
M-40-0-1.4
0.487
500
270
901
367
17
0.454
* FA means fine aggregate.
- 64 -
0.797
(0.255)
0.128
0.117
0.173
Table 4.1 Mix proportions, packing density and WFT (Continued)

(kg/m3)
Packing
density
(Voids
ratio)
W/CM
ratio by
mass
OPC
FAM
CSF
FA*
Water
SP
M-0-10-0.5
0.166
989
78
1187
165
23
-0.032
M-0-10-0.6
0.199
955
75
1146
194
22
0.007
M-0-10-0.8
0.265
894
70
1073
245
21
M-0-10-1.0
0.331
840
66
1009
291
20
M-0-10-1.2
0.397
793
62
952
331
18
0.246
M-0-10-1.4
0.464
750
59
901
367
17
0.325
M-20-10-0.4
0.138
797
184
80
1230
130
29
-0.035
M-20-10-0.5
0.172
769
178
78
1187
161
28
-0.002
M-20-10-0.6
0.207
743
172
75
1146
190
27
Mix no.
0.800
(0.250)
WFT
(m)
0.087
0.166
0.030
0.821
(0.218)
M-20-10-0.8
0.276
695
161
70
1073
241
25
0.095
M-20-10-1.0
0.345
654
151
66
1009
287
24
0.160
M-20-10-1.2
0.414
617
143
62
952
327
23
0.225
M-20-10-1.4
0.482
584
135
59
901
363
21
0.290
M-40-10-0.4
0.144
569
369
80
1230
126
34
-0.013
M-40-10-0.5
0.180
549
356
78
1187
157
33
0.015
M-40-10-0.6
0.216
530
344
75
1146
186
32
0.042
0.839
(0.192)
M-40-10-0.8
0.287
497
322
70
1073
238
30
M-40-10-1.0
0.359
467
302
66
1009
284
28
0.152
M-40-10-1.2
0.431
440
285
62
952
324
27
0.207
M-40-10-1.4
0.503
417
270
59
901
360
25
0.261
- 65 -
0.097
Mix no.
Flow
spread
(mm)
Flow
rate
(ml/s)
Yield
stress
(Pa)
Apparent
viscosity
(Pas)
Adhesiveness
(g)
28-day
cube
strength
(MPa)
M-0-0-0.6
0.0
0.0
0.0
8.7
M-0-0-0.7
0.0
0.0
0.1
57.5
M-0-0-0.8
0.0
0.0
0.2
95.0
M-0-0-0.9
5.5
0.0
2.0
96.2
M-0-0-1.0
92.0
23.0
47.2
19.5
39.0
89.1
M-0-0-1.2
182.0
192.2
20.0
6.9
15.7
71.5
M-0-0-1.4
210.0
405.0
6.0
3.1
7.1
61.0
M-20-0-0.6
0.0
0.0
0.1
48.2
M-20-0-0.7
0.0
0.0
0.5
116.2
M-20-0-0.8
57.5
0.0
23.4
109.6
M-20-0-0.9
111.5
67.5
32.0
14.0
48.2
107.3
M-20-0-1.0
151.0
151.2
19.9
8.8
39.5
91.3
M-20-0-1.2
210.0
378.0
7.0
3.6
19.0
81.9
M-20-0-1.4
225.0
691.5
3.5
1.7
14.1
66.6
M-40-0-0.5
0.0
0.0
0.1
117.3
M-40-0-0.6
0.0
0.0
0.8
121.9
M-40-0-0.7
62.5
59.7
41.0
22.3
57.5
109.0
M-40-0-0.8
121.5
143.5
20.4
11.1
43.3
100.9
M-40-0-0.9
153.5
241.3
14.1
8.1
28.0
93.0
M-40-0-1.0
191.0
354.4
9.6
5.0
19.9
84.3
M-40-0-1.2
238.5
590.6
3.9
1.9
12.9
67.7
M-40-0-1.4
247.5
859.1
3.2
1.2
10.3
55.4
- 66 -

(Continued)
Mix no.
Flow
spread
(mm)
Flow
rate
(ml/s)
Yield
stress
(Pa)
Apparent
viscosity
(Pas)
Adhesiveness
(g)
28-day
cube
strength
(MPa)
M-0-10-0.5
0.0
0.0
98.6
M-0-10-0.6
0.0
0.1
117.6
M-0-10-0.8
89.0
49.6
23.7
21.3
39.6
105.9
M-0-10-1.0
172.0
157.5
9.2
6.6
22.0
102.2
M-0-10-1.2
243.0
289.3
1.7
3.0
15.0
87.8
M-0-10-1.4
269.0
534.9
1.7
1.2
10.8
73.6
M-20-10-0.4
0.0
0.0
101.1
M-20-10-0.5
10.0
2.1
118.5
M-20-10-0.6
61.0
17.2
38.7
23.4
56.9
128.1
M-20-10-0.8
157.5
117.6
9.1
7.3
24.2
105.3
M-20-10-1.0
215.0
234.3
4.3
4.1
17.2
85.3
M-20-10-1.2
250.0
363.5
3.2
2.8
8.7
83.5
M-20-10-1.4
275.5
578.6
1.6
0.7
8.6
67.5
M-40-10-0.4
7.0
0.1
119.8
M-40-10-0.5
57.5
53.4
32.1
59.7
129.6
M-40-10-0.6
95.0
24.3
27.3
26.7
51.8
117.4
M-40-10-0.8
196.5
140.3
4.9
6.6
18.6
95.9
M-40-10-1.0
237.0
265.0
2.7
4.0
10.0
88.1
M-40-10-1.2
260.0
457.3
1.9
1.4
5.7
70.2
M-40-10-1.4
281.5
603.2
1.6
0.7
5.2
53.4
- 67 -
Figures
100
80
60
CSF
FAM
OPC
fine aggregate
40
20
0
0.1
10
100
1000
10000
Particle size (m)

Figure 4.1 Particle size distributions of CSF, FAM, OPC and fine aggregate
- 68 -
0.50
0.40
WFT (m)
0.30
0.20
0.10
FAM= 0%, CSF= 0%

FAM=20%, CSF= 0%
0.00
FAM=40%, CSF= 0%
FAM= 0%, CSF=10%
-0.10
-0.20
0.15
FAM=20%, CSF=10%
FAM=40%, CSF=10%
0.25
0.35
0.45
0.55
0.65
W/S ratio by volume
Figure 4.2 Variation of WFT with W/S ratio at different FAM and CSF contents
- 69 -
300
FAM= 0%, CSF= 0%

FAM=20%, CSF= 0%
Flow spread (mm)
250
FAM=40%, CSF= 0%
FAM= 0%, CSF=10%
200
FAM=20%, CSF=10%
FAM=40%, CSF=10%
150
100
50
0
0.15
0.25
0.35
0.45
0.55
0.65
W/S ratio by volume
350
y = A + BeCx
y = A + BeCx1
A = 402-0.627x2-0.234x3
A = 252+0.512x2+5.789x
3
B = -399+0.225x2-1.149x
3
B = -260-0.328x2-2.661x
3
C = -5.412-0.212x2-0.009x3
C =2 -3.624-0.045x2-0.157x3
R = 0.932
R2 = 0.964
1
Flow spread (mm)
300
250
200
150
FAM= 0%, CSF= 0%

FAM=20%, CSF= 0%
100
FAM=40%, CSF= 0%
FAM= 0%, CSF=10%
50
FAM=20%, CSF=10%
FAM=40%, CSF=10%
0
-0.10
0.00
0.10
0.20
0.30
0.40
WFT (m)
Note: x1 is the WFT (m); x2 is the FAM content (%); x3 is the CSF content (%)
Figure 4.3 Flow spread versus W/S ratio and WFT

- 70 -
0.50
1000
FAM= 0%, CSF= 0%
FAM=20%, CSF= 0%
800
FAM=40%, CSF= 0%
Flow rate (ml/s)
FAM= 0%, CSF=10%

FAM=20%, CSF=10%
600
FAM=40%, CSF=10%
400
200
0
0.15
0.25
0.35
0.45
0.55
0.65
W/S ratio by volume
1000
FAM= 0%, CSF= 0%

FAM=20%, CSF= 0%
Flow rate (ml/s)
800
FAM=40%, CSF= 0%
FAM= 0%, CSF=10%
FAM=20%, CSF=10%
600
400
FAM=40%, CSF=10%
y = A + Bx1+C x12
A = -50
B = 335+23x2+76x3
C = 1774
R2 = 0.991
200
0
-0.10
0.00
0.10
0.20
0.30
0.40
WFT (m)
Figure 4.4 Flow rate versus W/S ratio and WFT

- 71 -
0.50
60
FAM= 0%, CSF= 0%
FAM=20%, CSF= 0%
50
FAM=40%, CSF= 0%
Yield stress (Pa)
FAM= 0%, CSF=10%
40
FAM=20%, CSF=10%
FAM=40%, CSF=10%
30
20
10
0
0.15
0.25
0.35
0.45
0.55
0.65
W/S ratio by volume
70
FAM= 0%, CSF= 0%

FAM=20%, CSF= 0%
60
FAM=40%, CSF= 0%
Yield stress (Pa)
FAM= 0%, CSF=10%
50
FAM=20%, CSF=10%
FAM=40%, CSF=10%
40
y = A + BeCx1
A = 3.730-0.020x2-0.200x3
B = 96-0.238x2-1.495x3
C = -6.396-0.160x2-1.086x3
R2 = 0.983
30
20
10
0
-0.10
0.00
0.10
0.20
0.30
0.40
WFT (m)
Figure 4.5 Yield stress versus W/S ratio and WFT
- 72 -
0.50
40
FAM= 0%, CSF= 0%
FAM=20%, CSF= 0%
FAM=40%, CSF= 0%
30
FAM= 0%, CSF=10%

FAM=20%, CSF=10%
FAM=40%, CSF=10%
20
10
0
0.15
0.25
0.35
0.45
0.55
0.65
W/S ratio by volume
40
FAM= 0%, CSF= 0%

FAM=20%, CSF= 0%
FAM=40%, CSF= 0%
FAM= 0%, CSF=10%
30
FAM=20%, CSF=10%
FAM=40%, CSF=10%
y = A + BeCx1
A = 0.177
B = 41
C = -5.956-0.112x2-0.492x3
R2 = 0.948
20
10
0
-0.10
0.00
0.10
0.20
0.30
0.40
WFT (m)
Figure 4.6 Apparent viscosity versus W/S ratio and WFT

- 73 -
0.50
60
FAM= 0%, CSF= 0%
FAM=20%, CSF= 0%
FAM=40%, CSF= 0%
Adhesiveness (g)
FAM= 0%, CSF=10%
40
FAM=20%, CSF=10%
FAM=40%, CSF=10%
20
0
0.15
0.25
0.35
0.45
0.55
0.65
W/S ratio by volume
60
FAM= 0%, CSF= 0%
FAM=20%, CSF= 0%
FAM=40%, CSF= 0%
Adhesiveness (g)
FAM= 0%, CSF=10%
40
FAM=20%, CSF=10%
FAM=40%, CSF=10%
20
0
-0.10
0.00
0.10
0.20
0.30
0.40
WFT (m)
Figure 4.7 Adhesiveness versus W/S ratio and WFT
- 74 -
0.50
140
FAM= 0%, CSF= 0%

FAM=20%, CSF= 0%
120
FAM=40%, CSF= 0%
FAM= 0%, CSF=10%
100
FAM=20%, CSF=10%
80
FAM=40%, CSF=10%
60
40
20
0
0.10
0.20
0.30
0.40
0.50
0.60
W/CM ratio by mass
140
120
100
80
60
FAM= 0%, CSF= 0%

FAM=20%, CSF= 0%
40
FAM=40%, CSF= 0%
FAM= 0%, CSF=10%
20
FAM=20%, CSF=10%
FAM=40%, CSF=10%
0
-0.20
-0.10
0.00
0.10
0.20
0.30
WFT (m)
Figure 4.8 Cube strength versus W/S ratio and WFT
- 75 -
0.40
0.50
28-day Cube strength (Mpa)
140
120
100
80
60
FAM= 0%, CSF= 0%

FAM=20%, CSF= 0%
40
FAM=40%, CSF= 0%
FAM= 0%, CSF=10%
20
FAM=20%, CSF=10%
FAM=40%, CSF=10%
0
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
Flow spread (mm)
28-day Cube strength (Mpa)
140
FAM= 0%, CSF= 0%

FAM=20%, CSF= 0%
120
FAM=40%, CSF= 0%
FAM= 0%, CSF=10%
100
FAM=20%, CSF=10%
FAM=40%, CSF=10%
80
60
40
20
0
0
200
400
600
800
Flow rate (ml/s)
Figure 4.9 Concurrent cube strength and flowability performance
- 76 -
1000
CHAPTER 5
TERNARY CEMENTITIOUS SYSTEM CONTAINING

SUPERFINE CEMENT AND CONDENSED SILICA FUME
5.1 Introduction
The strength and durability of concrete can be greatly improved by
lowering the water/cementitious materials (W/CM) ratio [Atcin, 1998]. However,
since the water added must be more than sufficient to fill the voids in the bulk
volume of the cementitious materials, there is a limit to which the W/CM ratio can
be lowered. Likewise, the dimensional stability of concrete can be enhanced and
the cement consumption and carbon footprint can be reduced by decreasing the
cement paste volume [Kwan, 2003]. But, as the cement paste volume must be
more than sufficient to fill the voids in the bulk volume of the aggregate, there is
also a limit to which the cement paste volume can be decreased. Hence,
maximization of particle packing density so as to reduce the volume of voids to be
filled is the key to the production of high-performance concrete (HPC). For this
purpose, the addition of supplementary cementitious materials (SCM) finer than
cement to fill into the voids between cement grains is particularly effective. In fact,
concrete produced with SCM added is often found to perform better in terms of
workability, strength and durability [Khatri et al., 1995, Atcin, 1998, Rizwan and
Bier, 2009].
Although the use of SCM is already quite common, the effects of SCM are
still not fully understood, as reflected by the widely different and even
contradictory results reported by different researchers. Take condensed silica
fume (CSF), which is considered one of the most effective SCM [F.I.P.
Commission on Concrete, 1988], as an example. Due to its ultra-high fineness and
high pozzolanic activity, the addition of CSF can significantly increase the
concrete strength. But, the effects of CSF on the fresh properties of cement
- 77 -
paste/mortar/concrete are fairly complicated and up to now no consensus has been

reached. Kohno and Komatsu [1986] reported that at the same W/CM ratio, a
mortar containing CSF would have a smaller flow compared with a plain mortar
containing no CSF. However, Duval and Kadri [1998] demonstrated that cement
replacement by CSF up to 10% by mass has no adverse effect on concrete
workability. Similarly, Zhang and Han [2000] showed that the yield stress and
viscosity of a cement paste could be decreased by adding CSF to replace 10% by
mass of cement. More recently, Artelt and Garcia [2008] examined several mortar
mixes with and without CSF and concluded that the presence of CSF would
impair the flowability as evidenced by the smaller flow spread and longer flow
time obtained for the CSF mortars.
The author is of the view that the addition of fine SCM has two major
effects and it is the combined action of these two effects that governs the rheology
of cement paste/mortar/concrete. First, the fine SCM particles would fill into the
voids between cement grains to increase the packing density of the particle system.
As a result, the volume of voids would decrease and the amount of water in excess
of that needed to fill the voids (i.e. the amount of excess water) for forming water
films coating the solid particles would increase. Such effect is beneficial to the
flowability of the water-solid mixture. Another effect is that with fine SCM added,
the total surface area of the solid particles would increase so that with the same
amount of excess water available, the average thickness of the water films coating
the solid particles would decrease. This is in agreement with Claisse et al. [2001],
who pointed out that the specific surface area of the solid particles has great
influence on the rheology of cement paste, and Ferraris et al. [2001], who
suggested that the increase in packing density and the increase in solid surface
area have opposite effects on the rheology of cement paste. Consequently, the net
influence of adding fine SCM is dependent on the relative magnitudes of the two
opposite effects.
Dated back to the 1960s, Powers [1968] proposed that it is the excess
paste (paste in excess of that needed to fill the voids between aggregate particles)
that gives the mortar or concrete workability. Similarly, Helmuth [1980]
suggested that it is the excess water (water in excess of that needed to fill the
- 78 -
voids between cement grains) that forms water films coating the cement grains
and it should be the thickness of the water films that governs the consistence of
cement paste. Zhang et al. [1996] found that the addition of fine pozzolanic
material could increase the packing density and thereby decrease the amount of
filling water in the voids and increase the amount of excess water in the surface
layers. Later, Kwan and his research team [Kwan and Wong, 2008a, Wong and
Kwan, 2008a] proposed that the average water film thickness (WFT) may be
evaluated indirectly as the excess water to solid surface area ratio. Hence, by
measuring the packing density and solid surface area of the solid particles, the
WFT can be determined without direct measurement.
However, the packing density of fine solid particles is not easy to measure,
because of agglomeration caused by the presence of inter-particle forces [Yu et al.,
1997]. The existing dry packing methods of measuring packing density under dry
condition have the major problems that the measured results are sensitive to the
amount of compaction applied [Svarovsky, 1987] and that they cannot take into
account the effects of water and superplasticizer, which have significant effects on
the packing density. Without accurate measurement of packing density, it is
impossible to precisely determine the WFT for investigating the effects of WFT.
In other words, the lack of a proper method for measuring the packing density of
fine solid particles has been the main hurdle in the study of WFT.
Recently, the author research team has developed a wet packing method
for direct measurement of the packing densities of cementitious materials [Wong
and Kwan, 2008b], fine aggregate [Fung et al., 2009] and cementitious materials
plus fine aggregate [Kwan and Fung, 2009], and by comparing with theoretical
results based on existing packing models, verified the accuracy and applicability
of this wet packing method [Kwan and Fung, 2009, Wong and Kwan, 2008c].
With the packing density directly measured and then the WFT determined as the
excess water to solid surface area ratio, the author research team has
demonstrated that the WFT is the single most important parameter governing the
rheology of cement paste [Kwan and Wong, 2008a, Wong and Kwan, 2008a].
- 79 -
Herein, a comprehensive testing program was carried out to study the roles
of WFT in mortar mixes containing triple-blended cementitious materials. To
maximize the packing density of the cementitious materials, superfine cement
(SFC), which was finer than cement, was added to fill the voids between the
cement grains, and condensed silica fume (CSF), which had the highest fineness,
was added to fill the voids between the other cementitious materials. A number of
mortar samples with different SFC and CSF contents and different W/CM ratios
were made for packing density, rheology, adhesiveness and strength
measurements. From the test results, the rheological properties, adhesiveness and
strength of the mortar samples were correlated to the WFT for in-depth analysis of
the roles of WFT in the fresh and hardened properties of mortar.
5.2 Materials
The cement used was an ordinary Portland cement (OPC) obtained from
the local market. It was of strength class 52.5N and had been tested to comply
with BS EN 197-1:2000. The SFC and CSF used were imported from Europe.
According to the supplier, the SFC was a slag-cement containing 80% slag and
20% cement. On the other hand, the CSF had been tested by the supplier to
comply with ASTM C 1240-03. The fine aggregate used was a local crushed
granite rock fine with a maximum size of 1.18 mm and a water absorption of 1.6%
by mass. The relative densities of the OPC, SFC, CSF and fine aggregate had been
measured in accordance with BS EN 196-6 2010 as 3.11, 2.94, 2.20 and 2.48
respectively. A laser diffraction particle size analyzer was used to measure the
particle size distributions of the materials and the results are plotted in Figure 5.1.
Based on their particle size distributions, the specific surface areas of the OPC,
SFC, CSF and fine aggregate were calculated as 1.12106 m2/m3, 2.29106 m2/m3,
1.33107 m2/m3 and 2.1105 m2/m3, respectively. The SP employed was a
polycarboxylate-based type with a solid mass content of 20% and a relative
density of 1.03.
- 80 -

To study the roles of WFT in fresh and hardened properties of mortar, an
experimental program was carried out. Three different SFC contents, namely 0%,
10% and 20%, and two different CSF contents, namely 0% and 10%, each
expressed as a percentage by volume of the total cementitious materials, were
adopted for the design of the mortar samples. To exclude the effect of variation in
fine aggregate content, the total cementitious materials to fine aggregate ratio was
fixed at 0.75 by volume. The W/CM ratio by volume was varied from 0.5 to 1.2.
In total, 27 mortar samples were produced for testing. The mix proportions of the
mortar samples are summarized in Table 5.1. Each mortar sample is assigned a
designation of M-X-Y-Z, where M denotes mortar, X and Y denote the SFC and
CSF contents, respectively, and Z denotes the W/CM ratio by volume. For
reference, the W/CM ratio by mass of each mortar sample is listed in the second
column of Table 5.1.
A superplasticizer (SP) was added to each mortar sample. Since SP is a

surface reactant and it is the SP dosage per solid surface area that actually governs
the effectiveness of the SP [Wong and Kwan, 2008a, Kwan et al., 2012], the SP
dosage was determined according to the total surface area of the solid particles in
the mortar. Before setting the SP dosage to be used, trial cement paste mixing
using different SP dosages was carried out and it was found that the saturation
dosage (the dosage beyond which further addition of the SP yields little further
increase in flowability) was 2.610-7 kg/m2 of the solid surface area. Hence, the
SP dosage in terms of liquid mass of SP per solid surface area was set as 2.610-7
kg/m2 for all the mortar samples. It is noteworthy that since SFC and CSF have
higher fineness, the SP dosage per mass of cementitious materials was higher at
higher SFC and/or CSF contents.
The experimental program consisted of three parts. The first part was to
measure the packing density of the solid particles in each mortar sample by a wet
packing method developed by the author research team. In the second and third
parts, the fresh and hardened properties of mortar samples were measured. Each
- 81 -
mortar sample was produced using a standard mixer by first adding all the water
and SP to the mixer and then adding the solid materials bit by bit to the mixer
while mixing. This mixing procedure has been found to be more effective than the
conventional mixing procedure of adding all the water and solid materials to the
mixer in one single batch, especially when the water content is low and/or
ultrafine filler is added [Wong and Kwan, 2008b]. All of the mixing and testing
procedures were carried out in a laboratory maintained at a temperature of 24 2
C.
5.4 Test Methods

The six mixes of solid samples in the mortar samples were subjected to the
packing density test. The details of the test procedures can be referred to section
2.1 in Chapter 2.
Chapter 2.
- 82 -
Chapter 2.
2.3, 2.4 2.5 and 2.6 in Chapter 2.

5.5.1 Packing density and water film thickness
The measured packing densities of the mortar mixes are tabulated in the
ninth column of Table 5.1. It can be seen from these results that without the
addition of any SFC or CSF, the solid mix of OPC and fine aggregate was
measured to have a packing density of 0.737. With SFC but no CSF added, the
packing density was increased to 0.749 at 10% SFC content and to 0.755 at 20%
SFC content. With CSF but no SFC added, the packing density was increased to
0.780 at 10% CSF content. This demonstrates that the SFC and CSF, when added
individually, could effectively increase the packing density of the solid particles in
mortar. Compared to the SFC, the CSF was more effective due to its higher
fineness.
- 83 -
The results also show that with both SFC and CSF added, the packing
density of the solid particles could be further increased. With 10% CSF added, the
packing density was increased by 5.8% from 0.737 to 0.780, by 5.3% from 0.749
to 0.789, and by 6.0% from 0.755 to 0.800 at 0, 10% and 20% SFC contents,
respectively. Hence, regardless of the SFC content, the addition of 10% CSF
would increase the packing density by about 5.3% to 6.0%. On the other hand,
with 20% SFC added, the packing density was increased by 2.4% from 0.737 to
0.755 and by 2.6% from 0.780 to 0.800 at 0 and 10% CSF contents, respectively.
Hence, regardless of the CSF content, the addition of 20% SFC would increase the
packing density by about 2.4% to 2.6%. Overall, it is evident that blending OPC
with both SFC and CSF so that the voids between cement grains are successive
filled by finer and even finer particles is a more effective way of increasing the
packing density than just blending OPC with SFC or just blending OPC with CSF.
The voids ratios of the solid particles, as calculated by Equation (2.2), are
also tabulated in the ninth column of Table 5.1. It can be seen that single addition
of 20% SFC decreased the voids ratio from 0.357 to 0.325, single addition of 10%
CSF decreased the voids ratio from 0.357 to 0.282, whereas joint addition of 20%
SFC and 10% CSF decreased the voids ratio from 0.357 to 0.250. Compared to
the maximum increase in packing density of 8.5% which appears small, the
corresponding decrease in voids ratio of 30.0% is quite substantial. Such reduction
in voids ratio due to the addition of fine SCM would decrease the amount of water
needed to fill the voids between the solid particles so as to increase the amount of
excess water available for forming water films coating the solid particles in the
mortar.
The WFT of the mortar mixes are listed in the last column of Table 5.1 and
plotted against the W/S ratios for different SFC and CSF contents in Figure 5.2.
From the figure, it can be seen that at W/S ratio 0.45 (corresponding W/CM
ratio by mass 0.32), the addition of SFC and/or CSF would significantly
increase the WFT. However, at higher W/S ratio, the addition of SFC would
slightly increase the WFT but the addition of CSF would significantly decrease
the WFT. This phenomenon can be explained by Equation (2.5), which stipulates
that the WFT is determined by both the excess water ratio and the total solid
- 84 -
surface area. Generally, the proportional increase in excess water ratio due to the
addition of a SCM finer than cement is larger at lower W/S ratio and smaller at
higher W/S ratio whereas the proportional increase in total solid surface area is
larger when the SCM has higher fineness and smaller when the SCM has lower
fineness. If the proportional increase in excess water ratio is larger than the
proportional increase in total solid surface area, the WFT would increase,
otherwise, the WFT would decrease.
From the above results, it is evident that the SFC, which is finer than
cement but not as fine as CSF, is effective in increasing the WFT over a wider
range of water content but is not as effective as CSF at low water content. On the
other hand, the much finer CSF, which produces larger increases in packing
density and total solid surface area when added, is more effective than SFC in
increasing the WFT but only at low water content. Hence, the suitable amounts of
SFC and CSF to be added to increase the WFT are dependent on the water content.
The flow spread and flow rate results are tabulated in the second and third
columns of Table 5.2 and plotted against the W/S ratio in Figure 5.3. As expected,
both the flow spread and flow rate generally increased with the W/S ratio.
However, the effects of SFC and CSF appeared to be fairly complicated. At W/S
ratio 0.45, the addition of SFC and/or CSF significantly increased the flow
spread and flow rate, but at W/S ratio > 0.45, the addition of SFC and/or CSF did
not always increase the flow spread and flow rate. Relatively, the CSF has greater
effects on the flowability than the SFC because of its larger effects on the WFT.
Overall, as depicted by the widely spaced flowability-W/S ratio curves for mortar
mixes containing different blends of SCM, it may be said that the flowability of
mortar is dependent not only on the W/S ratio, but also on the solid ingredient
contents in the mortar.
- 85 -
The yield stress and apparent viscosity results are tabulated in the fourth
and fifth columns of Table 5.2 and plotted against the W/S ratio in Figure 5.4. At
low W/S ratio, the torque required to shear the mortar sample had occasionally
exceeded the capacity of the rheometer causing the yield stress and apparent
viscosity of some mortar mixes to be undetermined (each shown in Table 5.2 by a
hyphen). From the curves plotted, it can be seen that both these two rheological
properties decreased as the W/S ratio increased and that the effects of SFC and
CSF were generally more significant at lower W/S ratio. On the whole, both
rheological properties varied more notably with the CSF content than with the
SFC content, as illustrated by the widely spaced curves plotted for different CSF
contents, which are obviously divided into two series, one series with no CSF
added and the other series with 10% CSF added. Hence, the rheological properties
of mortar are governed not only by the water content but also by the solid
ingredient contents in the mortar.
5.5.4 Adhesiveness
The stone rod adhesion test results are tabulated in the sixth column of
Table 5.2 and plotted against the W/S ratio in Figure 5.5. It is evident that
generally the adhesiveness varied with the W/S ratio in such a way that when the
W/S ratio was low, the adhesiveness increased as the W/S ratio increased, but
after reaching a certain peak value, the adhesiveness decreased as the W/S ratio
further increased. This implies that the water added to a mortar may have positive
or negative effect on the adhesiveness and there exists an optimum water content
depending on the mix proportions of the solid ingredients for maximum
adhesiveness.
5.5.5 Cube strength
The cube strength results are tabulated in the last column of Table 5.2.
Each cube strength result presented is the average of the three cubes cast and
tested at the same time. Generally, the cube strength varied with the W/CM ratio
- 86 -
in such a way that as the W/CM ratio decreased starting from a relatively high
value, the strength increased until a certain peak value was reached and then as the
W/CM ratio further decreased, the strength started to decrease. This was because
while the W/CM ratio was still high, the water was more than sufficient to fill the
voids and in such case, as usual, the strength increased as the W/CM ratio
decreased. However, when the W/CM ratio decreased to such level that the water
was no longer sufficient to fill the voids, air was entrapped inside the voids
causing the strength to decrease.
In this case, with no SCM added, the maximum cube strength achieved
was 91.4 MPa. With 10% SFC added, the maximum cube strength was increased
to 95.9 MPa. With 10% CSF added, the maximum cube strength was increased to
117.6 MPa. With 10% SFC and 10% CSF added together, the maximum cube
strength achieved was 116.6 MPa. These results show that the addition of CSF has
great effect on the strength whereas the addition of SFC has little effect especially
after CSF has been added. It is noteworthy that the optimum W/CM ratio for
maximum strength was lower at higher SFC and CSF contents.
5.6 Roles of Water Film Thickness

From the above, it is evident that the addition of SCM finer than cement
has significant effects on the packing density, solid surface area and WFT, which
in turn govern the fresh and hardened properties of mortar. The effects of SCM on
the packing density and solid surface area are not dependent on the W/S ratio but
the effects of SCM on the WFT are dependent on the W/S ratio. For this reason,
the net effects of SCM on the properties of mortar could vary with the water
content. Herein, it is suggested that the combined effects of the SCM content and
W/S ratio should be evaluated in terms of the WFT.
The WFT of the mortar samples, each determined as the respective excess
water to solid surface area ratio, are tabulated in the last column of Table 5.1. For
the mortar samples tested, the WFT ranged from -0.163 m to 0.282 m. It should
- 87 -
be noted that a negative WFT value indicates that the amount of water in the
mortar was not sufficient to fill the voids between the solid particles, leading to
the entrapment of air in the mortar. To study the roles of the WFT, the fresh and
hardened properties are correlated to the WFT by regression analysis, as presented
in the following.
5.6.1 Effects of WFT on flow spread and flow rate
By plotting the flow spread against the WFT as shown in the upper half of
Figure 5.6, it can be seen that regardless of the SFC and CSF contents, the flow
spread increased with the WFT at a gradually decreasing rate. However, at the
same WFT, a mortar with CSF added generally has a larger flow spread than a
mortar with no CSF added. To study the combined effects of the WFT and CSF
content, multi-variable regression analysis has been carried out to derive the bestfit curves for the flow spread-WFT relation. The best-fit curves so obtained are
plotted alongside the data points and the equation and R2 value are printed in the
graph. The equation suggests that the maximum flow spread is larger when CSF is
added. The very high R2 value of 0.934 achieved with both the WFT and CSF
content considered indicates that the flow spread is governed by both the WFT
and CSF content.
By plotting the flow rate against the WFT as shown in the lower half of
Figure 5.6, it can be seen that regardless of the SFC and CSF contents, the flow
rate increased with the WFT at a more or less constant rate. However, at the same
WFT, a mortar with CSF added generally has a higher flow rate than a mortar
with no CSF added. To study the combined effects of the WFT and CSF content,
multi-variable regression analysis has been carried out to derive the best-fit curves
for the flow rate-WFT relation. As before, the best-fit curves so obtained are
plotted alongside the data points and the equation and R2 value are printed in the
graph. The two best-fit curves plotted as straight lines reveal that the flow rateWFT relation is basically linear. Furthermore, the very high R2 value of 0.938
achieved reveals that the WFT and CSF content are the main factors governing the
flow rate.
- 88 -
Overall, the effects of CSF are that at the same WFT, a mortar with CSF
added has larger flow spread and higher flow rate than a mortar with no CSF
added. Since the effects of CSF on the packing density and solid surface area
should have been reflected in the WFT, it seems that the CSF has certain
additional effects not reflected by the WFT. Such additional effects of CSF may
be explained as follows. First, due to their high fineness, the CSF particles would
tend to move together with the water to form a water-CSF slurry. Since the waterCSF slurry has a larger volume than the water itself, the presence of CSF would
increase the thickness of slurry coating the cement and aggregate particles to
provide better lubrication. Second, due to their perfectly rounded shape, the CSF
particles could act as ball bearings to reduce the inter-particle friction between the
cement and aggregate particles.
5.6.2 Effects of WFT on yield stress and apparent viscosity
The yield stress is plotted against the WFT in the upper half of Figure 5.7
to illustrate the effect of WFT on yield stress. In general, the yield stress
decreased as the WFT increased. These results also reveal that the yield stress is
governed not only by the WFT, but also by the CSF content. To study the
combined effects of the WFT and CSF content, multi-variable regression analysis
has been carried out to derive the best-fit curves for the yield stress-WFT relation.
The best-fit curves so obtained are plotted alongside the data points and their
equations and R2 value are printed in the graph. It is noted that with the addition of
CSF, the best-fit curve shifts downwards and to the left. Such shifting suggests
that at the same WFT, the presence of CSF would significantly decrease the yield
stress. It is noteworthy that with both the WFT and CSF content considered in the
correlation, the R2 reaches a very high value of 0.995, indicating that the WFT and
CSF content are the controlling factors governing the yield stress.
The apparent viscosity is plotted against the WFT in the lower half of
Figure 5.7 to illustrate the effect of WFT on apparent viscosity. As for the yield
stress, the apparent viscosity also decreased as the WFT increased. Moreover, the
apparent viscosity is governed not only by the WFT, but also by the CSF content.
To study the combined effects of the WFT and CSF content, multi-variable
- 89 -
regression analysis has been carried out to derive the best-fit curves for the
apparent viscosity-WFT relation. The best-fit curves so obtained and the equation
and R2 value are presented in the graph for easy reference. With CSF added, the
best-fit curve shifts downwards and to the left. Such shifting reveals that at the
same WFT, the addition of CSF would significantly decrease the apparent
viscosity. A very high R2 value of 0.997 has been achieved in the correlation,
indicating that the apparent viscosity is dependent mainly on the WFT and CSF
content.
The above results that both the yield stress and apparent viscosity
decreased as the WFT increased are expected because a water-solid mixture with
a larger WFT should have smaller yield stress and apparent viscosity. It is more
interesting to note that the effects of CSF on the yield stress and apparent
viscosity are similar to the effects of CSF on the flow spread and flow rate. An
obvious reason is that the flow spread and flow rate are closely related to the yield
stress and apparent viscosity, respectively [Tattersall and Banfill, 1983, Kwan et
al., 2010], and thus they should be similarly affected by the CSF.
5.6.3 Effect of WFT on adhesiveness
From the adhesiveness-WFT curves plotted in Figure 5.8, it can be seen

that, compared to the W/S ratio, the WFT has a clearer effect on the adhesiveness
of mortar. On the whole, when the WFT was negative, the mortar appeared to be
rather dry and the adhesiveness was very small or zero. As the WFT increased, the
mortar became slightly wetter and the adhesiveness increased dramatically to a
certain maximum value. Then, as the WFT further increased, the mortar became
quite wet and the adhesiveness decreased. Hence, for each combination of SFC
and CSF contents, there was an optimum WFT at which the adhesiveness reached
a certain maximum value. In general, the optimum WFT giving the maximum
adhesiveness was around 0 to 0.10 m. It may thus be said that the adhesiveness is
highest when the mortar is neither too dry nor too wet, as indicated by its WFT,
taken as a measure of wetness, falling within 0 to 0.10 m. This is an important
guideline for the design of high-build mortar for rendering and repair, and the
- 90 -
mortar portion of high segregation stability concrete, which are required to have
high adhesiveness.
Regarding the effects of SFC and CSF contents, the test results have not
revealed any clear trend. Frankly speaking, the stepwise variations of the WFT
were not small enough to yield all the sharp peaks in the adhesiveness-WFT
curves. Hence, the maximum adhesiveness tended to be underestimated.
Nevertheless, it does seem that the addition of SFC and/or CSF is beneficial to the
adhesiveness; further tests are of course needed for confirmation.
5.6.4 Effect of WFT on cube strength
From the cube strength-WFT curves plotted in Figure 5.9, it can be seen
that the WFT has a distinct effect on the strength of mortar. When the WFT was
negative, the mortar appeared to be rather dry because the water was then not
sufficient to fill the voids. Under this situation, a certain amount of air was
entrapped in the voids causing the strength of mortar to be adversely affected.
When the WFT was positive, the water was sufficient to fill the voids. Under this
situation, as the WFT increased, the W/CM ratio also increased causing the
strength of mortar to gradually decrease. Hence, the maximum strength was
achieved at a WFT very close to 0 m, in which case, the water was just sufficient
to fill the voids. As a general rule, therefore, to achieve the highest strength
possible, a positive but very small WFT should be adopted in the design of the
mortar mix.
5.7 Conclusions
A number of mortar samples made with triple-blended cementitious
materials containing OPC + SFC + CSF and added with different water contents
were produced for packing density, rheology, adhesiveness and strength
measurements. It was found that the addition of SFC, which is finer than OPC, to
fill the voids between OPC and the addition of CSF, which has the highest
- 91 -
fineness, to fill the voids between OPC and SFC can significantly increase the
packing density of the solid particles. However, because of the respective increase
in solid surface area, which thins down the water films coating the solid particles,
the WFT does not always increase. Relatively, the addition of SFC is less
effective in increasing the WFT but would increase the WFT over a wider range
of water content, and the addition of CSF is more effective in increasing the WFT
but would increase the WFT only at W/S ratio by volume 0.45 or W/CM ratio
by mass 0.32.
Correlation of the measured flow spread, flow rate, yield stress, apparent
viscosity and adhesiveness to the WFT revealed that the WFT plays an important
role in the fresh properties of mortar. Generally, the flow spread and flow rate
would increase and the yield stress and apparent viscosity would decrease as the
WFT increases. At the same WFT, the SFC has little effect but the CSF has great
effects on these rheological properties. This is probably because (1) the CSF,
being ultrafine, would tend to move together with the water to form a water-CSF
slurry, which has a large volume than the water itself, to provide better lubrication;
and (2) the CSF, being perfectly rounded, could act as ball bearings to reduce the
inter-particle friction between the larger solid particles. On the other hand, it is
evident that the adhesiveness is highest when the mortar is neither too dry nor too
wet, as indicated by its WFT, taken as a measure of wetness, falling within 0 to
0.10 m.
Lastly, the strength results revealed that the WFT also plays an important
role in the hardened properties of mortar. Basically, a positive but very small
WFT is the optimum for producing the highest strength. Furthermore, the addition
of SFC and/or CSF to increase the packing density would allow the W/CM ratio
to be lowered while keeping the WFT positive to increase the strength.
- 92 -
Tables
Table 5.1 Mix proportions, packing density and WFT

(kg/m3)
Packing
density
(Voids
ratio)
W/CM
ratio by
mass
OPC
SFC
CSF
FA*
Water
SP
M-0-0-0.6
0.193
1048
1099
205
12
M-0-0-0.8
0.257
982
1030
256
11
M-0-0-1.0
0.321
924
969
300
11
M-0-0-1.2
0.386
872
914
339
10
0.269
M-10-0-0.6
0.194
943
99
1098
204
13
-0.117
M-10-0-0.8
0.259
883
93
1029
255
12
M-10-0-1.0
0.323
831
87
968
299
12
M-10-0-1.2
0.388
784
82
914
338
11
0.282
M-20-0-0.6
0.195
837
198
1097
203
14
-0.094
M-20-0-0.8
0.260
784
185
1028
254
13
M-20-0-1.0
0.325
738
174
967
298
12
M-20-0-1.2
0.390
697
165
913
337
12
0.277
M-0-10-0.5
0.166
966
76
1126
167
23
-0.059
M-0-10-0.6
0.199
934
73
1088
195
22
-0.021
M-0-10-0.8
0.265
876
69
1020
245
21
M-0-10-1.0
0.331
824
65
960
290
20
0.134
M-0-10-1.2
0.397
778
61
907
329
19
0.211
M-10-10-0.5
0.167
858
101
76
1124
166
24
-0.036
M-10-10-0.6
0.200
829
98
73
1087
194
23
0.001
M-10-10-0.8
0.267
778
92
69
1019
244
22
M-10-10-1.0
0.333
732
86
65
959
289
21
0.149
M-10-10-1.2
0.400
691
82
61
906
328
20
0.222
M-20-10-0.5
0.168
750
202
76
1123
165
25
-0.028
M-20-10-0.6
0.201
725
196
73
1086
193
24
0.007
M-20-10-0.8
0.268
680
183
69
1018
243
23
M-20-10-1.0
0.335
640
173
65
958
288
22
0.149
M-20-10-1.2
0.402
604
163
61
905
327
20
0.220
Mix no.
- 93 -
WFT
(m)
-0.163
0.737
(0.357)
0.749
(0.335)
0.755
(0.325)
0.780
(0.282)
0.789
(0.267)
0.800
(0.250)
-0.019
0.125
0.016
0.149
0.030
0.153
0.057
0.075
0.078
Mix no.
Flow
spread
(mm)
Flow
rate
(ml/s)
Yield
stress
(Pa)
Apparent
viscosity
(Pas)
Adhesiveness
(g)
28-day
cube
strength
(MPa)
M-0-0-0.6
0.0
0.0
0.0
7.0
M-0-0-0.8
5.5
0.0
0.6
90.8
M-0-0-1.0
155.0
169.8
9.2
6.7
26.0
91.4
M-0-0-1.2
210.0
365.8
2.6
3.1
13.4
72.9
M-10-0-0.6
0.0
0.0
0.0
84.8
M-10-0-0.8
1.5
0.0
95.8
36.2
2.7
95.8
M-10-0-1.0
195.0
202.5
3.8
2.9
19.8
95.9
M-10-0-1.2
206.0
391.3
2.8
2.6
15.9
82.1
M-20-0-0.6
0.0
0.0
0.0
88.8
M-20-0-0.8
0.0
8.5
78.3
29.2
93.3
99.8
M-20-0-1.0
191.0
226.8
5.2
4.0
15.8
95.5
M-20-0-1.2
195.0
354.4
2.7
1.7
12.8
90.0
M-0-10-0.5
0.0
0.0
0.0
98.6
M-0-10-0.6
0.0
0.0
0.0
117.6
M-0-10-0.8
162.0
69.8
8.2
9.7
24.0
105.9
M-0-10-1.0
260.5
236.3
2.5
2.5
12.8
99.1
M-0-10-1.2
289.5
365.8
1.2
1.3
9.6
89.1
M-10-10-0.5
0.0
0.0
0.0
109.1
M-10-10-0.6
2.5
0.0
0.6
116.6
M-10-10-0.8
171.5
97.8
6.0
7.4
23.8
108.2
M-10-10-1.0
250.0
252
2.7
2.8
9.4
100.7
M-10-10-1.2
274.0
354.4
1.6
1.8
9.0
91.0
M-20-10-0.5
0.0
0.0
0.0
87.2
M-20-10-0.6
0.0
2.9
59.2
46.9
103.6
116.0
M-20-10-0.8
191.5
155.3
5.9
5.5
26.0
112.9
M-20-10-1.0
230.5
315.0
2.6
2.9
22.6
105.9
M-20-10-1.2
246.0
365.8
2.1
2.2
13.2
96.3
- 94 -
Figures
100
80
60
CSF
SFC
OPC
fine aggregate
40
20
0
0.1
10
100
1000
10000
Particle size (m)

Figure 5.1 Particle size distributions of CSF, SFC, OPC and fine aggregate
- 95 -
0.30
WFT (m)
0.20
0.10
0.00
SFC= 0%, CSF= 0%

SFC=10%, CSF= 0%
SFC=20%, CSF= 0%
-0.10
SFC= 0%, CSF=10%

SFC=10%, CSF=10%
SFC=20%, CSF=10%
-0.20
0.20
0.30
0.40
0.50
0.60
W/S ratio by volume
Figure 5.2 Variation of WFT with W/S ratio at different SFC and CSF contents
- 96 -
350
300
SFC= 0%, CSF= 0%

SFC=10%, CSF= 0%
Flow spread (mm)
SFC=20%, CSF= 0%
250
SFC= 0%, CSF=10%

SFC=10%, CSF=10%
200
SFC=20%, CSF=10%
150
100
50
0
0.20
0.30
0.40
0.50
0.60
0.50
0.60
W/S ratio by volume
450
400
Flow rate (ml/s)
350
300
250
SFC= 0%, CSF= 0%

SFC=10%, CSF= 0%
SFC=20%, CSF= 0%
SFC= 0%, CSF=10%
SFC=10%, CSF=10%
SFC=20%, CSF=10%
200
150
100
50
0
0.20
0.30
0.40
W/S ratio by volume
Figure 5.3 Flowability versus W/S ratio
- 97 -
120
SFC= 0%, CSF= 0%

SFC=10%, CSF= 0%
100
SFC=20%, CSF= 0%
Yield stress (Pa)
SFC= 0%, CSF=10%
80
SFC=10%, CSF=10%
SFC=20%, CSF=10%
60
40
20
0
0.20
0.30
0.40
0.50
0.60
W/S ratio by volume
50
SFC= 0%, CSF= 0%
SFC=10%, CSF= 0%
SFC=20%, CSF= 0%
40
SFC= 0%, CSF=10%

SFC=10%, CSF=10%
30
SFC=20%, CSF=10%
20
10
0
0.20
0.30
0.40
0.50
W/S ratio by volume
Figure 5.4 Rheological properties versus W/S ratio
- 98 -
0.60
120
SFC= 0%, CSF= 0%

SFC=10%, CSF= 0%
100
SFC=20%, CSF= 0%
Adhesiveness (g)
SFC= 0%, CSF=10%
80
SFC=10%, CSF=10%
SFC=20%, CSF=10%
60
40
20
0
0.20
0.30
0.40
0.50
W/S ratio by volume
Figure 5.5 Adhesiveness versus W/S ratio
- 99 -
0.60
350
300
SFC= 0%, CSF= 0%

SFC=10%, CSF= 0%
Flow spread (mm)
SFC=20%, CSF= 0%
250
SFC= 0%, CSF=10%

SFC=10%, CSF=10%
200
SFC=20%, CSF=10%
R2=0.934
150
y=a+becx1
a=230+8x2
b=-230-8x2
c=-10
100
50
0
-0.20
-0.10
0.00
0.10
0.20
0.30
WFT (m)
Note: x1 is the WFT (m); x2 is the CSF content (%)
450
400
Flow rate (ml/s)
350
300
250
SFC= 0%, CSF= 0%

SFC=10%, CSF= 0%
SFC=20%, CSF= 0%
SFC= 0%, CSF=10%
SFC=10%, CSF=10%
SFC=20%, CSF=10%
200
150
R=0.938
100
y=ax1
a=1300+40x2
50
0
-0.20
-0.10
0.00
0.10
WFT (m)
Figure 5.6 Flowability versus WFT
- 100 -
0.20
0.30
120
SFC= 0%, CSF= 0%

SFC=10%, CSF= 0%
100
SFC=20%, CSF= 0%
Yield stress (Pa)
SFC= 0%, CSF=10%
80
SFC=10%, CSF=10%
R2=0.995
SFC=20%, CSF=10%
y=a+becx1
a=1
b=135-6x2
c=-20-1.5x2
60
40
20
0
-0.20
-0.10
0.00
0.10
0.20
0.30
WFT (m)
50
SFC= 0%, CSF= 0%
45
SFC=10%, CSF= 0%
40
SFC=20%, CSF= 0%
35
30
SFC= 0%, CSF=10%

SFC=10%, CSF=10%
R2=0.997
SFC=20%, CSF=10%
y=a+becx1
a=2
b=47+x2
c=-19-1.5x2
25
20
15
10
5
0
-0.20
-0.10
0.00
0.10
0.20
WFT (m)
Figure 5.7 Rheological properties versus WFT
- 101 -
0.30
120
SFC= 0%, CSF= 0%
SFC=10%, CSF= 0%
100
SFC=20%, CSF= 0%
Adhesiveness (g)
SFC= 0%, CSF=10%
80
SFC=10%, CSF=10%
SFC=20%, CSF=10%
60
40
20
0
-0.20
-0.10
0.00
0.10
WFT (m)
Figure 5.8 Adhesiveness versus WFT
- 102 -
0.20
0.30
140
120
100
80
60
SFC= 0%, CSF= 0%

SFC=10%, CSF= 0%
40
SFC=20%, CSF= 0%
SFC= 0%, CSF=10%
20
SFC=10%, CSF=10%
SFC=20%, CSF=10%
0
-0.20
-0.10
0.00
0.10
WFT (m)
Figure 5.9 Cube strength versus WFT
- 103 -
0.20
0.30
CHAPTER 6
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
6.1 Summary of Study

An investigation was carried out on the properties of mortars with binary
and ternary blended cementitious materials. Totally three kinds of supplementary
cementitious materials (SCM), namely fly ash microsphere (FAM), superfine
cement (SFC) and condensed silica fume (CSF) were blended with ordinary
Portland cement (OPC) to produce mortar for testing. The effects of binary and
ternary blending cementitious materials with the use of these three kinds of SCMs
were studied. Based on the results, it is found that the newly developed parameter,
water film thickness, plays a key role in the performance of mortar, whereas the
interaction of the particles also imposes certain effects on the rheology of mortar.
With the WFT as an indicator, it is more effective to design the mortar tier in
concrete so that optimize the mix design of high-performance concrete (HPC)
incorporated of different kinds of SCMs. Due to the increasing sustainable
requirements, the concrete for future will be produced with high volume recycle
materials acting as cementitious materials and aggregates, making the concrete
mix design more complex and the conventional trial and error method hard to
succeed. A scientific mix design method must be developed, which should be
based on a clear and fundamental understanding of the mechanism that how these
materials influence concretes rheology. This study is from this perspective and
through the concepts of packing density, water film thickness and particle
interaction, this study contributes to improving our understanding of the effects of
SCM and developing a systematic mix design method.
Detailed conclusions have been given at the end of Chapters 3-5. The most
important of these can be summarized as follows:
- 104 -
6.1.1 Role of packing density
Since fresh mortar is essentially a water-solid mixture, the water content of

the mortar should impose great effect on its fresh properties. However, this effect
varies with different solid particle systems in mortar due to the water has to fill up
the voids between the solid particles first and only the water in excess of the
amount needed to fill up the voids would lubricate the solid particles. Hence, the
packing density of the solid particle system, which determines the voids content,
should be of great importance to the fresh properties of mortar too. This
importance was recognized before but for a long time, lacking of proper method
to measure packing density, especially for the fine solid particles, remains the
major obstacle. This study adopted a wet packing method, which was developed
recently in the University of Hong Kong, to evaluate the packing densities of solid
particles in different mortar mix samples. This method takes into consideration of
effects of water and SP and was operated under wet condition which is more
realistic. Compared with the traditional dry packing method, this method is less
sensitive to the compaction applied and the results determined from this method
showed a better repeatability. Due to these advantages, it is highly advocated this
wet packing method should be used, in replacement of the dry packing method, to
measure the packing density of cementitious materials or even aggregate.
6.1.2 Role of water film thickness
With the determination of packing density of mortar by the wet packing

method, the effect of packing density on the performance of mortar could be
demonstrated. The fine SCM are found effective to improve the packing density
so as the excess water content. However, the increased solid surface area brought
by the fine SCM was found to have negative effects on the flowability of mortar.
Regarding this, the authors research team proposed a new parameter, water film
thickness (WFT), to combine the effects of packing density and solid surface area.
The WFT is determined as the excess water content to solid surface area and has
the physical meaning of the average thickness of water films coating the solid
particles. It was shown that the rheology of mortar always improved as the WFT
increased. Given the same water content, suitable adjustment of the packing of
- 105 -
solid ingredients will maximize the WFT at almost no extra cost and without
compromising other hardened properties. In the researches before, this WFT has
been demonstrated as the governing factor in cement paste and cement mortar. In
this study, the role of WFT in the mortar produced with different kinds of SCM
was further investigated.
6.1.3 Effects of fly ash microsphere
Since the filling effect of the very fine particles of fly ash microsphere
(FAM), addition of FAM up to 40% replacement content could significantly
increase the solid packing density of mortar. The addition of FAM will be more
effective to improve the WFT at a low W/S ratio, which can be also reflected as
the more significant increase in flow spread at the low W/S ratio. It is concluded
that the addition of FAM exerts its effects on rheology through the filling effect,
which increases the excess water content, the increased solid surface area, which
thins down the water films coating the solid particles, the dispersing effect, which
avoids the interlocking of angular particles and the ball bearing effect, which
reduces the friction between other solid particles.
The cube strength results reveal that the addition of FAM will improve the
strength significantly. This improvement should be resulted from the increased
packing density, rather than the pozzolanic effect which should be not obvious in
28 day. The concurrent strength-flowability performance showed that the addition
of FAM up to 40% content could increase the strength at the same flowability,
increase the flowability at the same strength, or increase both the strength and
flowability at the same time. Compared the 20% FAM content, further increase of
FAM to 40% content would not further improve the concurrent strengthflowability performance. On the other side, 40% FAM content would not decrease
the overall performance of mortar either. Generally, FAM is considered as an
excellent SCM for improving the rheology and strength of mortar.
- 106 -
6.1.4 Effects of superfine cement
Since the filling effect of the very fine particles of the superfine cement
(SFC), addition of SFC up to 20% replacement content could significantly
increase the solid packing density of mortar. The addition of SFC would generally
increase the flowability, decreased the yield stress and apparent viscosity of
mortar mix. The addition of SFC influences the rheology through the filling effect
and the increased solid surface area. Due to the angular shape of SFC particles,
the ball bearing effect, which was found in FAM, does not exist anymore. The 28day cube strengths results indicated that the cube strength increased as the W/CM
ratio decreased and then decreased as the W/CM ratio decreased to beyond a
certain optimum value. The optimum W/CM ratio for maximum cube strength
was lower at a higher SFC content while the maximum cube strength was a little
bit higher at a higher SFC content.
6.1.5 Effects of condensed silica fume
Compared with FAM and SFC, the CSF was demonstrated as the most
effective one to improve the fresh and hardened properties of mortar. Firstly, due
to its ultrahigh fineness, addition of CSF could significantly increase the solid
packing density of mortar. The results determined from the wet packing method
revealed that even only 10% replacement content of CSF can drastically increase
the packing density. Secondly, addition of the ultra-fine CSF would significantly
increase the solid surface area at the same time. So high-volume addition of CSF
is not suggested and was not adopted in this study either. But at a low W/CM ratio,
the addition of CSF would largely increase the WFT so that improve the
flowability of mortar. Thirdly, due to the perfect rounded shape of CSF particles,
the ball bearing effect would reduce the friction between other solid particles
effectively. Last, due to the ultrahigh fineness, the CSF particles would tend to
move together with the water to form water-CSF slurry. Since the water-CSF
slurry has a larger volume than the water itself, the presence of CSF would
increase the thickness of the slurry coating the solid particles so that provide better
lubrication. The cube strength results also revealed that CSF could effectively
- 107 -
increase the cube strength and by now still remain the most important SCM in the
production of HPC.
6.1.6 Effects of ternary blended system
There are numerous researches about binary blended system, which is

referred to blending OPC with one kind of SCM. However, ternary blending OPC
with two kinds of SCM with different fineness would improve the particle size
distribution and further increase the packing density by the successive filling
effect. Especially adding CSF with another SCM of fineness between CSF and
OPC would be greatly beneficial to the overall performance of mortar. In this
study, both binary blended system, e.g. OPC+FAM or OPC+SFC, and ternary
blended system, e.g. OPC+FAM+CSF or OPC+SFC+CSF, were used to produce
mortar mix samples. The results showed that the ternary blended system could
more effectively benefit the packing density along with excess water content,
while not excessively increase the solid surface area. As a result, the mortars with
ternary blended cementitious materials usually show better flowability than the
ones with binary blended system. The strength results show that the ternary
blended system also appears to be more advantageous to increase the strength of
mortar. Compared with binary blended system, ternay blending CSF with FAM or
SFC would not only improve the overall strength-flowability performance, but
also allow part of CSF to be replaced by FAM or SFC to reduce the cost of
production. Considering all the advantages above, it is the authors belief that the
ternary blended system will contract more interests with the increasing popularity
of HPC.
6.2 Conclusions
Adding SCM to improve the overall performance of concrete is no doubt a
great advancement in the development of concrete technology. However the
mechanism of how SCM affect the rheology and strength of concrete still remains
elusive, making the mix design rather difficult. The traditional strategy of
- 108 -
optimizing the mix design of cement paste/mortar/concrete is to maximize the

packing density of the particle system, which can minimize the voids content and
improve the strength significantly. However, at the same water content, packing
density is not the only parameter that governs the workability of concrete. The
solid surface area also plays an essential role. In this study, the author proposed to
take into consideration both of the two aspects in the mix design through the
newly developed parameter, water film thickness (WFT). It is the authors belief
that it is the WFT, rather than the packing density, that should be optimized. In
other words, the mix design of the mortar fraction in concrete should be optimized
by not only controlling the water content, but also adjusting the packing density
and solid surface area. The test results in this study have demonstrated that the
WFT should be the most important parameter to be considered in the mix design
of high-performance mortar and concrete. The findings of this study have
improved the understanding of the mechanism of how SCM influence the
performance of concrete and based on these findings, a general guideline for
adopting SCM in the production of HPC is established.
To improve the workability of concrete, adding SCM finer than OPC is

beneficial only when they can increase the WFT. However, whether the WFT
would be increased is dependent on whether the proportional increase in excess
water due to the addition of SCM is larger than the proportional increase in solid
surface area. The proportional increase in excess water is in turn dependent on the
water content while the proportional increase in solid surface area is independent
on the water content. When SCM are added in a mortar with a lower water content,
the increase in excess water will be higher compared with the situation with a
higher water content. That is the reason that addition of SCM is usually more
effective in increasing the WFT at a relative low W/S ratio. When CSF is blended
together with another SCM with a mean particle size of several micrometers, the
packing density will be effectively increased so as the amount of excess water,
while the corresponding increase in solid surface area will not be too excessive
compared with blending CSF alone. As a result, ternary blended system is more
effective in increasing the WFT in the mix design. Besides, the effects of particle
interaction should be considered at the same time. Adding some SCM with
spherical particle shape will be beneficial for the concrete to achieve higher
- 109 -
flowability at the same WFT value through the ball bearing effect. Furthermore,
some ultrafine particles of SCM tend to move with water to form slurry between
the other particles to provide better lubrication. So, taking the advantage of the
particle interaction should be an effective strategy especially when the WFT has
been already adjusted in the mix design. To ensure the minimum flowability, the
WFT is always suggested to be set at a positive value.
To improve the adhesiveness of mortar, the WFT should be set at a value

between 0 to 0.15 m. It is observed that the mortar mix usually achieve their
maximum adhesiveness at different water content. The WFT could be used as a
more effective indicator of the optimum wetness for the mortar mix compared
with the W/S ratio. So far, there has been little research on adhesiveness since the
lacking of scandalized measurement method. But increasing the adhesiveness of
mortar should be an effective method to produce high-build mortar for rendering
and concrete repair, and the mortar portion of concrete requiring high
cohesiveness (which is highly dependent on the ability of the mortar to adhere to
the aggregate particles).
To improve the strength of concrete, addition of SCM finer than OPC will
be preferred in the mix design since it can effectively increase the packing density
so that reduce the water content required in a concrete. With the lowering of the
W/CM ratio, the strength will be dramatically improved. Incorporating SCM with
pozzolanic activity will further increase the strength through the pozzolanic
reaction which can improve the microstructure of the concrete. Usually, the
concrete mixed with fine SCM appears very cohesive, leading to less bleeding
water and thus stronger bonding force of the interfacial transition zone which
finally dominates the strength of concrete. Ternary blending OPC with two kinds
of SCM with different levels of fineness will achieve a better packing density, as a
result, higher strength, compared with binary blending OPC with one kind of
SCM. To achieve the peak strength, a WFT value slightly above zero is suggested
in the mix design.
Summing up, SCM can be of great effectiveness in improving the overall

performance of concrete if properly added. Based on the theories of packing of
- 110 -
solid particles, WFT and particle interaction, we can improve the understanding of
the roles of SCM in concrete and at last make our mix design more scientific and
the concrete for tomorrow perform better.
6.3 Recommendations for Further Work

This thesis has raised the concepts of WFT and presented a comprehensive
study on its role in the performance of mortar. The following areas are
recommended for future work:
(1)
The particle interaction between the SCM and other solid particles is very
complex which would also have great impacts on the rheology of mortar.
This study has discussed these effects preliminarily. Further research,
including computer modelling, is suggested.
(2)
The concept of WFT should be extended to concrete tier as the same, since
the role of WFT has not been studied and demonstrated in the concrete tier
so far. Hence, research on this topic is highly recommended.
(3)
Similar to the excess water, acting as the water film coating the solid
particles, the excess paste and excess mortar would also act as paste film
and mortar film coating the aggregates. The relative paste film thickness
and mortar film thickness are considered as important parameters to
influence concretes performance. The authors postgraduate study could
be considered as one part of this systematic study and further investigation
on the combined effects of WFT, paste film thickness and mortar film
thickness on performance of concrete is highly recommended.
- 111 -
REFERENCES
ACI Committee 212, Guide for the Use of High-Range Water-Reducing
Admixtures (Superplasticizers) in Concrete, ACI 212.4R-04, American
Concrete Institute, USA, 2004, 13 pp.
ACI Committee 226, Use of fly ash in concrete, ACI 226.3R-87, ACI Materials
Journal, Vol. 84, No.5, 1987, pp 381-408.
Atcin, P. -C., Cements of yesterday and today: Concrete of tomorrow, Cement
and Concrete Research, Vol. 30, No. 9, 2000, pp 1349-1359.
Atcin, P. -C., Improving the sustainability of high performance concrete,
Proceeding of 9th International Symposium on High Performance Concrete,
Rotorua, New Zealand, 2011, keynote paper.
Atcin, P. -C., High-Performance Concrete, E & FN Spon, London and New York,
1998, 591 pp.
Alves, M., Cremonini, R. and Dal Molin, D., "A comparison of mix proportioning
methods for high-strength concrete", Cement and Concrete Composites, Vol.
26, No.6, 2004, pp 613-621.
Artelt, C. and Garcia, E., Impact of superplasticizer concentration and of ultrafine particles on the rheological behaviour of dense mortar suspensions,
Cement and Concrete Research, Vol. 38, No. 5, 2008, pp 633-642.
Bharatkumar, B. H., Narayanan, R., Raghuprasad, B. K. and Ramachandramurthy,
D. S., Mix proportioning of high performance concrete, Cement and
Concrete Composites, Vol. 23, No. 1, 2001, pp 71-80.
Claisse, P. A., Lorimer, P. and Al Omari, M., Workability of cement pastes,
ACI Materials Journal, Vol. 98, No. 6, 2001, pp 476-482.
Collepardi, M. and Valente, M., Recent developments in superplasticizers, ACI
SP-239, 2006, pp 1-14.
Collins, F. and Sanjayan, J. G., Effects of ultra-fine materials on workability and
strength of concrete containing alkali-activated slag as the binder, Cement
and Concrete Research, Vol. 29, No. 3, 1999, pp 459-462.
De Larrard, F., Concrete Mixture Proportioning: A Scientific Approach, E&FN
Spon, New York, 1999, Chapter 2, pp 77-221.
De Larrard, F. and Sedran, T., Optimization of ultra-high-performance concrete
by the use of a packing model, Cement and Concrete Research, Vol. 24, No.
- 112 -
6, 1994, pp 997-1009.
Domone, P. and Soutsos, M., An approach to the proportioning of high-strength
concrete mixes, Concrete International-Design and Construction, Vol. 16,
No.10, 1994, pp 26-31.
Duval, R. and Kadri, E. H., Influence of silica fume on the workability and the
compressive strength of high-performance concretes, Cement and Concrete
Research, 1998, Vol. 28, No. 4, pp 533-547.
Erdem, T. K. and Krca, ., Use of binary and ternary blends in high strength
concrete, Construction and Building Materials, Vol. 22, No. 7, 2008, pp
1477-1483.
Feng, N. Q., Shi, Y. X. and Hao, T. Y., Influence of ultrafine powder on the
fluidity and strength of cement paste, Advances in Cement Research, Vol.
12, No. 3, 2000, pp 89-95.
Ferraris, C. F., Obla, K. H. and Hill, R., The influence of mineral admixtures on
the rheology of cement paste and concrete, Cement and Concrete Research,
Vol. 31, No. 2, 2001, pp 245-255.
FIP Commission on Concrete, FIP State-of-the-Art Report: Condensed Silica
Fume in Concrete, Thomas Telford, London, 1988, 37 pp.
Fung, W. W. S. and Kwan, A. K. H., Role of water film thickness in rheology of
CSF mortar, Cement and Concrete Composites, Vol. 32, No. 4, 2010, pp
255-264.
Fung, W. W. S., Kwan, A. K. H. and Wong, H. H. C., Wet packing of crushed
rock fine aggregate, Materials and Structures, Vol. 42, No. 5, 2009, pp 631643.
Gao, P. W., Deng, M. and Feng, N. Q., The influence of superplasticizer and
superfine mineral powder on the flexibility, strength and durability of HPC,
Glavind, M. and Munch-Petersen, C., Green concrete - a life cycle approach,
Sustainable Concrete Construction, MPG Books, Bodmin, UK, 2002, pp
771-786.
Hattori, K., Experience with Mighty superplasticizer in Japan, ACI SP-62, 1978,
pp 37-66.
Helmuth R. A., Structure and rheology of fresh cement paste, Proceedings of
7th International Congress of Chemistry of Cement, Paris, 1980, pp 16-30.
- 113 -
Hunger, M. and Brouwers, H., Flow analysis of water-powder mixtures:

Application to specific surface area and shape factor, Cement and Concrete
Composites, Vol. 31, No. 1, 2009, pp 39-59.
Isaia, G., Gastaldini, A. and Moraes, R., Physical and pozzolanic action of
mineral additions on the mechanical strength of high-performance concrete,
Cement and Concrete Composites, Vol. 25, No. 1, 2003, pp 69-76.
Kaci, A., Bouras, R., Phan, V.T., Andrani, P.A., Chaouche, M. and Brossas, H.,
Adhesive and rheological properties of fresh fibre-reinforced mortars,
Cement Concrete Composite, Vol. 33, No. 2, 2011, pp 219-224.
Khatri, R. P., Sirivivatnanon, V. and Gross, W., Effect of different
supplementary cementitious materials on mechanical properties of high
performance concrete, Cement and Concrete Research, Vol. 25, No. 1, 1995,
pp 209-220.
Kohno, K. and Komatsu, H., Use of ground bottom ash and silica fume in mortar
and concrete, Proceedings of ACI Second International Conference on Fly
Ash, Silica Fume, Slag, and Natural Pozzolans in Concrete, Madrid, Spain,
1986, pp 1279-1292.
Kwan, A. K. H., Development of high performance concrete for Hong Kong,
Proceedings of Materials Science and Technology in Engineering
Conference, Hong Kong, 2003, pp 1-16.
Kwan, A. K. H., Use of condensed silica fume for making high-strength, selfconsolidating concrete, Canadian Journal of Civil Engineering, Vol. 27, No.
4, 2000, pp 620-627.
Kwan, A. K. H., Cai, Y. B. and Chan, H. C., Development of very high strength
concrete for Hong Kong, HKIE Transactions, 1995, Vol. 2, No. 2, pp 9-16.
Kwan, A. K. H., Chen, J. J. and Fung, W. W. S., Effects of superplasticizer on
rheology and cohesiveness of CSF cement paste, Advances in Cement
Research, 2012, (in press).
Kwan, A. K. H. and Fung, W. W. S., Effects of CSF content on rheology and
cohesiveness of mortar, Magazine of Concrete Research, Vol. 63, No. 2,
2011, pp 99-110.
Kwan, A. K. H. and Fung, W. W. S., Packing density measurement and
modelling of fine aggregate and mortar, Cement and Concrete Composites,
Vol. 31, No. 6, 2009, pp 349-357.
- 114 -
Kwan, A. K. H., Fung, W. W. S. and Wong, H. H. C., Water film thickness,

flowability and rheology of cement-sand mortar, Advances in Cement
Research, Vol. 22, No. 1, 2010, pp 3-14.
Kwan, A. K. H. and Ng, I. Y. T., Improving performance and robustness of SCC
by adding supplementary cementitious materials, Construction and Building
Materials, Vol. 24, No. 11, 2010, pp 2260-2266.
Kwan, A. K. H. and Wong, H. H. C., Effects of packing density, excess water
and solid surface area on flowability of cement paste, Advances in Cement
Research, Vol. 20, No. 1, 2008a, pp 1-11.
Kwan, A. K. H. and Wong, H. H. C., Packing density of cementitious materials:
part 2 - packing and flow of OPC + PFA + CSF, Material and Structures,
Vol. 41, No. 4, 2008b, pp 773-784.
Lee, S. H., Kim, H. J., Sakai, E. and Daimon, M., Effect of particle size
distribution of fly ash-cement system on the fluidity of cement pastes,
Li, L. G. and Kwan, A. K. H., Mortar design based on water film thickness,
Construction and Building Materials, Vol. 25, No. 5, 2011, pp 2381-2390.
Lothenbach, B., Scrivener, K. and Hooton, R. D., Supplementary cementitious
materials, Cement and Concrete Research, Vol. 41, No. 12, 2011, pp 12441256.
MacArthur, J. M., Read, A. S. and Cole, R. N., Grade 100 concrete in Hong
Kong, Asia Engineer, September, 1996, pp 9-11.
Malhotra, V. M., Making concrete greener with fly ash, Concrete International,
Vol. 21, No. 5, 1999, pp 61-66.
Malhotra, V., Role of supplementary cementing materials in reducing
greenhouse gas emissions, Concrete technology for a sustainable
development in the 21st century, 2000, pp 226-235.
Mehta, P. K., Reducing the Environmental Impact of Concrete, Concrete
International, Vol. 23, No. 10, 2001, pp 61-66.
Mehta, P. K., Concrete technology for sustainable development, Concrete
International, Vol. 21, No. 11, 1999, pp 47-53.
Mehta, P. K. and Gjrv, O., Properties of Portland cement concrete containing
fly ash and condensed silica-fume, Cement and Concrete Research, Vol. 12,
No. 5, 1982, pp 587-595.
- 115 -
Meyer, A., Experiences in the Use of Superplasticizers in Germany,

Superplasticizers in concrete, ACI SP-62, 1979, pp 21-36.
Meyer, C., The greening of the concrete industry, Cement and Concrete
Composites, Vol. 31, No. 8, 2009, pp 601-605.
Nanthagopalan, P., Haist, M., Santhanam, M. and Mller, H. S., Investigation on
the influence of granular packing on the flow properties of cementitious
suspensions, Cement and Concrete Composites, Vol. 30, No. 9, 2008, pp
763-768.
Neville, A. M., Properties of Concrete, Fourth Edition, Prentice Hall, Harlow, UK,
1995.
Okamura, H. and Ouchi, M., Self-compacting concrete, Journal of Advanced
Concrete Technology, Vol. 1, No. 1, 2003, pp 5-15.
Papadakis, V. G., Effect of supplementary cementing materials on concrete
resistance against carbonation and chloride ingress, Cement and Concrete
Parrott, L. J., The selection of constituents and proportions for producing
workable concrete with a compressive cube strength of 80 to 110 N/mm2,
Technical Report TRA 416, May, 1969, Cement and Concrete Association,
London.
Powers, T. C., The Properties of Fresh Concrete, John Wiley & Sons, New York,
USA, 1968, 664 pp.
Quercia, G., Hsken, G. and Brouwers, H., Water demand of amorphous nano
silica and its impact on the workability of cement paste, Cement and
Concrete Research, Vol. 42, No. 2, 2012, pp 344-357.
Read, T. and MacArthur, J. M., High strength concrete - an approach to its
development in Hong Kong, Proceedings of Hong Kong Concrete
Technology and Construction Conference, Hong Kong Institution of
Engineers, November, 1990, pp 73-99.
Rizwan, S. A. and Bier, T. A., Self-consolidating mortars using various
secondary raw materials, ACI Materials Journal, Vol. 106, No. 1, 2009, pp
25-32.
Sedran, T., de Larrard, F., Hourst, F. and Contamines, C., Mix design of selfcompacting concrete, Proceedings of the International RILEM Conference
on Production Methods and Workability of Concrete, Paisley, Scotland, 1996,
- 116 -
pp 439-450.
Svarovsky, L. and Board, B. M. H., Powder testing guide: methods of measuring
the physical properties of bulk powders, Elsevier Applied Science Publishers
Ltd, England, 1987.
Tattersall, G. H. and Banfill, P. F. G., The Rheology of Fresh Concrete, Pitman,
Boston, 1983.
Wang, A. Q., Zhang, C. Z. and Zhang, N. S., Study of the influence of the
particle size distribution on the properties of cement, Cement and Concrete
Wong, H. H. C. and Kwan, A. K. H., Rheology of cement paste: Role of excess
water to solid surface area ratio, Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering,
Vol. 20, No. 2, 2008a, pp 189-197.
Wong, H. H. C. and Kwan, A. K. H., Packing density of cementitious materials:
part 1 - measurement using a wet packing method, Materials and Structures,
Vol. 41, No. 4, 2008b, pp 689-701.
Wong, H. H. C. and Kwan, A. K. H., Packing density of cementitious materials:
measurement and modelling, Magazine of Concrete Research, Vol. 60, No. 3,
2008c, pp 165-175.
Yahia, A., Tanimura, M. and Shimoyama, Y., Rheological properties of highly
flowable mortar containing limestone filler-effect of powder content and
W/C ratio, Cement and Concrete Research, Vol. 35, No. 3, 2005, pp 532539.
Yu, A. B., Bridgwater, J. and Burbidge, A., On the modelling of the packing of
fine particles, Powder Technology, Vol. 92, No. 3, 1997, pp 185-194.
Zhang, C., Wang, A., Tang, M. and Liu, X., The filling role of pozzolanic material,
Cement and Concrete Research , 1996, Vol. 26, No. 6, pp 943-947.
Zhang, X. and Han, J., The effect of ultra-fine admixture on the rheological
property of cement paste, Cement and Concrete Research, Vol. 30, No. 5,
2000, pp 827-830.
Zheng, H. W., Chan, F. W. Y. and Kwan, A. K. H., High-performance concrete
for green construction, Proceedings of 7th International Conference on Tall
Buildings, Hong kong, China, 2009, pp 163-170.
- 117 -
LIST OF PUBLICATIONS DURING CANDIDATURE
Refereed Journal Publications
Li, Y., Chen, J. J. and Kwan, A. K. H., Role of water film thickness in fresh and
hardened properties of mortar, Advances in Cement Research, (accepted).
Kwan, A. K. H. and Li, Y., Effects of fly ash microsphere on rheology,

adhesiveness and strength of mortar, (under preparation)
Li, Y. and Kwan, A. K. H., Ternary blending of cement with fly ash microsphere
and condensed silica fume to improve the performance of mortar, (under
preparation)
Conference Publications
Chen, J. J., Li, Y. and Kwan, A. K. H., Addition of chemical and mineral
admixtures to improve packing density of powder content in highperformance concrete, Proceeding of 9th International Symposium on High
Performance Concrete - Design, Verification & Utilization, Rotorua, New
Zealand, August, 2011.
Li, Y., Chen, J. J. and Kwan, A. K. H., Role of water film thickness in mix
design of high-performance concrete, Proceeding of the 2nd International
Conference on Microstructure Related Durability of Cementitious
Composites, Amsterdam, Netherlands, April, 2012.
- 118 -

Full Text

Загружено:

Сведения о документе

Оригинальное название

Авторское право

Доступные форматы

Поделиться этим документом

Поделиться или встроить документ

Параметры публикации

Этот документ был вам полезен?

Это неприемлемый материал?

Авторское право:

Доступные форматы

Full Text

Загружено:

Авторское право:

Доступные форматы

Title

Properties of mortars with binary and ternary blended

The author retains all proprietary rights, (such as patent rights)

PROPERTIES OF MORTARS WITH BINARY AND

THE UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG

PROPERTIES OF MORTARS WITH BINARY AND

B.Eng. (Civil Engineering),

A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for

Abstract of thesis entitled

PROPERTIES OF MORTARS WITH BINARY AND

for the Degree of Master of Philosophy

It has been postulated by some researches that increasing the packing

Dedicated to My Beloved Family

The author is particularly grateful to his supervisor, Professor A.K.H.

Development of High-Performance Concrete

Three-Tier Mix Design Approach

Development of Green Concrete

CHAPTER 2: EXPERIMENTAL PROGRAM

Measurement of Packing Density

Determination of Water Film Thickness

Measurement of Rheological properties

CHAPTER 3: BINARY CEMENTITIOUS SYSTEM CONTAINING FLY

3.5.1 Packing density and voids ratio

3.5.2 Water film thickness

3.5.3 Flow spread and flow rate

3.5.4 Yield stress and apparent viscosity

3.5.5 Correlation between flowability and rheological properties

3.5.7 Cube strength

Concurrent Strength-Flowability Performance

CHAPTER 4: TERNARY CEMENTITIOUS SYSTEM CONTAINING FLY

4.5.1 Packing density and voids ratio

4.5.2 Water film thickness

4.5.3 Flow spread

4.5.4 Flow rate

4.5.5 Yield stress

4.5.6 Apparent viscosity

4.5.8 Cube strength

Concurrent Strength-Flowability Performance

CHAPTER 5: TERNARY CEMENTITIOUS SYSTEM CONTAINING

5.5.1 Packing density and water film thickness

5.5.2 Flow spread and flow rate

5.5.3 Yield stress and apparent viscosity

5.5.5 Cube strength

Roles of Water Film Thickness

5.6.1 Effects of WFT on flow spread and flow rate

5.6.2 Effects of WFT on yield stress and apparent viscosity

5.6.3 Effect of WFT on adhesiveness

5.6.4 Effect of WFT on cube strength

CHAPTER 6: CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

6.1.1 Role of packing density

6.1.2 Role of water film thickness

6.1.3 Effects of fly ash microsphere

6.1.4 Effects of superfine cement

6.1.5 Effects of condensed silica fume

6.1.6 Effects of ternary blended system

Recommendations for Future Work

LIST OF PUBLICATIONS DURING CANDIDATURE

Chemical compositions of OPC and FAM

Mix proportions, packing density and WFT

Flowability, rheological properties, adhesiveness and strength

Mix proportions, packing density and WFT

Flowability, rheological properties, adhesiveness and strength

Mix proportions, packing density and WFT