CE 308 – LECTURE 2
PORTLAND CEMENT AND
HYDRATION
MILITARY COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
RISALPUR
Outline
Portland Cement & Hydration
➢ Introduction
➢ Historical background
➢ Chemical composition of Portland Cement
• Chief mineral constituents
• Oxides composition
➢ Hydration of Portland cement
• Heat of hydration
• Hydration products
• Time line of hydration
• Hydration reactions
• Development of strength
➢ Setting
• False setting
• Flash setting
• Role of gypsum
➢ Conclusion
Introduction
• Portland cements are hydraulic cements composed primarily of
hydraulic calcium silicates. Hydraulic cements set and harden
by reacting chemically with water.
• During hydration, cement combines with water to form a stone
like mass, called paste.
• The paste (cement and water) acts as an adhesive and binds the
aggregates (sand and gravel, crushed stone, or other granular
material) together to form concrete, the world’s most versatile
and most widely used construction material.
• Fresh cement is like a fine powder (typically 1 to 50μm) which
is commonly available in sealed bags. On opening the bag,
cement starts absorbing moisture from the air and with the
passage of time, small and large lumps are formed, which
results in the decline of cement strength. So the cement bag
once opened should be used as soon as possible.
Historical background
• The use of cementing materials is very old.
• The ancient Egyptian used calcined impure gypsum.
• The Greeks and the Romans used calcined limestone and later
learned to add lime and water, sand and crushed stone or brick
and broken tiles.
• This was the first concrete in history.
Historical background
• Lime mortar does not harden under water, and for
construction under water the Romans ground together lime
and a volcanic ash or finely ground burnt clay tiles.
• The active silica and alumina in the ash and tiles combined
with the lime to produce, Pozzolanic cement from name of
village of Pozzuloi, near Vesuvius, where the volcanic ash
was first found.
• Some of the Roman structures in which masonry was bonded
by mortar, such as the Coliseum in Rome have survived to
this day, with the cementious material still hard and firm.
Historical background
• Portland cement patented by Joseph Aspdin, in 1824.
• Prepared cement is the name given to a cement obtained
by intimately mixing together calcareous and
argillaceous, or other silica-, alumina- and iron oxide-
bearing materials, burning them at a clinkering
temperature, and grinding the resulting clinker.
• The name Portland cement---resemblance of color to
Portland stone –Limestone quarried in Dorset.
• Portland cement is a fine powder that when mixed with
water becomes the glue that holds aggregates together in
concrete.
The chief chemical constituents of
Portland cement
Lime (CaO) 60 to 67%
Silica (SiO2) 17 to 25%
Alumina (Al2O3) 3 to 8%
Iron oxide (Fe2O3) 0.5 to 6%
Magnesia (MgO) 0.1 to 4%
Sulphur trioxide (SO3) 1 to 3%
Alkalis (Na2O+K2O) 0.2 to 1.3%
Oxides Composition
(a) Tricalcium silicate 3CaO.SiO2 (C3S) 45-60%
(b) Dicalcium silicate 2CaO.SiO2 (C2S) 15-30%
(c) Tricalcium aluminate 3CaO.Al2O3 (C3A) 06-12%
(d) Tetracalcium aluminoferrite 4CaO.Al2O3.Fe2O3 (C4AF) 06-08%
Hydration of cement
❖Hydration of PC is defined as dissolution-precipitation process.
❖During this process a fluid suspension of cement and water
transform to a porous solid over a matter of hours (setting).
❖Thereafter hardening stage appears during which strength
develops over days and months.
❖Quantity of heat evolved upon complete hydration at a given
temperature is known as heat of hydration.
❖Hydration kinetics can be studied by Calorimetry, XRD etc.
❖For the typical range of PC, about one-half of the total heat is
liberated between 1 and 3 days, about three-quarters in 7 days,
and nearly 90 percent in 6 months.
Heat of hydration
Hydration of cement
Hydration process
❖ When portland cement is dispersed in water, the calcium
sulfate and the high-temperature compounds of calcium
begin to go into solution, and the liquid phase gets rapidly
saturated with various ionic species.
❖ As a result of interaction between calcium, sulfate,
aluminate, and hydroxyl ions within a few minutes of
cement hydration, the needle-shaped crystals of calcium
trisulfoaluminate hydrate, called ettringite, first make
their appearance.
Hydration process
❖ A few hours later, large prismatic crystals of calcium
hydroxide and very small fibrous crystals of calcium
silicate hydrates begin to fill the empty space formerly
occupied by water and the dissolving cement particles.
❖ After some days, depending on the alumina-to-sulfate ratio
of the portland cement, ettringite may become unstable
and will decompose to form monosulfoaluminate
hydrate, which has a hexagonal-plate morphology.
Time line of hydration
Time line of hydration
Time line of hydration
Time line of hydration
Hydration products
Hydration products
CH
CSH
Ettringite CH
Ettringite
Hydrated paste
Hydration process
Hydration reactions
❖Hydration of Calcium Aluminates
❖Hydration of Calcium Silicates
Development of strength
❖ When water is added to cement, C3A is the first to react and
cause initial set. It generates great amount of heat.
❖ C3S hydrates early and develops strength in the first 28 days. It
also generates heat.
❖ C2S is the next to hydrate. It hydrates slowly and is responsible
for increase in ultimate strength.
❖ C4AF is comparatively inactive compound.
❖At the age of about one year, the contribution of the two
compounds (C3S and C2S) is approximately equal to the strength
of hydrated cement.
SIZE OF PORES AND VOIDS
WATER FOR HYDRATION
Setting
• This is the term used to describe the stiffening of the
cement paste.
• Broadly speaking, setting refers to a change from a fluid
to a rigid stage.
• Although, during setting, the paste acquires some
strength, for practical purposes it is important to
distinguish setting from hardening, which refers to the
gain of strength of a set cement paste.
False Set / Flash Set
False set is the name given to the abnormal premature
stiffening of cement within a few minutes of mixing with
water. In false set no appreciable heat is evolved, and
remixing the cement paste without addition of water
restores plasticity of the paste until it sets in the normal
manner and without a loss of strength.
It differs from flash set which is due to very low (or none)
percentage of gypsum in cement.
Role of Gypsum
Role of Gypsum
Home Assignment
Q:01 The quality of fine grey powder, also known as cement, is vital
for the production of good concrete. It is therefore
indispensable to adopt stringent control over quality of
Ordinary Portland cement (OPC). Being a Civil Engineer how
would you ensure that the quality of cement used in the field
meets the relevant national standards.
Q:02 During the last few decades, the complexities in civil
engineering structures, have led to the production of various
types of Portland cement (PC). It is therefore essential to have
in depth knowledge of its various types that are commercially
available. Being a Civil Engineer share your thoughts on types
of Portland cement and its usage with special reference to
Pakistan.
Home Assignment
Note:
❑ Students are highly expected to reflect comprehensive and
research based knowledge on the given topics.
❑ Data should be well organized and properly referred where
necessary.
❑ In case of “QUESTION 02” students may collect data from
different cement manufacturers (online/web) .
❑ Your data should reflect your own thoughts. No compromise
will be made on COPY-PASTE data.
❑ The solution should look professional. Points may be taken
off, if the work is not legible or looks unprofessional.
❑ For late submission, there will be a penalty: 25% deduction if
one day late, 50% deduction if two days late, and no credit
will be given after three days.
