Effects of Nanosilica as Suspensions on the Hydration and the Microstructure of Hardened Cement Paste

Nanosilica (NS) has shown significant beneficial effects on concrete. However, the utilization of NS to achieve its maximum benefits is limited by the agglomeration of nanoparticles, which is associated with production methods and the method of NS dispersion in concrete. In this study, the effects of the utilization of NS as a suspension in calcium hydroxide (CH) on the hydration characteristics and the microstructure of the cement pastes were investigated with different levels of cement replacements (1%, 2%, 4%, and 6% NS) at 2, 7, and 28 days. The hydration of the cement pastes was investigated by isothermal calorimetry, and the measurement of CH content by thermogravimetry. The microstructures were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy and by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopic mapping. The microstructure of the pastes was characterized by analyzing the pore size and the pore size distribution using mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP). The calorimetric studies indicated that the replacing cement by NS derived by this method leads to faster hydration up to 4% replacement. The CH contents could be reduced by the incorporation of NS. The pore structures revealed that the pastes with NS had become comparably denser than the pastes without NS. A positive insight into the durability characteristics was shown by the results of the MIP when using NS as suspensions.