Rheology of an alkali-activated Fe-rich slag suspension: Identifying the impact of the activator chemistry and slag particle interactions

•The silicate ratio controlled the amount of network crosslinks and yield stress.•Increasing Na resulted in more monomers and absence of strong physical bonds.•A higher solid fraction resulted in more colloids and an increased viscosity.•Rheology driven by the strong physical interaction forces between slag particles.•Stress and viscosity evolution described by Herschel-Bulkley model.