Jin, H., Ghazizadeh, S. and Provis, J.L. orcid.org/0000-0003-3372-8922 (2025) Investigation of alkali-silica reaction in alkali activated cements by thermodynamic modelling. Materials and Structures, 58 (8). 265. ISSN: 1359-5997
Abstract
The likelihood and consequences of the alkali-silica reaction (ASR) in mortars and concretes based on alkali-activated materials (AAMs) are still under discussion, due largely to the characteristically high alkali levels of this class of cements. In this study, applying thermodynamic modelling to the study of ASR provides a new insight into ASR mechanisms as a function of binder chemistry. By considering different activators (NaOH, Na2SO4, Na2CO3, Na2O.nSiO2 with various values of the modulus n) at different dosages, the volume of shlykovite-type ASR products that can potentially form in AAMs with partially reactive siliceous aggregates was calculated. The solution chemistry and phase assemblage after hydration provide further information to aid in explaining the observed trends. Although high concentrations of Na-bearing activators were used in the AAM formulations, much less Na-shlykovite and no K-shlykovite are formed, compared to Portland cement. The volume of Na-shlykovite formed decreases with an increase in the dosage of activators (for all activators tested), and with a decrease in the modulus of sodium silicate when this is the activator used. A high concentration of Ca after hydration, rather than the concentration of alkalis in the pore solution, is the controlling factor in shlykovite formation, which represents ASR in these simulations.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © The Author(s) 2025. Open Access: This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. |
Keywords: | Alkali-silica reaction; Alkali activated cement; Activators; Thermodynamic modelling |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Engineering (Sheffield) > Department of Materials Science and Engineering (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 26 Sep 2025 08:42 |
Last Modified: | 26 Sep 2025 08:42 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Springer Science and Business Media LLC |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1617/s11527-025-02781-z |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:232093 |