Mineralogy of C-S-H belite hydrates incorporating Zn-Al-Ti layered double hydroxides

Laboratory of Applied Solid State Chemistry, Faculty of Sciences, Mohammed V University, Rabat, Morocco

Abstract

Recently, the belitic cements with low alite content were the subject of several research works which aimed to replace the Ordinary Portland Clinker (OPC) for ecological reasons (reduction of CO₂ emissions), so to understand the reactivity of this cement, the hydration study of the C2S “dicalcium silicate” phase is primordial research step. As well for a clean environment, the TiO₂ photocatalyst has been extensively applied in the science of building materials because of its ability to degrade the cement surface pollutants. New photocatalyst based layered double hydroxides (LDH) associated with zinc, aluminium and TiO₂ was introduced to increase the compatibility with mortars. The present work is subjected to investigate the effect of the layered double hydroxides on the hydration of C₂S in following the evolution of hydration by X-ray diffraction at 2, 7, 28 and 90 days and analyzing the calcium/silicon ratio of different formed hydrates.