- Author
- FitzGerald, S. A. | Neumann, D. A. | Rush, J. J. | Bentz, D. P. | Livingston, R. A.
- Title
- In Situ Quasi-Elastic Neutron Scattering Study of the Hydration of Tricalcium Silicate.
- Coporate
- National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD Federal Highway Administration, McLean, VA
- Journal
- Chemistry of Materials, Vol. 10, 397-402, 1998
- Keywords
- spectroscopy | water | hydration | equations
- Identifiers
- diffusion-limited growth; reaction mechanism between tricalcium silicate and water
- Abstract
- We report on the novel application of quasi-elastic neutron spectroscopy to study the reaction mechanism between tricalcium silicate and water. The in situ data taken at a series of fixed temperatures varying from 10 to 40 deg C show that the amount of free water in the system remains relatively constant for an initial period, ranging from 1 h at 40 deg C to 16 h at 10 deg C. This is followed by an exponential decrease in the amount of free water that crosses over to a diffusion-limited behavior for later times. Fits to an Avrami type behavior allow us to determine an activation energy. for the hydration process on the order of 30 kJ/mol.