Development of the fine porosity and gel structure of hydrating cement systems

Abstract

Results are presented of dynamic small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) experiments on hydrating cements. The rate of data collection and the size range of scattering dimensions contributing to the SANS are sufficient to allow the growth of the calcium silicate hydrate (C–S–H) gel microstructure to be correlated with both the time variation of the hydration reactions and the rise with hydration of the specific surface area. The details of the scattering suggest that the C–S–H gel may have a self-similar fractal structure as might be produced by a diffusion-controlled aggregation process.