Title:
Durability of Sustainable Concretes with Low Carbon Concrete Admixtures
Author(s):
F. Castiglioni, A. Fulkerson, C. Genoria, C. Moletti, M. Magistri, E. Moretti, and G. Ferrari
Publication:
Symposium Paper
Volume:
370
Issue:
Appears on pages(s):
155-166
Keywords:
Low Carbon Concrete Admixtures; Sustainable Concrete; Chloride ingress; Durability; Pore Size Distribution
DOI:
10.14359/51751757
Date:
5/1/2026
Abstract:
The effort of increasing the sustainability of concrete led to the development of a new class of admixtures specifically designed to reduce the carbon footprint of this material, hence called “Low Carbon Concrete Admixtures (LCCAs).” They act as hydration promoters for binders, increasing the degree of hydration and improving the compressive strength of the concrete. Consequently, the dosage of cement in a concrete can be reduced without affecting the mechanical properties of the resulting product. In the present work, a reference concrete mix was compared with concretes containing two different LCCAs, at different dosages of cement and water-to-cement ratios. Results confirmed the positive effect of LCCAs on strength development, water permeability, and water penetration, suggesting an improvement of the microstructure of concrete; this was confirmed by pore size distribution measurements. On the other hand, coulomb metric tests, like surface resistivity and rapid chloride penetration tests, did not confirm such effects. In an effort to further understand this apparent contradiction, rapid chloride penetration tests were repeated, and the chloride concentration of the cathodic half-cell was measured, revealing that many different ionic species, and not just Cl- ions, contribute to the total passing charge measured during the experiment.
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