Title:
Effect of Admixtures on Rapid-Hardening, Self-Consolidating Concrete
Author(s):
Haley Johnson, Robert Jewell, Kamyar C. Mahboub, and Christopher Moore
Publication:
Materials Journal
Volume:
123
Issue:
4
Appears on pages(s):
79-92
Keywords:
calcium sulfoaluminate (CSA) cement; citric acid (CA); hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC); rapid-hardening concrete; self-consolidating concrete (SCC); tartaric acid (TA); welan gum (WG)
DOI:
10.14359/51750601
Date:
7/1/2026
Abstract:
Self-consolidating, rapid-hardening concrete is a sought-after product; however, the effects of admixtures on fresh and hardened concrete rheology are still uncertain. This study aims to create a self-consolidating concrete (SCC) using calcium sulfoaluminate (CSA) cement for its rapid-hardening properties and evaluate two set-time retarders and two viscosity-modifying admixtures (VMAs) to determine how they affect the properties of concrete. The properties studied were workability, viscosity, set time, air content, compressive strength, freezing-and-thawing resistance, and hardened air-void content of SCC. The study found that tartaric acid (TA) creates a very workable SCC with consistent results regardless of the VMA used, while citric acid (CA) only works well with hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) as a VMA and kills viscosity-modifying properties of welan gum (WG).
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