Initial Surface Absorption Properties of Modified Mortars

This book focused on the initial surface absorption behavior of cement system modified with polymer and pozzolan in direct relation to mortar durability. Polymer additive namely Styrene Butadiene Rubber (SBR) and Styrene Acrylic Ester (SAE), as well as pozzolan additive namely Fly Ash (FA) and Silica Fume (SF) with different percentages of addition were used as a composite of OPC mortar with w/c ratio ranging from 0.3 to 0.5. Results showed that specimens with w/c of 0.5 absorbed the least water. It also showed that non-modified OPC mortar specimens absorbed more water compared to the modified composite specimens upon addition of polymer and pozzolan. Further analysis showed that specimens with 10% polymer content and 10% pozzolan content absorbed the least water in comparison to 5%, 7% polymer content and 20% and 30% pozzolan content. Above that, SAE and FA allow lesser absorption compared to SBR and SF. It can be concluded that the addition of 10% SAE and 10% FA composite can reduce initial surface absorption capacity of all 0.3, 0.4 and 0.5 w/c OPC mortar with validation from the trend of the strength development as they matured hence can potentially improve concrete durability.