Evaluation of the thermal profile and hydration heat of cement pastes with addition of graphene oxide

ABSTRACT

Nanomaterials (nanosilica, carbon nanotubes and graphene derivatives) have been investigated as potential additions capable of reinforcing the cement matrix, mainly in relation to tensile strength, through the mechanism of restriction to the inicitation and propagation of cracks at the nanometer scale. As a new class of nano-material on a two-dimensional scale, graphene oxide (GO) has received great attention in the scientific field due to its high specific surface, good dispersion in water, thermal and electrical conductivity, high modulus of elasticity, in addition to high tensile strength. However, it is known that the addition of nanomaterials in cementitious matrices can cause changes in the kinetics of the cement hydration reaction. This is due to the high specific surface of nanomaterials, which requires a large amount of water in the preparation of the pastes, influencing the hydration reaction rate and the total accumulated heat. Based on this, the aim of this work was to investigate the effects of the addition of graphene oxide on the thermal profile and hydration heat of Portland cement pastes. Tests were carried out with the addition of graphene oxide produced and patented at CTNano/UFMG in cement pastes class CP-III-RS-40, at levels of 0.03%GO and 0.05%GO. In the calorimetry test, increases in the peak temperature were observed for the cement pastes with the addition of GO, as well as a reduction in peak time, which indicates that this nanomaterial actually changes the kinetics of the cement hydration reaction, both by the accelerating effect of setting due to the acidic pH of the GO solution, and by the adsorption effect of water molecules and cement components by the oxygen functional groups, which increases the reaction rate.

Keywords
Cement composites; Nanomaterials; Graphene oxide; Thermal profile; Hydration reaction