Understanding Reaction Mechanisms, Kinetics and Structural Evolution in Low-Carbon Cements

了解低碳水泥的反应机制、动力学和结构演化

• 批准号: 2602502
• 金额: --
• 依托单位: University of Sheffield
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Studentship
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2021 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=studentship-2602502
• 关键词: Understanding; Reaction; Mechanisms; Kinetics; Structural

Cement is the 'glue' in concrete, and provides the foundation on which modern civilisation is built. But this comes at a huge environmental cost - nearly half of all materials extracted from the Earth annually are used in concrete, and cement production alone accounts for 8% of human-caused CO2 emissions.By replacing traditional Portland cement with low-CO2, alkali-activated or alkaline earth-activated cement (AAC/AEAC), we can reduce these CO2 emissions by more than 80%. However, uptake of these low-carbon cements within industry has been slow, due to difficulty controlling the reaction, setting and hardening processes, which in turn control the physical properties and performance of the cement.There is currently limited understanding of the fundamental interactions that control reaction, setting and hardening of these cements. This is largely due to the wide variation in chemical and physical characteristics of the raw materials used to make these cements, which significantly affect the processes controlling physical property development. We aim to overcome this technological hurdle, and provide the fundamental understanding that will drive widespread use of these low-carbon cements within industry.This project aims to reveal the composition-structure-property relationships, reaction mechanisms and kinetics in these low-carbon cements produced from industrial wastes and low-carbon activators, using an array of state-of-the-art characterisation approaches.Specifically, the project aims to reveal how variation in the characteristics of the raw materials, and the reaction and usage conditions, affect: 1) Reaction mechanisms and kinetics, 2) Composition-structure-property relationships and 3) Evolution of cement structure and phase assemblage. This will enable optimisation of cement formulations for enhanced sustainability, performance and durability, and is crucial to drive widespread implementation in industry. This will help drive a circular economy, reduce CO2 emissions, and give humanity the best possible chance to mitigate climate change.

水泥是混凝土中的“胶水”，是现代文明的基础。但这也带来了巨大的环境成本--每年从地球上开采的所有材料中，有近一半用于混凝土，仅水泥生产就占人类活动造成的二氧化碳排放量的8%。通过用低二氧化碳、碱激发或碱土激发水泥（AAC/AEAC）取代传统的波特兰水泥，我们可以将这些二氧化碳排放量减少80%以上。然而，由于难以控制反应、凝固和硬化过程，这些低碳水泥在工业中的应用一直很缓慢，而反应、凝固和硬化过程反过来又控制着水泥的物理性质和性能。目前对控制这些水泥的反应、凝固和硬化的基本相互作用的理解有限。这在很大程度上是由于用于制造这些水泥的原材料的化学和物理特性差异很大，这显著影响了控制物理特性发展的过程。我们的目标是克服这一技术障碍，并提供基本的理解，以推动这些低碳水泥在工业中的广泛应用。本项目旨在揭示这些低碳水泥的组成-结构-性能关系，反应机理和动力学，使用一系列最先进的表征方法，从工业废物和低碳活化剂生产。具体来说，该项目旨在揭示原料特性、反应和使用条件的变化如何影响：1）反应机理和动力学，2）组成-结构-性能关系，3）水泥结构和相组合的演变。这将有助于优化水泥配方，提高可持续性、性能和耐久性，对于推动行业的广泛实施至关重要。这将有助于推动循环经济，减少二氧化碳排放，并为人类提供缓解气候变化的最佳机会。