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Related Concept Videos

Mortar Properties01:17

Mortar Properties

Mortar properties encompass a range of characteristics crucial for construction and masonry work, including workability, water retention, bond strength, durability, compressive strength, volume change, and appearance. Workability refers to mortar's ability to be easily applied and manipulated without sagging or falling off surfaces, which is important for efficient masonry unit placement and alignment. Water retention is essential to prevent the mortar from losing moisture too quickly to the...
Mortar01:29

Mortar

Mortar, a mixture of Portland cement, hydrated lime, sand, and water, is a crucial binding material in construction. Its primary function is to join masonry units together, filling gaps and ensuring a uniform distribution of weight across the structure. This helps in preventing potential weaknesses. Mortar also serves as a protective barrier against environmental elements such as water and wind, thereby safeguarding the interior of the structure. It also compensates for surface irregularities...
Strength of Cement01:20

Strength of Cement

Strength tests for cement are not performed directly on neat cement paste due to difficulty in obtaining consistent, reliable specimens. Instead, cement is typically tested in the form of cement-sand mortar.
For compressive strength tests, ASTM C 109-05 standards prescribe a cement-sand mix ratio of 1:2.75 and a water/cement ratio of 0.485 for making 2-inch cubes. These cubes are mixed, cast, and cured in saturated lime water at 23°C until testing. Flexural strength testing, outlined in ASTM C...
Hydration of Cement01:24

Hydration of Cement

Hydration of cement is a chemical reaction between cement particles and water. This process occurs primarily through two mechanisms: through-solution and topochemical. In the through-solution process, anhydrous compounds dissolve into their constituents, hydrates form in the solution, and then precipitate from the supersaturated solution. The topochemical process involves solid-state reactions at the cement particle surface. The through-solution process dominates the topochemical process at the...
Pozzolans01:21

Pozzolans

Pozzolans are siliceous or aluminous materials blended with Portland cement. They interact with the calcium hydroxide produced during the hydration of Portland cement and contribute to improved strength and durability of concrete. The pozzolanic activity, a measure of a pozzolan's effectiveness, is typically assessed using the strength activity index, as defined in ASTM C 618-93, which calculates the ratio of the compressive strength of cement mixtures with and without pozzolan.
Fly ash is a...
Soundness of Cement01:17

Soundness of Cement

The soundness of cement refers to the ability of cement paste to retain its volume after setting. Unsound cement can lead to expansion and structural damage due to the presence of free lime, magnesia, and calcium sulfate. Free lime hydrates very slowly, expanding and causing unsoundness, which is difficult to detect because it intercrystallizes with other compounds. Magnesia also reacts with water, forming crystals that can disrupt the cement's structure. Calcium sulfate can create ettringite,...

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Updated: May 14, 2026

Sandy Soil Improvement through Microbially Induced Calcite Precipitation (MICP) by Immersion
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Sandy Soil Improvement through Microbially Induced Calcite Precipitation (MICP) by Immersion

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Mechanical Performance and Microstructural Characterization of PET-Modified Cement Mortars with Metakaolin.

Aleksandra Kostrzanowska-Siedlarz1, Tomasz Ponikiewski1, Agnieszka Kocot1

  • 1Department of Building Processes and Building Physics, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Silesian University of Technology, 44-100 Gliwice, Poland.

Materials (Basel, Switzerland)
|May 13, 2026
PubMed
Summary

This study shows that adding metakaolin to cement mortars containing plastic waste (polyethylene terephthalate - PET) significantly improves mechanical strength. Metakaolin refines the microstructure, enhancing the bond between PET and cement for sustainable composites.

Keywords:
PET flakesSEM analysiscement mortarsinterfacial transition zonemechanical propertiesmetakaolinmicrostructurerecycled aggregates

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Area of Science:

  • Materials Science
  • Civil Engineering
  • Sustainable Construction

Background:

  • Plastic waste utilization in construction materials is key for sustainability.
  • Incorporating plastic waste, like polyethylene terephthalate (PET), often compromises mechanical properties due to poor interfacial bonding.
  • The interfacial transition zone (ITZ) is critical for the performance of these composite materials.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the impact of metakaolin on the ITZ and mechanical properties of cement mortars containing PET flakes.
  • To evaluate metakaolin's effectiveness in mitigating the negative effects of PET on mortar performance.
  • To explore the microstructural changes in PET-modified mortars with metakaolin addition.

Main Methods:

  • Preparation of cement mortars with varying metakaolin content (10% and 50% as cement replacement) and a fixed PET flake content (5% as sand replacement).
  • Testing of mechanical properties, including compressive and flexural strength, after 28 days of curing.
  • Microstructural analysis using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) focusing on the ITZ.

Main Results:

  • PET flake incorporation reduced mechanical properties due to a porous and weak ITZ.
  • 10 wt% metakaolin addition significantly enhanced mechanical properties, making PET-modified mortars comparable to the reference mix.
  • SEM analysis confirmed that metakaolin refined the ITZ microstructure and reduced porosity, improving interfacial bonding.

Conclusions:

  • Metakaolin effectively counteracts the detrimental effects of PET incorporation in cement mortars.
  • The addition of 10 wt% metakaolin improves the ITZ characteristics, leading to enhanced mechanical performance.
  • Metakaolin is a viable additive for developing high-performance, sustainable cement-based composites utilizing plastic waste.