The effect of water absorption and specific gravity of supplementary cementitious materials on required water

The use of supplementary cementitious materials (SCM) is projected to increase because they reduce the global warming potential of concrete. When cement is replaced with SCM, the flow of the mixture may change. The porosity of the paste may also change as the liquid-to-solid volumes change when mass replacement is used. This paper discusses the role of water absorption and the specific gravity of the SCM on the water requirements of a mixture. Over thirty SCMs were tested, including sixteen natural pozzolans, ten coal ashes, three blended pozzolans, and one ground glass. The porosity of the SCM was measured using a drying rate test. The water absorbed by the natural pozzolans ranged from 3.25 to 17.25 %, 5.55–9.25 % for blended pozzolans, 4.10–18.95 % for coal ashes, and 4.20 % for ground glass. The water requirement measured using ASTM C311 ranged from −4.25 to 46.2 %. The specific gravity of the SCM is particularly important when it is significantly different from the specific gravity of the OPC, as this can change the liquid-to-solid volume ratio. Accounting for the absorption of water by the SCM and the specific gravity of the SCM (via volume replacement) resulted in 55 % of the specimens having a water demand within ±5 % of the original mixture to achieve the same flow, and 94 % of the samples had a water demand within ±20 %. This was substantially less than mass replacement. Using volume replacement and accounting for SCM absorption would have water requirements more similar to the original mixtures.