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The use of Raman spectroscopy as a versatile characterization tool for calcium sulphoaluminate cements: a compositional and hydration study

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Abstract

Calcium sulphoaluminate (CSA) cement is considered the third series cement besides ordinary Portland cement (OPC) and calcium aluminate (CA) cement. It is produced from gypsum, bauxite and limestone at 1,300 °C and consists of yeelimite, belite and anhydrite as main mineral phases. In the last years, many attempts have been made in applying Raman spectroscopy for the characterization of cement, clinker minerals and supplementary cementing materials (SCMs), revealing that this technique is a valuable tool for the identification of different phases in cements. In this work micro-Raman spectroscopy has been used, together with X-ray diffraction, for the characterization of CSA cement and its main minerals. In order to identify which mineral phase is responsible for the different bands, Raman spectra have been acquired from synthesized yeelimite and belite phases (whose purity degree was checked by X-ray diffraction) and from calcium sulphate di-hydrate and anhydrous (gypsum and anhydrite, respectively). On these bases, Raman spectra collected on CSA clinker and cement have been successfully assigned. Moreover, Raman spectroscopy, together with X-ray diffraction, proved useful to follow the hydration process of CSA cement up to 28 days.

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Notes

  1. Note that standard cement nomenclature is followed here, whereby C = CaO, S = SiO2, A = Al2O3, F = Fe2O3, \( \overline{{\text{S}}} \) = SO3 and H = H2O.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by ASP (Associazione per lo Sviluppo Scientifico e Tecnologico del Piemonte) by means of a grant to DG, and Buzzi Unicem S.p.A. The authors gratefully acknowledge Ing. Massimo Paris, Buzzi Unicem S.p.A. (Guidonia, Italy), Ing. Luigi Buzzi, Buzzi Unicem S.p.A. (Casale Monferrato, Italy), Dr. Marcus Paul, Dyckeroff AG (Wiesbaden, Germany) and Prof. Gian Lorenzo Valenti, Università degli Studi della Basilicata (Potenza, Italy) for their critical reading. Authors are also grate to the referee that revised the manuscript, for the competence and the accuracy of the comments and the precious suggestions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Avanzate, INSTM Local Research Unit, Università del Piemonte Orientale, Via Bellini 25/G, 15100, Alessandria, Italy

    Daniela Gastaldi & Enrico Boccaleri

  2. Buzzi Unicem S.p.A, Via Luigi Buzzi 6, Casale Monferrato, AL, 15033, Italy

    Fulvio Canonico & Manuela Bianchi

Authors
  1. Daniela Gastaldi
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  2. Enrico Boccaleri
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  3. Fulvio Canonico
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  4. Manuela Bianchi
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Enrico Boccaleri.

Electronic supplementary material

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

10853_2007_1790_MOESM1_ESM.doc

Tables of crystal data, preferred orientations and crystal size of the main phases detected in the hydrated samples by XRD analyses – Rietveld method refinement are available free as electronic supplementary materials (DOC 43 kb)

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Gastaldi, D., Boccaleri, E., Canonico, F. et al. The use of Raman spectroscopy as a versatile characterization tool for calcium sulphoaluminate cements: a compositional and hydration study. J Mater Sci 42, 8426–8432 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-007-1790-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-007-1790-8

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