Role of tricalcium silicate in sulfate resistance

This paper addresses the effects of increasing alite content on the durability of cementitious systems in sulfate environment. The alite content of two cements was increased and the deterioration in a sodium sulfate environment was monitored through expansion and strength measurements. Morphological and phase analyses were conducted on the specimens at the end of exposure time to explain the deterioration process. The findings indicate that high alite content is damaging to cementitious systems exposed to sodium sulfate environment as determined by ASTM specifications C109, C305 and C1012.