Investigation of the hydration of Portland blastfurnace slag cement: composition, structure and properties of the hydrated material

A study was made of the composition, structure and properties of the hydrated material from a series of Portland blastfurnace slag cement samples with various proportions of slag and clinker and hydrated for up to one year. In the presence of slag the amount of liberated free lime declined and the stoichiometric composition of the formed CSH-phase was altered. Differences in the pore size distribution were due mainly to the differences in the overall hydration rate of cements with different slag contents. The intrinsic strength properties seem to be unaffected by the slag/clinker ratio of cement.