Cementitious materials - Concrete Mix Design, Quality Control and Specification - page 7

Cementitious materials
2.1 PORTLAND CEMENT
2.1.1 Introduction
No attempt is made in this topic to provide a general background and
description of Portland cement. Such information is available in almost
any textbook on concrete as well as many specialised topics on cement.
A particularly recommended reference is the American Concrete Institute
(ACI) Guide to the Selection and Use of Hydraulic Cements (ACI 225R,
1999). This is a very comprehensive 29-page dissertation with an equally
comprehensive list of further references. Another useful reference is High
Performance Concrete (Aitcin, 2011), which provides substantial detail on
cement, and also on cementitious materials and admixtures.
What is attempted in the current section is a guide to the extent to which
changes in concrete properties may be due to changes in the cementitious
material used.
What can go wrong with cement?
1. As the user experiences it
a. Setting—It can set too quickly or too slowly.
b. Strength development—It can develop less strength than usual.
c. Water requirement and workability—It can have a higher water
requirement or act as a less suitable lubricant than usual.
d. Bleeding—It can inhibit bleeding less successfully or at the other
extreme produce a “stickier” mix than usual.
e. Disruptive expansion.
f. Reduced chemical resistance.
g. Too rapid evolution of heat.
h. Deterioration in storage (either before of after grinding).
i. It can arrive hot, that is, hotter than usual increasing concrete
placement temperature.