Pore size dependent connectivity and ionic transport in saturated cementitious materials

Microstructure-property relationship has drawn strong attention in modern material science. The progress achieved in this field relies on a common basis that the material performance originates from the microstructure. This paper brings together new insights and facts from experiments regarding the pore size dependent connectivity and its relation to ionic transport property in saturated cementitious materials. An innovative measurement, i.e. intrusion-extrusion cyclic mercury porosimetry (IEC-MIP), is proposed to distinguish between the small capillary pores that are present within clusters of hydration products and the large capillary pores that are left out of hydration products. The distribution of connectivity as a function of pore size in cementitious materials is analyzed. A novel transport parameter, i.e. connectivity of small capillary pores, is introduced and quantified by IEC-MIP measurements. The ionic transport was measured by means of rapid chloride migration tests. A power relationship is established between connectivity of small capillary pores and chloride migration coefficient for cementitious materials irrespective of the binder type. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.