| abstract |
Hydraulic cements, such as Portland cements and other cements that include substantial quantities of tricalcium silicate (C 3 S), dicalcium silicate (C 2 S), tricalcium aluminate (C 3 A), and/or tetracalcalcium alumino-ferrite (C 4 AF), are particle size optimized to have increased reactivity compared to cements of similar chemistry and/or decreased water demand compared to cements of similar fineness. Increasing hydraulic cement reactivity increases early strength development and release of reactive calcium hydroxide, both of which enhance SCM replacement and 1-28 day strengths compared to blends of conventional Portland cement and one or more SCMs, such as coal ash, slag or natural pozzolan. Decreasing the water demand can improve strength by decreasing the water-to-cement ratio for a given workability. The narrow PSD cements are well suited for making blended cements, including binary, ternary and quaternary blends. |