CEMENT and CONCRETE RESEARCH. VoL 21, pp. 101-108, 1991. Printed in the USA.

0008-8846D1. $3.00+00. Pergamon Press pie.

ALKALI A C T I V A T E D GROUND G R A N U L A T E D B L A S T - F U R N A C E
SLAG CONCRETE: PRELIMINARY I N V E S T I G A T I O N

E. Douglas*, A. Bilodeau**, J. B r a n d s t e t r ÷
and V.M. Malhotra***

*Research Scientist
**Engineer
***Head, Concrete T e c h n o l o g y Section
Mineral Sciences Laboratories, CANMET
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, KIA 0GI

+Professor, Technical University,

Department of Technology,
Brno, C z e c h o s l o v a k i a

(Communicated by D.M. Roy)

(Received May 3; in final form Nov. 9, 1990)

ABSTRACT

This report presents results of a preliminary investigation

dealing with the compressive strength development of alkali
activated ground granulated blast-furnace slag concretes.
These concretes incorporated sodium silicate as an activator
but did not contain any portland cement. The five concrete
mixtures studied were proportioned using sodium silicate and
small amounts of hydrated lime. The water-to-binder ratio
of the mixtures ranged from 0.34 to 0.50. The air-entrained
concrete produced satisfactory workability. The 1-day and
28-day compressive strengths of the concretes ranged from
20.4 to 38.9 MPa and from 45.5 to 59.6 MPa, respectively.
The 7- and 14-day flexural strengths were of the order of
5 MPa.

Introduction

Ground granulated blast-furnace slags possess some hydraulic

properties; therefore when slag mortars are made according to
current standards, strength development occurs but at a lower
rate than in portland cement mortars (i).

It has been established that ground granulated blast-furnace slag

mortars and concretes can be activated with alkaline reagents
(NaOH, Ca(OH)2, sodium or potassium silicates), yielding
compressive strengths comparable to or higher than those made
with portland cement alone (2,3,4,5). This opens the possibility

101
102 E. Douglas, et al. Vol. 21, No. 1

of f o r m u l a t i n g s l a g c o n c r e t e s w i t h o u t p o r t l a n d c e m e n t and p o s s -
ibly w i t h i m p r o v e d p r o p e r t i e s such as h i g h e r r e s i s t a n c e to
c h e m i c a l a t t a c k (6,7,8,9). This p r e l i m i n a r y s t u d y p r e s e n t s the
p r o p o r t i o n i n g and the p r o p e r t i e s of five slag c o n c r e t e m i x t u r e s
a c t i v a t e d w i t h s o d i u m silicate. T h e w o r k w a s p e r f o r m e d at C A N M E T
l a b o r a t o r i e s in O c t o b e r 1989.

scope of Investiqation

F i v e a l k a l i a c t i v a t e d slag c o n c r e t e m i x t u r e s w e r e made. The

first t h r e e m i x t u r e s w e r e m a d e u s i n g a s o d i u m s i l i c a t e s o l u t i o n
h a v i n g a s i l i c a t e m o d u l u s Ms = 1.47 and low w a t e r - t o - b i n d e r *
r a t i o s r a n g i n g from 0.34 to 0.39. Two o t h e r m i x t u r e s i n c o r p o r -
a t e d a s o d i u m s i l i c a t e s o l u t i o n of Ms = 1.36 and h a d h i g h e r
w a t e r - t o - b i n d e r r a t i o s of 0.50 and 0.46. One of t h e s e m i x t u r e s
was a i r - e n t r a i n e d .

A n u m b e r of 102 x 2 0 3 - m m c y l i n d e r s and 76 x 102 x 4 0 6 - m m p r i s m s

w e r e c a s t for c o m p r e s s i v e and f l e x u r a l s t r e n g t h t e s t i n g at
v a r i o u s ages.

Concrete Mixtures

Materials
The c o n c r e t e m i x t u r e s w e r e m a d e in the C A N M E T laboratory in
O c t o b e r 1989 u s i n g the f o l l o w i n g m a t e r i a l s :

S l a g -- A g r o u n d g r a n u l a t e d b l a s t - f u r n a c e s l a g f r o m n o r t h e r n
O n t a r i o w a s u s e d in all the m i x t u r e s . The chemical composition,
g l a s s c o n t e n t and f i n e n e s s of the s l a g are s h o w n in T a b l e i.

sodium silicate -- S o d i u m s i l i c a t e w i t h the f o l l o w i n g c h a r a c -

teristics was used to p r e p a r e the s o l u t i s n s a d d e d to t h e c o n c r e t e
mixtures: specific g r a v i t y = 1.460 k g / m ~ SiO 2 = 29.73%, Ha20 =
1 0 . 7 8 % and s i l i c a t e m o d u l u s Ms = 2.85.

Lime -- H y d r a t e d lime of c o m m e r c i a l grade was used in all m i x -

t u r e s to c o n t r o l the setting.

Aggregates -- The c o a r s e a g g r e g a t e u s e d w a s c r u s h e d l i m e s t o n e
w i t h a m a x i m u m s i z e of 1 9 - m m and the fine a g g r e g a t e w a s n a t u r a l
sand. T h e g r a d i n g and p h y s i c a l p r o p e r t i e s of b o t h t h e fine and
c o a r s e a g g r e g a t e s are s h o w n in T a b l e s 2 and 3.

Air-entraining admixture -- A s u l p h o n a t e d h y d r o c a r b o n t y p e air-

entraining a d m i x t u r e was u s e d in one m i x t u r e .

Mixture Proportioning
In all t h e m i x t u r e s the dry a g g r e g a t e s , the slag, the l i m e s l u r r y
and the w a t e r w e r e m i x e d for two m i n u t e s b e f o r e a d d i n g t h e s o d i u m

*The b i n d e r i n c l u d e s g r o u n d g r a n u l a t e d slag, s o l i d c o m p o n e n t s of
the s o d i u m s i l i c a t e s o l u t i o n and c a l c i u m h y d r o x i d e .
 Vol. 21, No. 1 ALKALI-ACTIVATEDSLAG,CONCRETE 103

TABLE 1

Physical Properties and Chemical Analysis

of the Granulated Blast-furnace Slag

Description of T e s t Slag

Fineness
Passing, 45 #m 97
S u r f a c e area, Blaine, m2/kg 460

Chemical analysis
SiO 2 38.00
AI203 8.74
Fe203 0.55
CaO 32.00
MgO 18.60
SO 3 2.45
K20 0.76
Na20 0.22
Loss on i g n i t i o n 1.98

Glass content 90.3

Compressive strength of 7 days 18.7

m o r t a r s (50% PC) 28 days 31.4
A S T M C 989

S l a g a c t i v i t y index, 7 days 69.8

% (ASTM C 989) 28 days i00.0

s i l i c a t e solution. The lime s l u r r y was c o n s t i t u t e d by e q u a ~

p a r t s of h y d r a t e d lime and water. The s o d i u m s i l i c a t e s o l u t i o n
of Ms = 1.47 u s e d in m i x t u r e s i, 2 and 3 was p r e p a r e d w i t h the
s o d i u m s i l i c a t e of Ms = 2.85 of c o m m e r c i a l g r a d e by a d d i n g a
s o l u t i o n of 50% N a O H and w a t e r (Table 4). The s o d i u m s i l i c a t e

TABLE 2

Grading of Aggregates

Coarse Aggregate Fine A g g r e g a t e

Cumulative Percentage
Cumulative Retained
Sieve Size Percentage Sieve Size
Retained Mix Mix
i, 2 and 3 4 and 5

19.0 mm 0.0 4.75 mm (No. 4) 0.0 0.0

12.7 mm 35.0 2.36 mm (No. 8) i0.0 8.5
9.5 mm 60.0 1.18 mm (No. 16) 32.5 28.0
4.75 mm i00.0 600 ~m (No. 30) 57.5 49.5
300 ~m (No. 50) 80.0 68.5
150 ~m (No. i00) 94.0 80.5
pan i00.0 i00.0
104 E. Douglas, et al. Vol. 21, No. 1

TABLE 3

Physical Properties of A g g r e g a t e s

Coarse Aggregate* Fine A g g r e g a t e * *

Specific Gravity 2.69 2.70

Absorption, % 0.82 i.i

*Crushed limestone
**Natural sand

s o l u t i o n o b t a i n e d c o n t a i n e d 14.77% SiO 2 and 10.48% Na20. The SiO 2

and Na20 c o n t e n t in the s o d i u m s i l i c a t e s o l u t i o n s was d e t e r m i n e d
by t i t r a t i o n w i t h 2N HCl u s i n g m e t h y l red as indicator.

The p e r c e n t a g e of Na20 w i t h r e s p e c t to the slag in the c o n c r e t e

m i x t u r e s 1 and 2 was 3.63% and the b i n d e r - t o - a g g r e g a t e ratio was
1:3. To m a k e the c o n c r e t e m o r e cost effective, m i x t u r e 3 was
p r o p o r t i o n e d w i t h a b i n d e r to a g g r e g a t e r a t i o of 1:6. The
p e r c e n t a g e of Na20 w i t h r e s p e c t to the slag in the c o n c r e t e
m i x t u r e was 3.41%.

To i m p r o v e w o r k a b i l i t y in the l e a n e r m i x t u r e s 4 and 5, a s o d i u m
s i l i c a t e s o l u t i o n of Ms = 1.36 was p r e p a r e d w i t h the s o d i u m

TABLE 4

M i x t u r e P r o p o r t i o n s and P r o p e r t i e s
of F r e s h C o n c r e t e - M i x t u r e s i, 2 and 3

M i x No.

Fine Agg. 523 kg 530 kg 819 kg

Mix C o a r s e Agg. 1042 kg 1057 kg 1143 kg
Proportions Water 63 kg 40 kg 28 kg
per m 3 Lime slurry* 26 kg 33 kg 23 kg
Slag 517 kg 524 kg 324 kg
N a - S i l i c a t e sol.** 201 kg 203 kg 128 kg
Water/binder 0.39 0.34 0.35

Properties Slump (mm) 165

of F r e s h
Concrete

*Lime slurry: 50% lime, 50% w a t e r by w e i g h t

* * S p e c i f i c g r a v i t y of s o l u t i o n = 1.34
For 1 L i t e r of solution: 449 mL of s o d i u m s i l i c a t e
of Ms = 2.85
143 m L of N a O H 50%
408 m L of w a t e r
A n a l y s i s of s o d i u m s i l i c a t e solution: 14.77% sio 2
10.48% Na20
Ms = 1.47
Vol. 21, No. 1 AIKALI-ACTIVATED SLAG, CONCRETE 105

TABLE 5

Mixture P r o p o r t i o n s and P r o p e r t i e s
of F r e s h C o n c r e t e - M i x t u r e s 4 and 5

Mix No. 4 5

Sand 747 kg 745 kg

Mix Coarse Agg. 1044 kg 1038 kg
Proportions Fine sand (filler) 125 kg 124 kg
per m 3 Water 58 kg 43 kg
Lime slurry* 23 kg 23 kg
Slag 271 kg 269 kg
Na-silicate sol.** 129 kg 129 kg
Air-entr. agent 0 245 m L
Water/binder 0.50 0.46

Properties Unit Weight 2395 kg/m 3 2370 kg/m 3

of Fresh Slump 140 mm 140 m m
Concrete Air 2.2% 4.2%

*Lime slurry: 11.5 kg of Lime + 11.5 kg of w a t e r

*,129 kg of sodium silicate solution = 97.5 litres
For 97.5 L of sodium silicate sol.: 54.3 L of sodium
silicate sol. of
Ms = 2.85
18.5 L of NaOH 50%
24.7 L of w a t e r
A n a l y s i s of sodium silicate sol.: 12.77% Na20 , 16.82%
Si02, Ms = 1.36

silicate of commercial grade by addition of 50% NaOH solution and

w a t e r (Table 5). The b i n d e r to aggregate ratio in these mixtures
was a p p r o x i m a t e l y 1:6 and the p e r c e n t a g e of NazO with respect to
the slag was 6% in both mixtures. The effect of h i g h e r contents
of Na20 w i t h respect to the slag in earlier h y d r a t i o n and h i g h e r
c o m p r e s s i v e strengths has been discussed elsewhere (2). Nevert-
heless, in the concrete mixtures studied, the h i g h e r w a t e r - t o -
b i n d e r ratios in m i x t u r e s 4 and 5 results in lower strengths than
in m i x t u r e s i, 2 and 3 in spite of the h i g h e r Na20 to slag ratio.
The g r a d i n g of the aggregate was the same as the one used for
m i x t u r e s i, 2 and 3 but 6.5% of the total aggregate was fine sand
p a s s i n g 150 ~m and added as a filler (Table 2).

The p r o p o r t i o n s of mixtures i, 2 and 3 are shown in Table 4 and

those of m i x t u r e s 4 and 5 are shown in Table 5. An
a i r - e n t r a i n i n g admixture was added in mixture 5.

Preparation and C a s t i n g of T e s t Specimens

A n u m b e r of 102 x 203-mm cylinders were cast to determine

c o m p r e s s i v e strengths up to one year and prisms were cast for
t e s t i n g in flexure at 7 and 14 days in mixtures 1 and 2, and at
14 days in m i x t u r e s 4 and 5. All cylinders and prisms were cast
 TABLE 6

Workability of Concrete vs. Time After Mixing

Concrete 4 Concrete 5

Time (min) Slump (mm) Time (min) Slump (mm)

0* 0*
13 140 5 140
23 115 15 120
43 i00 30 70
65 95 50 75
103 30 75 5O
138 20 105 45
125 25

= when sodium silicate solution was added to the mix

TABLE 7

Properties of Hardened Concretes

Flexural
Density Strength
Mix of Cylinders Compressive Strength (MPa) (MPa)
No. W/binder (kg/m 3 )
Id 3d 7d 14d 28d 91d 7d 14d

1 0.39 2373 28.1 38.2 41.6 43.4 46.3 48.5 5.3 4.8
2 0.34 2387 37.5 41.8 44.6 48.3 51.0 52.6 5.8 5.5
- - m

3 0.35 2464 38.9 49.4 54.5 59.6 62.8

4 0.50 2435 23.2 33.7 41.0 43.1 45.4 50.2 - 6.3
5 0.46 2415 20.4 35.0 41.5 44.3 46.8 51.0 - 6.3
Vol. 21, No. 1 ALKALI-ACTIVATED SLAG, CONCRETE 107

in two layers, each layer being compacted using a v i b r a t i n g

table.

A f t e r casting, all the m o u l d e d specimens w e r e covered w i t h water

s a t u r a t e d burlap and left in the casting room at 23 ± 1.7°C for
24 h. The cylinders were then d e m o u l d e d and after density
m e a s u r e m e n t s they were transferred to the moist curing room until
required for testing.

Test Results

Properties of freshly-mixed concrete are given in Table 4 for

m i x t u r e s i, 2 and 3, and in Table 5 for m i x t u r e s 4 and 5. The
slump of concrete as a function of time after m i x i n g for m i x t u r e s
4 and 5 is shown in Table 6.
Compressive and flexural strengths test results are given in
Table 7.

Discussion of T e s t Results

As shown in Table 4, m i x t u r e s 1 and 2 with a b i n d e r to a g g r e g a t e

ratio of 1:3 had a higher content of ground g r a n u l a t e d blast-
furnace slag requiring the addition of high amounts of sodium
silicate and thus rendering the mixtures too costly. It has to
be noted that m i x t u r e I, w i t h a w a t e r / b i n d e r = 0.39 had a slump
of 165 mm, while m i x t u r e 2, with a w a t e r / b i n d e r = 0.34 was not
workable. The leaner mixture 3, w i t h a binder to a g g r e g a t e ratio
of 1:6 and a w a t e r / b i n d e r = 0.35 also had no slump. The lack of
w o r k a b i l i t y in m i x t u r e s 2 and 3 was p r o b a b l y due to the lower
w a t e r - t o - b i n d e r ratios.

High c o m p r e s s i v e strengths were obtained at all ages in concrete

m i x t u r e s 1 and 2. The leaner concrete m i x t u r e 3 p e r f o r m e d better
than concretes from mixtures 1 and 2 although the Na20 to slag
ratio was slightly lower. This fact cannot be easily explained.
The flexural strengths of concretes from m i x t u r e s 1 and 2 at 14
days w e r e slightly lower than at 7 days. An a i r - e n t r a i n i n g
admixture was incorporated in mixture 5 to obtain an air content
of 4.2 per cent. Slump was m e a s u r e d in mixtures 4 and 5 as a
function of time and, as shown in Table 6; the slump retention
was good even after 45 minutes, that is, the slump at 45 minutes
was I00 m m and 70 mm for mixtures 4 and 5, respectively, compared
to a slump of 140 mm m e a s u r e d 13 minutes after adding the sodium
silicate to the mix. Table 8 shows that c o m p r e s s i v e strengths
a p p r o a c h i n g 45 MPa at 28 days were obtained for both concretes.
The values of c o m p r e s s i v e and flexural strengths of concretes
from m i x t u r e s 4 and 5 were similar regardless of the d i f f e r e n c e
in w a t e r to b i n d e r ratios. This may be e x p l a i n e d p a r t l y by the
h i g h e r air content of mixture 5.

Concludinq Remarks

i. Ground g r a n u l a t e d b l a s t - f u r n a c e slag a c t i v a t e d w i t h sodium

silicate can be used to make slag concretes w i t h s a t i s f a c t o r y
w o r k a b i l i t y and strength properties as m e a s u r e d at ages up to
91 days.
108 E. Douglas, et al. Vol. 21, No. 1

2. For the b i n d e r - t o - a g g r e g a t e ratios of a p p r o x i m a t e l y 1:6, the

amount of sodium silicate of Ms = 1.36 added should be such
to m a i n t a i n a percentage of Na20 with respect to the slag of
a p p r o x i m a t e l y 6%.

3. A l:l lime slurry should be added as a retarder in a propor-

tion of approximately 4% Ca(OH)2 with respect to the slag.

4. Air can be entrained in activated slag concrete in order to

improve w o r k a b i l i t y and durability.

Referemces

i. Douglas, E., Elola, A. and Malhotra, V.M., A S T M Cement,

Concrete and Aggregates, Vol. 12, No. 2, Summer 1990.

2. Puzhanov, G.T., Tr. Kazakhsk. Filiala Akad. Stroit. i

Arkhitekt. SSSR, Sb, 2. pp. 125-133.

3. Glukhovsky, V.D. and Pakhonov, V.A., Budivelnik, Kiev, USSR,

1978.

4. Forss, B., Proceedings, 6th International Conference Alkali

Concretes, pp. 101-104, Denmark, 1983.

5. Douglas, E. and Brandstetr, J., Cement and Concrete Research,

Vol. 20, pp. 746-756, 1990.

6. Glukhovsky, V.D., Krivenko, P.V., Rostovskaya, G.S.,

Timkovich, V.J. and Pankratov, V.L. U.S. Patent No. 4, 410,
365; 1983.

7. Voinovitch, J.A. and Dron, R., Silicates Industriels

41:209-212; 1976.

8. Talling, B. and Brandstetr, J., Proceedings of the Third

International Conference on Fly Ash, Silica Fume, Slag and
Natural Pozzolans in Concrete; Trondheim, Norway, June 18-23,
1989; pp. 1519-1545; ACI SP-II4, V 2, V.M. Malhotra, Editor,
1989.

9. Glukhovsky, V.D. et al., Seventh International Congress on

the Chemistry of Cement V/164-168; Paris; 1980.