Sugar Used For Concrete Retarder

Concrete retarder is a kind of additive which can delay the hydration reaction time of cement, so as to delay the setting time of cement.

The types of retarders include lignosulfonate and its derivatives, low molecular weight cellulose and its derivatives, hydroxy carboxylic acid (salt), organic phosphonic acid (salt), boric acid (salt), complex and so on.

The specific substances that can be used as retarders include dextrin, various types of starch, casein and some substances containing protein, as well as sucrose, glucose, calcium lignosulfonate or sodium salt, sodium carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), carboxyethyl cellulose (CHC) and their mixtures. In addition, there are tartaric acid, potassium tartrate, calcium tartrate, calcium sulfate dihydrate, calcium sulfite, ferrous sulfate, boric acid, boric acid and tartaric acid, mixture of tartaric acid and sodium bicarbonate, sodium hexametaphosphate, disodium phosphate, trisodium phosphate, tetrasodium phosphate, disodium hydrogen phosphate, sodium pyrophosphate, alkyl phosphate, disodium ethylenediamine tetraacetate, various humic acids, etc.

According to the above analysis, sugar is also a kind of retarder. The general theoretical explanation for the role of sugar is that sugar can absorb tricalcium silicate (C3S) particles, which is the main component of cement before hydration, eliminate the crystal nucleus of hydrated calcium silicate on the surface of the particles, and prevent the formation of hydrated calcium silicate, that is, the formation of cement body.

Examples:

On the London Underground Victoria Line in January 2014, when the builder was filling an elevator shaft with cement, the cement was accidentally leaking into the control room on the side. As a result, the subway control room was flooded with concrete, making it impossible for passengers to go out by subway. In the control room of the Victoria Line of the London Underground, which was flooded with concrete, the concrete that would harden in just a few hours was about to cover the important cables and control switches, and then stiffened step by step. if you don't stop it, the whole control room will be buried and will never be used again. At this time, the maintenance workers rushed into the surrounding convenience store, bought bags of white material, and then poured it into the unhardened cement and stirred it continuously to ease the hardening speed of the cement. Yes, this white substance is sugar.

Benefits of Sugar as Retarder:

Although there are commercial retarders on the market, the price of white sugar is relatively low. And only a small amount of sugar can significantly alleviate the stiffness time of cement. For example, adding 0.04% sugar can double the setting time of cement that can be hardened in an hour and 18 minutes.

In addition, during the construction of the project, spray sugar water on the uncondensed cement surface, and then wash the surface off, exposing the gravel below, which can also create a rough matte effect of the vicissitudes of life.

Principle of Using Sugar as a Retarder:

The more common Portland cement is mainly composed of limestone, clay, gypsum and sand. After adding water, the concrete will have hydration reaction, and finally produce hydrated calcium silicate (C-S-H).

Sugar can absorb tricalcium silicate (C3S) particles, which is the main component of cement before hydration, eliminate the crystal nucleus of hydrated calcium silicate on the surface of the particles, and stop the production of hydrated calcium silicate, that is, the cement body.

Note:

Using sugar as retarder is only suitable for more convenient retarding methods in ordinary construction, but not suitable for projects with higher difficulty and higher requirements, such as oil well cement retarder or high temperature retarder.

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