Cements with a high limestone content - Mechanical properties, durability and ecological characteristics of the concrete

This paper deals with the performance of concretes made of cements containing high levels of limestone between 35 and 65 wt.-%. The Article mainly focuses on cements with 50 wt.-% limestone. Several experiments regarding the fresh and hardened concrete properties were carried out. Chloride penetration, freeze-thaw resistance, carbonation resistance and long-term deformation behavior were analyzed. The results show that concretes with cements containing up to 50 wt.-% limestone and a water/cement-ratio of 0.35 may have sufficient properties for practical application if a stringent supervision is ensured. Furthermore, these concretes can exhibit mechanical and durability properties comparable to concretes according to EN 206-1 and the German national application document DIN 1045-2 made of EN 197-1 cements. Besides, the results revealed that these properties depend highly on the limestone characteristics. Life cycle assessment analysis revealed that a cut-off up to 25% in global warming potential of concretes made with such cements is achievable in comparison with German average cement with the same performance. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.