Structural and hydration properties of amorphous tricalcium silicate

Mechanical milling was carried out to synthesize amorphous tricalcium silicate (Ca3SiO5) sample, where Ca3SiO5 is the most principal component of Portland cement. The partial phase transformation from the crystalline to the amorphous state was observed by X-ray and neutron diffractions. Moreover, it was found that the structural distortion on the Ca–O correlation exists in the milled Ca3SiO5. The hydration of the milled Ca3SiO5 with D2O proceeds as follows: the formation of hydration products such as Ca(OD)2 rapidly occurs in the early hydration stage, and then proceeds slowly after about 15 h. The induction time for the hydration of the milled Ca3SiO5 is approximately one half shorter than that for the hydration of the unmilled one. This result means that the mechanical milling brings about the chemical activity of Ca3SiO5 for hydration, and may be particularly useful for increasing the reactivity in the early hydration stage.