Influence of nano-SiO2 on the Portland cement pastes

The evolution of nanotechnology provides materials with new properties and over the last years a lot of effort has been put to introduce nano-particles into cement pastes in order to improve their properties and to produce materials of better performance. In the present research work, nano-SiO2 produced by pyrolysis and with specific area of 200 m2/g has been added at different percentages (0%, 0.5%, 1%, 2% and 5%) to high-strength cement pastes. These pastes were tested for their mechanical and structural properties at different ages. Nanoparticles act as nuclei for crystallization and large, idiomorphic crystals of Ca–Si composition were formed assisting, up to a certain percentage, in producing materials with dense structure, reduced porosity and improved strength.