Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
ARABIAN JOURNAL FOR SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING, cilt.52, sa.3, ss.1-16, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
The efficiency of polycarboxylate ether (PCE) admixtures to alter the rheological properties and disperse the cement and blast furnace slag binders is strongly affected by the addition sequence and interaction with the most reactive cement phase, i.e., the tricalcium aluminate (C3A). This study assesses the influence of PCE timing addition during batching (i.e., early vs. delayed) on the rheology and hydration kinetics of CEM I 42.5R cements having three different C3A levels of 2.13, 3.6, and 6.82%. Rheological measurements, isothermal calorimetry, X-ray diffraction, and thermogravimetric analysis were conducted. Test results showed that the delayed PCE addition reduced the yield stress and plastic viscosity, especially for the cement having the highest C3A content. Early PCE addition led to higher bound water and calcium hydroxide contents at 24 h, while the delayed addition produced higher and earlier heat flow peaks. The effect of cement replacement by 30% slag materials moderated these differences, albeit the PCE timing addition remained noticeable on the rheology and hydration kinetics.