Combined Effects of Water Film Thickness and Talcum Powder on Flowability of Mortar

Abstract

To research the effect of talcum powder and water film thickness on performance of mortar, this study measured the flowability and strength of 25 mixes of cement-sand mortar with different water/binder ratio. To reveal the role of WFT in the flowability of mortar, this research measured packing density of 5 different powder mixes with various talcum powder content, calculated the WFT of the 25 mixes of cement-sand mortar. Results proved that addition of talcum powder improve the flow properties of cement mortar. Packing density results showed that with the increase of the amount of talcum powder, the packing density will increase first and then decrease. The flowability was mainly governed by WFT. Talcum content would also affect the flowability of mortar. The increase of talcum content would improve the flowability of mortar.