Using powerful nanotechnology tools, a research team led by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has successfully modeled the complex structure of calcium silica hydrate (CSH), the main binding material in cement and concrete. Industry officials say this modeling could lead to more sustainable and durable concrete-mix designs.
In a paper published on Feb. 23 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers from MIT, Georgetown University, France’s CNRS and other universities in the U.S., France and the U.K. stated, “Our study delivers, for the first time, to our knowledge, a quantitative description of the meso-scale texture of CSH.”