Properties of Concrete Incorporating Locally Produced Portland Limestone Cement

Abstract

The use of limestone as a component of Portland cement is now common practice worldwide. Reducing the amount of cement clinker with limestone additions is considered a highly efficient way of saving natural resources, saving energy and lowering the carbon dioxide footprint of the cement and concrete industries on the environment. Many specifications permit the use of limestone additions in the cement. The Egyptian Standard Specifications E.S. 4756-1 (2007) and the European Standard EN 197-1 (2000) identify two types of Portland limestone cement containing 6-20% limestone (CEM II/A-L) and 21-35% limestone (CEM II/B-L). Nevertheless, the Egyptian Standards prohibit the use of limestone cement in structural concrete. Thus the aim of this research is to evaluate the properties of the limestone cement concrete compared to those of ordinary concrete. To achieve this goal a review of previous studies and an experimental investigation were carried out and were illustrated in details throughout the different chapters of this thesis. The literature review included the previous investigations and researches on the subjects concerning the environmental benefits of using limestone cements, Portland limestone cement constituents, the manufacture of limestone cement, the properties of limestone cement and the properties of concrete using limestone additions.