Abstract
This research was initiated to accomplish the following objectives: 1. Determine what effects selected constituents of portland cement mortar have on the resistance of mortar to sulfuric acid attack. 2. Determine if selected surface treatments would react chemically with the cement and increase the resistance of a mortar to sulfuric acid attack. Four parameters were investigated; portland cement type, water/cement ratio, sulfuric acid concentration, and chemical surface treatment. Three inch diameter by six inch long cylindrical specimens were prepared and subjected to sulfuric acid in varying concentrations. Changes in weight and sonic moduli (E and G) were recorded at each change of acid solution. Though the laboratory tests did not produce the desired result of providing a solution for the problem of sulfuric acid attack on portland cement mortar, the experience in the laboratory did lead to the following conclusions: 1. Magnesium silicofluoride, sodium silicate, potassium silicate, and sodium alginate did not benefit the resistance of portland cement mortar to sulfuric acid attack. 2. Even weak sulfuric acid solutions caused deterioration of both treated and untreated mortars. 3. Varying the constituents of mortar produced from either Type I or Type II cement did not prevent failure due to sulfuric acid attack. 4. Sulfuric acid attack on portland cement mortar was a surface phenomenon and did not affect the structural integrity of the interior of the mortar specimens.
Meyer, Alvin Harold (1969). An investigation of the effects of sulfuric acid on the physical and chemical properties of portland cement mortar. Doctoral dissertation, Texas A&M University. Texas A&M University. Libraries. Available electronically from
https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /DISSERTATIONS -174809.