TY - JOUR A1 - Munsch, Sarah Mandy A1 - Schmidt, Wolfram A1 - Lorenzoni, Renata A1 - Telong, Melissa A1 - Grobla, Lili A1 - Lauinger, Robert A1 - Kruschwitz, Sabine T1 - Investigation of the hydration of clinker‑reduced cementitious binders by 1H NMR relaxometry N2 - In this paper, we demonstrate the value of 1 H NMR relaxometry for studying the hydration of clinker-reduced, climate-friendly cementitious binders. Our study includes white cement (WC), ordinary Portland cement (OPC), and samples incorporating reactive agro-waste based ashes and non-reactive biochars as supplementary cementitous materials (SCM). NMR measurements were performed over a period of up to 120 h during hydration with an echo time of 50 μ s and a relatively large sample size of 20 mL. The results were compared to heat flow calorimetry (HFC) data, and a detailed comparison with literature data was performed for pure OPC and WC. The results show that time-resolved NMR measurements, especially the analysis of individual NMR signal components assigned to defined 1 H reservoirs, are effective for studying hydration processes. They offer insights into the evolution of the microstrucure and specific chemical phases. NMR provides valuable information and serves as a good complement to HFC. The comparison with data obtained with shorter echo times (40 μs or around 15–45 μs with solid echo sequence) on much smaller samples showed almost identical developments with respect to the T2 distributions. For the SCM samples, NMR results indicated partially accelerated hydration processes compared to classical OPC hydration. One SCM sample acted as a highly reactive pozzolan, showing a similar hydration process to OPC with the strongest effect observed when superplasticizer was added. Adding biochar delayed C-S-H gel pore formation but significantly increased capillary pores and even free water, likely due to the sponge-like structure. KW - Nuclear magnetic resonance relaxometry KW - Heat flow calorimetry KW - Cement KW - Hydration KW - Clinker reduction KW - Carbon emission KW - Kinetics PY - 2025 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-630284 DO - https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-025-02632-x SN - 1871-6873 VL - 58 IS - 137 SP - 1 EP - 23 PB - Springer Nature AN - OPUS4-63028 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Lorenzoni, Renata A1 - Mezhov, Alexander A1 - Fritsch, Tobias A1 - Schmidt, Wolfram A1 - Kruschwitz, Sabine T1 - Effect of Biochar on the Microstructure and Mechanical Response of Cement Paste N2 - The use of biochar as a supplementary cementitious material is proposed to reduce the global greenhouse gas emissions. Since biochar is non-reactive, has a low density and complex porosity, its incorporation into cementitious materials results in microstructural changes and consequently affects the mechanical response. This work advances the mechanical response understanding of Portland cement composites with 0, 5, and 25 volume percent (vol%) of cement replaced with biochar by using in-situ computed tomography, correlating with the microstructural changes analyzed by HFC, gas sorption, MIP, gas sorption, and NMR. The results highlight the influence of the mesoscale structure on mechanical responses and relate the lack of loss of mechanical strength at 5 vol% replacement to the compensation of decreasing larger pores with biochar addition. At 25 vol% replacement, the amount of weakened zones in the paste due to biochar overcompensates the positive effect of the reduction in larger pores, resulting in a loss of mechanical properties. Hence, small amounts of biochar can enhance the microstructure, but the reduction of the carbon footprint is limited. T2 - 24th International Conference on Composite Materials (ICCM24) CY - Baltimore, Maryland, USA DA - 04.08.2024 KW - Supplementary cementitious materials KW - Biochar KW - Microstructure KW - In-situ computed tomography KW - Mechanical proprieties. PY - 2024 DO - https://doi.org/10.14359/51742027 VL - 362 SP - 1020 EP - 1032 PB - International Concrete Abstracts Portal AN - OPUS4-62115 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Lorenzoni, Renata A1 - Fritsch, Tobias A1 - Kruschwitz, Sabine A1 - Bruno, Giovanni A1 - Schmidt, Wolfram T1 - Mechanical analysis of cement-biochar composites using in-situ X-ray microtomography and digital volume correlation N2 - This study addresses biochar as a potential carbon-sequestering filler in cement and examines its effect on mechanical properties using X-ray computed tomography (XCT) and digital volume correlation (DVC). DVC was reliably used to measure global displacement and has proven to be an effective method for correcting displacement data obtained from mechanical tests conducted without traditional instrumentation, such as extensometer. This made it possible to measure strain and Young’s modulus accurately. The results demonstrate that while 5 vol% biochar replacement had minimal effect on mechanical properties, a 25 vol% biochar replacement caused a 35 % reduction in Young’s modulus and 40 % reduction in the ultimate compressive strength. Additionally, DVC detected strain concentrations and predicted material failure locations even when cracks could not be quantified using XCT alone. Moreover, the study reveals that biochar particles, due to their sharp geometry, increase internal shear strain during uniaxial compression, unlike round phases such as pores. KW - Cementitious materials KW - Biochar KW - Mechanical proprieties KW - In-situ X-ray microtomography KW - Digital volume correlation PY - 2025 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-638065 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2025.142511 SN - 1879-0526 VL - 490 PB - Elsevier Ltd. AN - OPUS4-63806 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Lorenzoni, Renata A1 - Cunningham, Patrick A1 - Fritsch, Tobias A1 - Schmidt, Wolfram A1 - Kruschwitz, Sabine A1 - Bruno, Giovanni T1 - Microstructure analysis of cement‑biochar composites N2 - The use of biochar as a concrete constituent has been proposed to reduce the massive carbon footprint of concrete. Due to the low density and complex porosity of biochar, microstructural analysis of Portland cement-biochar composites is challenging. This causes challenges to the improvement of the micro-scale understanding of biochar composite behavior. This work advances the microstructural understanding of Portland cement composites with 0, 5, and 25 volume percent (vol%) of cement replaced with wood biochar by applying common characterization techniques of mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP), gas sorption, scanning electron microscopy, and isothermal heat flow calorimetry (HFC) in conjunction with 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and micro-X-ray computed tomography (XCT) analysis techniques. The combination of these techniques allows a multi-scale investigation of the effect of biochar on the microstructure of cement paste. NMR and XCT techniques allow the observation and quantification of the pore space. HFC and MIP confirmed that biochar absorbs moisture and reduces the effective water-cement ratio. Gas sorption, MIP, and NMR shows that 5 vol% replacement does not significantly affect the gel and capillary pore structures. Results from XCT (supported by MIP and NMR) show that biochar can reduce the formation of larger pores. Importantly, XCT results suggest that biochar can act as a flaw in the microstructure which could explain reductions in the mechanical properties. Overall, the mechanical properties already analyzed in the literature are consistent with the microstructural changes observed, and these results highlight the need to carefully tailor the volume fraction of biochar to control its effect on the paste microstructure. KW - Cementitious materials KW - Biochar KW - Microstructure KW - Porosity KW - Pore size distribution PY - 2024 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-610900 DO - https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-024-02452-5 VL - 57 SP - 16 EP - 175 PB - Springer AN - OPUS4-61090 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kruschwitz, Sabine A1 - Munsch, Sarah Mandy A1 - Telong, Melissa A1 - Schmidt, Wolfram A1 - Bintz, Thilo A1 - Fladt, Matthias A1 - Stelzner, Ludwig T1 - The NMR core analyzing TOMograph: A multi-functional tool for non-destructive testing of building materials N2 - NMR is becoming increasingly popular for the investigation of building materials as it is a non-invasive technology that does not require any sample preparation nor causes damage to the material. Depending on the specific application it can offer insights into properties like porosity and spatial saturation degree as well as pore structure. Moreover it enables the determination of moisture transport properties and the (re-)distribution of internal moisture into different reservoirs or chemical phases upon damage and curing. However, as yet most investigations were carried out using devices originally either designed for geophysical applications or the analysis of rather homogeneous small scale (< 10 mL) samples. This paper describes the capabilities of an NMR tomograph, which has been specifically optimized for the investigation of larger, heterogeneous building material samples (diameters of up to 72 mm, length of up to 700 mm) with a high flexibility due to interchangeable coils allowing for a high SNR and short echo times (50 - 80 m s). KW - Fire spalling KW - Moisture transport KW - Concrete KW - Cement hydration KW - Sensitivity KW - Supplementary cementitous materials KW - Frost salt attack PY - 2023 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-573755 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mrl.2023.03.004 SN - 2097-0048 VL - 3 IS - 3 SP - 207 EP - 219 PB - Elsevier B.V. AN - OPUS4-57375 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Kruschwitz, Sabine A1 - Lorenzoni, Renata A1 - Telong, Melissa A1 - Lauinger, Robert A1 - Munsch, Sarah Mandy A1 - Schmidt, Wolfram T1 - Investigation of the hydration of clinker-reduced cementitious binders by 1H NMR N2 - In this paper, we demonstrate the value of 1H NMR relaxometry for studying the hydration of clinker-reduced, more climate-friendly cementitious binders. The results were obtained on typical CEM I cements and sister samples containing two different reactive agricultural ashes as well as non-reactive biochars as supplementary cementitious materials. The findings prove that time-resolved NMR measurements provide valuable additional information when combined with classical heat flow calorimetry. T2 - International Conference on Electromagnetic Wave Interaction with Water and Moist Substances of the International Society for Electromagnetic Aquametry (ISEMA) 2023 CY - Brisbane, Ausralia DA - 25.09.2023 KW - Carbon emission KW - 1H NMR relaxometry KW - Heat flow calorimetry KW - Cement, hydration KW - Clinker reduction PY - 2023 SP - 1 EP - 3 AN - OPUS4-58936 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Bintz, Thilo A1 - Munsch, Sarah Mandy A1 - Stelzner, Ludwig A1 - Lauinger, Robert A1 - Schmidt, Wolfram A1 - Kruschwitz, Sabine T1 - An NMR tomograph for building materials - applications, experimental studies and limitations - N2 - A summary of the possibilities, technical limitations and application examples for a unique NMR tomograph at BAM. T2 - 13th International Conference on Electromagnetic Wave Interaction with Water and Moist Substances (ISEMA), 2021 CY - Kiel, Germany DA - 27.06.2021 KW - Relaxation time distribution KW - NMR imaging KW - Capillary suction PY - 2021 SN - 978-1-7281-8738-9 N1 - Geburtsname von Munsch, Sarah Mandy: Nagel, S. M. - Birth name of Munsch, Sarah Mandy: Nagel, S. M. SP - 106 EP - 110 PB - IEEE AN - OPUS4-53116 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -