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Ultra high performance concrete (UHPC) is characterised by its high compressive strength of more than 150 MPa and its high durability. Due to thermal treatment at 90°C a strength comparable to the 28-days-strength can be achieved immediately after the treatment and in some cases can be even further increased up to 30 %. The explanations for the increase in strength are the accelerated hydration of the clinker minerals and the intensified pozzolanic reaction contributing to a denser microstructure and hence, a high performance in compressive strength.
Former research shows that thermal treatment can lead to inhomogeneities in form of a visible zonation within the cross-section. The width of the margin increases with shorter pre-storage time before the thermal treatment and with omitting protective measures against desiccation during the treatment. Specimens exhibiting a zonation typically show a lower compressive strength compared to the undisturbed reference whereas changes in chemistry, mineral content and microstructure were not reported in detail.
In this study the zonation of thermally treated UHPC is investigated with respect to its chemistry, mineral composition and microstructure to allow predictions on durability and strength development. Measurements show a change in pore sizes, minerals phase composition and element distribution leading to the visible zonation and weaker bending tensile strength compared to the reference.
Rock-inhabiting fungi are known to colonise air-exposed substrates like minerals, photovoltaic panels building facades and monuments, withstanding the various stresses these extreme habitats are known for. Here we show how both colonisation and stress resistance are linked to the properties of the fungal cell surface. By deleting genes involved in the synthesis of melanin and carotenoid pigments of the model rock-inhabiting fungus Knufia petricola via CRISPR-Cas and comparing the behaviour of the gene-deletion mutants with the wild type (WT), we studied the role of these genes in mineral colonisation and stress sensitivity. The extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) of biofilms of the WT and mutants were extracted, quantified and chemically characterised. We observed that the absence of melanin affected the quantity and composition of the produced EPS: melanin-deficient mutants synthesised more EPS containing fewer pullulan-related glycosidic linkages. Moreover, in mineral dissolution experiments, these mutants showed a lower ability to colonise the mineral olivine. We hypothesise that not melanin, but the pullulan-related linkages enabled the melanin-producing strains to attach more strongly to the mineral. Moreover, ICP-OES analysis of the aqueous mineral-derived solutes showed that biofilms of the K. petricola mutants which could attach were able to dissolve the olivine faster than those that could not. The same mutants were also characterised by their sensitivity to desiccation stress: only the mutant deficient in both melanin and carotenoid synthesis was more sensitive to desiccation compared to the WT, indicating that a combination of both pigments is critical to withstand desiccation. Overall, these results show the critical role of the cell surface in the specific capacities of rock-inhabiting fungi.