RILEM TC-238 SCM recommendation on hydration stoppage by solvent exchange for the study of hydrate assemblages

This recommendation is an outcome of the work carried out by a working group within the RILEM Technical Committee 238-SCM “Supplementary Cementitious Materials”. The working group studied the effect of supplementary cementitious materials on the pore solution, the microstructure and the hydration product assemblage of hardened Portland cements blended with common supplementary cementitious materials. The recommendation reflects the results of a round robin test programme on common hydration stoppage methods in 10 participating laboratories. Among four different methods tested, solvent exchange by isopropyl alcohol (isopropanol) gave the best results in terms of preservation of the cement hydrate assemblage and overall reproducibility of the results [1]. The current protocol is developed based on best laboratory practices of the participating laboratories and literature reports [2–4]. The presented hydration stoppage protocol is recommended for the study of Portland cement-based hydrate assemblages by common material characterization techniques such as thermogravimetry and X-ray powder diffraction.