Mixed cement containing fly ash for masonry and plastering work

A class-F fly ash was used in making masonry mortars suitable for brick joints and for plastering. The mortars were made of a locally produced mixed cement and fly ash at 20% and 40% cement replacement with and without the addition of an air entraining agent/plasticiser. The testing programme includes the determination of water demand, relations between water-to-binder ratio and flow, setting time, air content, water retention, compressive strength and flexural strength. The obtained results suggest that fairly coarse grade class-F fly ash can be incorporated into mortars as replacement of the mixed cement for joint and plastering. The main concern is the low water retention which would be minimized by using a better grade/finer fly ash or by incorporation of plasticiser. Mixed cement containing 20-40% fly ash can be used to make Type N or Type S mortars. Furthermore, relations between flow values and water to binder ratio (W/B) of the mixed cement containing fly ash are developed as a practical aid for selection and formulation of mortar for brick construction and rendering/plastering. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.