CHEM-CRETE® MCE™

ADVANTAGES

• An innovative sustainable solution to moisture-related distresses that is compatible with most water-reducers and air-entrainment materials used in concrete mix design.
• A long-term protection internal waterproofing and moisture blocking for Portland cement concrete (PCC) against water penetration, in all its phases (vapor, liquid and ice).
• A dynamic crystallization system that interacts with water in its three phases which enhances water management (reduced liquid and water vapor movement within the hardened PCC and reduced ice adhesion).
• Reduction in PCC capillary porosity and water permeability (by 2-3 orders of magnitudes).
• Reduced jet fuel and oil penetration through concrete surfaces.
• Hydrophobicity characteristics that help preventing water from wetting and saturating concrete surfaces.
• Reduced ice adhesion and hence reduced consumption of deicing salts & agents.
• Preventing freezing of freshly cast concrete: MCE^TM has a distinguished and unique thermal behavior of preventing water freezing in MCE-dosed fresh concrete under severe continuous freezing conditions. Figure 1 shows that the temperature of MCE modified fresh concrete remained above freezing temperature for about 2 months (when the concrete is continuously subjected to -50^oF), while the temperate of the control sample dropped to a value below freezing within three days.

Fig. 1: Concrete thermal performance under continuous freezing environment, reporting the temperatures at two positions: top (0.5 inch below surface) and middle (1.5 inch below surface) for a concrete with a mix design of IDOT C4, comparing control sample with concrete mixed with 2% MCE^TM. The tests were made in freezing chambers used for ASTM C-666, with the temperature of the chamber adjusted to -50^oF and remained constant to create more severe freezing conditions.

• Improved freeze-thaw durability. Experimental data of IDOT C4 mix concrete samples with 2% MCE^TM indicate a reduction of mass loss by 91.6% and an increase in the relative dynamic modulus by 20.3%. The results of % mass loss presented in figure 2 are from an independent laboratory testing according to ASTM C 666.

Fig. 2: Increasing resistance to freeze thaw cycles with MCE^TM at 2% of cement weight. According to ASTM C 666 using IDOT C4 PCC mix.

• Reduced chloride ion penetration from deicing salts, increased concrete electrical resistivity by a percentage over 90% and reduced associated steel corrosion and paste degradation.
• Reduced Alkali Silica Reactivity (ASR) problems and silicate dusting: The percentage reduction in length change due to ASR in 2% MCE- dosed concrete including reactive aggregates can be in the range of 45-77% (according to ASTM C1567, 28 days testing). Fig. 3 shows that MCE^TM meets the requirement of ASTM C1293 (long term testing) by not going above the 0.04% ASTM limit (for one year), see Fig. 3.

Fig. 3: The results of the long-term ASR experiments using the concrete-prism (ASTM C1293) for reactive coarse aggregates showing results for control specimens made with reactive coarse aggregates of Knife River compared to those for MCE-Dosed specimens. The standard errors of the replicates are shown as error bars. Also shown is the ASTM threshold indicative of potential deleterious ASR behavior (dashed line).

• Reduced fungal and microbial growth according to anti-fungal and microbial test method MIL-SDD810G (reduced mold associated problems).
• Enhanced workability and finishability: the effective compounds of MCE^TM enhance concrete slump as indicated in fig.4. The results in Fig. 4 are for concrete mix designs with and without fly ash, obtained by an independent laboratory testing

Fig. 4: Enhanced workability and retention of concrete with 2% MCE^TM

• Reduced shrinkage and surface cracking.
• Helps concrete stay whiter & brighter (Albedo Surface).