Construction and Building Materials 30 (2012) 470–479

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Construction and Building Materials

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Influence of metakaolin as supplementary cementing material on strength

and durability of concretes
A.A. Ramezanianpour a, H. Bahrami Jovein b,⇑
a
Concrete Technology and Durability Research Center, Amirkabir University of Technology, Tehran, Iran
b
Department of Civil Engineering, Amirkabir University of Technology, Tehran, Iran

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Durability of concrete is an important issue for predicting the service life of concrete structures. Recently,
Received 8 May 2011 the properties of metakaolin as high-quality pozzolanic materials are investigated by several researchers.
Received in revised form 8 November 2011 It is not widely produced and used due to the lack of adequate experiments on this material in the Middle
Accepted 2 December 2011
East. Local kaolin with high kaolinite content was thermally treated by a special furnace at 800 °C and
Available online 3 January 2012
60 min burning time to produce metakaolin.
This study investigates the performance of concrete mixtures containing local metakaolin in terms of
Keywords:
compressive strength, water penetration, sorptivity, salt ponding, Rapid Chloride Permeability Test
Metakaolin
Compressive strength
(RCPT) and electrical resistivity at 7, 28, 90 and 180 days. In addition, microstructure of the cement pastes
Water penetration incorporating metakaolin was studied by XRD and SEM tests. The percentages of metakaolin that replace
Electrical resistivity PC in this research are 0%, 10%, 12.5% and 15% by mass. The water/binder (w/b) ratios are 0.35, 0.4 and 0.5
RCPT having a constant total binder content of 400 kg/m3. Results show that concrete incorporating metakaolin
Salt ponding had higher compressive strength and metakaolin enhanced the durability of concretes and reduced the
Sorptivity chloride diffusion. An exponential relationship between chloride permeability and compressive strength
of concrete is exhibited. A significant linear relationship was found between Rapid Chloride Permeability
Test and salt ponding test results.
Ó 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
Concrete is probably the most extensively used construction
material in the world. It is only second to water as the most heavily
consumed substance [1].
The majority of the cementitious binders used in concrete are
based on Portland cement clinker, the manufacture of which is an
energy-intensive process. In addition, it produces a large amount
of greenhouse gas emissions, mostly CO2, resulting from release
of CO2 from limestone in the pyro-processing of clinker. On the
other hand, the concrete industry is one of the major consumers
of natural resources. In order to reduce energy consumption, CO2
emission and increase production, cement plants produce blended
cements, comprised of supplementary cementitious materials such
as metakaolin, silica fume, natural pozzolan, fly ash and limestone.
In recent years, metakaolin (MK) has been studied because of its
high pozzolanic properties [2–5]. Unlike other pozzolans, it is a pri-
mary product, not a secondary product or by-product, which is
formed by the dehydroxylation of kaolin precursor upon heating
⇑ Corresponding author. Tel.: +98 21 64543074/915 1110160; fax: +98 21
64543074.
E-mail addresses: hamed.bahrami.j@gmail.com, h_bahrami@aut.ac.ir
(H. Bahrami Jovein).
in the temperature range of 700–800 °C [6,7]. The raw material in-
put in the manufacture of metakaolin (Al2Si2O7) is kaolin. Metaka-
olin on reaction with Ca(OH)2, produces C–S–H gel at ambient
temperature and reacts with CH to produce alumina containing
phases, including C4AH13, C2ASH8, and C3AH6 [8,9]. Larbi [10]
showed that calcium hydroxide can be virtually eliminated from
the cement matrix by using sufficient adapted metakaolin concen-
trations. Metakaolin is increasingly being used to produce high-
strength, high-performance concrete with improved durability.
Extensive research is reported in the literature concerning different
properties of MK paste and concrete such as porosity, pore size dis-
tribution, pozzolanic reaction, compressive and durability of MK
concrete [1,11–13].
Brooks and Johari reported that compressive strength increased
with the increase in the metakaolin content [14]. Similar results
were also reported by Li and Ding where concrete achieved the
highest compressive strength with 10% MK content [15]. Metakao-
lin concrete, compared to PC concrete, exhibits significantly lower
sorptivity [16].
The incorporation of metakaolin in concrete led to significant in-
crease of resistance to chloride penetration. Gruber et al. reported
that the use of 8% and 12% high-reactivity metakaolin (HRM) signif-
icantly lowered the chloride ion diffusion coefficient of concrete
[17]. Parande et al. was deduced that up to 15% replacement of

0950-0618/$ - see front matter Ó 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2011.12.050
 A.A. Ramezanianpour, H. Bahrami Jovein / Construction and Building Materials 30 (2012) 470–479 471

metakaolin in ordinary Portland cement showed to be good 2.2. Specimens preparation

corrosion resistance property, water absorption and resistivity of
concrete [18].
Considering the abundant kaolin mines in local area, this study
investigates the performance of concrete mixture containing local
metakaolin in terms of compressive strength, water penetration,
sorptivity, salt ponding, Rapid Chloride Permeability Test (RCPT)
and electrical resistivity at 7, 28, 90 and 180 days. Then, relation-
ships between test results of concretes containing metakaolin are
discussed. In addition, microstructure of the cement pastes incor-
porating metakaolin was studied by XRD and SEM tests.
The concrete production was carried out in a mixer of 50 l capacity. Two series
of concrete mixtures were designed at 0.35, 0.4 and 0.5 water/binder (w/b) ratios
and having a constant total binder (cement + metakaolin) content of 400 kg/m3.
The percentages of metakaolin that replace PC in this research are 0%, 10%, 12.5%
and 15% by mass of cement that were added to clinker in the laboratory. Details
of the mixtures are presented in Table 3. Slumps were kept constant at
70 ± 10 mm. Superplasticizer was used at very low percentages according to the re-
sults obtained for the slumps. Casting of concrete specimens was conducted in two
layers. Each layer was compacted on a vibrating table to ensure good compaction
and to reduce the air voids. After casting, the concrete specimens were covered with
a wet towel and cured under laboratory conditions. After 24 h they were demolded
and cured in lime-saturated water at 23 ± 2 °C to prevent possible leaching of
Ca(OH)2 from these specimens.

2. Experimental program
2.1. Material
ASTM C 150 type I Portland cement was used for all of the concrete mixtures.
Chemical and physical characteristics of cement are shown in Table 1. The C3S,
C2S, C3A and C4AF contents of the cement by Bogue calculations were 54.6%, 20%,
5.1% and 9.06%, respectively. Local kaolin with high kaolinite content (K) was ther-
mally treated by the special furnace at 800 °C and 60 min burning time to produce
metakaolin. The chemical composition of MK used as supplementary cementitious
material and chemical and mineralogical analyses of kaolin are given in Tables 1
and 2, respectively. Local natural sand according to ASTM Standard with maximum
aggregate size of 4.75 mm, and crushed calcareous stone according to ASTM Stan-
dard with maximum aggregate size of 19 mm were used. The coarse aggregates
have a specific gravity and water absorption of 2580 kg/m3 and 1.74%, respectively,
and the fine aggregate has water absorption of 2.3% and a specific gravity of
2560 kg/m3. Potable water was used for casting and curing of all concrete speci-
mens. The polycarboxylic acid–based Superplasticizer (GELENIUM-110P) was
employed to achieve the desired workability.
2.3. Test methods
2.3.1. Compressive strength
Concrete cubes of 100  100  100 mm dimension were cast for compressive
strength. They were tested for compressive strength after 7, 28, 90 and 180 days
of water curing. For each age, three specimens were tested and the mean value of
these measurements is reported.
2.3.2. Sorptivity
The sorptivity was conducted on concrete cubes (100  100  100 mm) which
were dried in a 50 °C oven for 14 days. After mass stabilization, the specimens were
coated with the epoxy resin on their lateral surfaces only, in order to ensure uniax-
ial water absorption. The specimen was rested on rods to allow free access of water
to the surface and the tap water level was kept no more than 5 mm above the base
of the specimen. The masses of the specimens were measured after 0, 3, 6, 24 and
72 h of absorption. Three specimens from each mixture were tested at the ages of 7,
28, 90, and 180 days and the average values were reported.

Table 1
Physical and chemical characteristics of cement and metakaolin.

Physical tests Chemical analysis (%) Bogue composition (%)

Specific gravity Blaine (cm2/g) SiO2 Al2O3 Fe2O3 CaO MgO Na2O K2O LOI C3S C2S C3A C4AF
Cement 3.21 3200 21.32 3.83 2.76 62.02 3.44 0.12 0.73 2.98 54.6 20 5.1 9.06
Metakaolin 2.53 3700 74.3 17.8 0.82 3.38 0.22 0.0 0.39 2.56 – – – –

Table 2
Chemical and mineralogical analyses of kaolin.

Chemical analysis (%) Mineralogical analysis (%)

SiO2 Al2O3 Fe2O3 CaO MgO Na2O K2O LOI Kaolinite Quartz Calcite Other
Kaolin 74.97 17.8 0.81 2.22 0.13 0.05 0.55 7.18 50.73 39.27 6 4

Table 3
Mix proportions of concrete.

Series Mix W/b Metakaolin (%) Metakaolin Cement Water Coarse aggregate Fine aggregate Slump
(kg/m3) (kg/m3) (kg/m3) (kg/m3) (kg/m3) (mm)
1 OPC 0.5 0 0 400 200 765 935 90
MK10 0.5 10 40 360 200 765 935 85
MK12.5 0.5 12.5 50 350 200 765 935 90
MK15 0.5 15 60 340 200 765 935 85
2 OPC 0.4 0 0 400 160 810 990 80
MK10 0.4 10 40 360 160 810 990 75
MK12.5 0.4 12.5 50 350 160 810 990 80
MK15 0.4 15 60 340 160 810 990 80
3 OPC 0.35 0 0 400 140 832.5 1017.5 80
MK10 0.35 10 40 360 140 832.5 1017.5 80
MK12.5 0.35 12.5 50 350 140 832.5 1017.5 75
MK15 0.35 15 60 340 140 832.5 1017.5 70
472 A.A. Ramezanianpour, H. Bahrami Jovein / Construction and Building Materials 30 (2012) 470–479
The sorptivity coefficient (S) according to BS EN-480-5:1997 [19] was obtained
using the following expression:
Q pffiffi
¼cþS t
A ability. The test result is a function of the electrical resistance of the specimen.
where Q is the amount of water adsorbed; A is the cross section of specimen that was
in contact with water; t is the time (second); c is the constant coefficient; and S is the
sorptivity coefficient of the specimen (m/s1/2).
2.3.3. Water penetration
The water penetration test, which is most commonly used to evaluate the per-
meability of concrete, is the one specified by BS EN-12390-8:2000 [20]. In this test,
water was applied on one face of the 150 mm concrete cubes specimen under a
pressure of 0.5 MPa. This pressure was maintained constant for a period of 72 h.
After the completion of the test, the specimens were taken out and split open into
two halves. The water penetration profile on the concrete surface was then marked
and the maximum depth of water penetration in specimens was recorded and con-
sidered as an indicator of the water penetration.
2.3.4. Rapid Chloride Permeability Test (RCPT)
The resistance of concrete to salt attack was assessed by Rapid Chloride Perme-
ability Test (RCPT) at 7, 28, 90 and 180 days of water curing in conformity with
ASTM C-1202 [24]. Three specimens of 100 mm in diameter and 50 mm in thickness
which had been conditioned according to the standard were subjected to a 60-V po-
tential for 6 h. The total charge passed through the concrete specimens was deter-
mined and used to evaluate the chloride permeability of each concrete mixture.
2.3.5. Salt ponding
The salt ponding test was used similar to the test described in ASTM C 1543
[21]. Before the test, ponding specimens were air-dried, and then the lateral surface
of specimens was coated with epoxy that was allowed to harden for up to 24 h. A
dike was provided approximately 20 mm high along the perimeter of the top sur-
face of the specimen to retain the ponding solution. The specimens with pond were
subjected to continuous ponding with 3.0% NaCl solutions to a depth of 15 ± 5 mm
for 90 days. The top of pond was sealed with plastic wrap to retard evaporation, and
additional solution was added if necessary to maintain the 15 ± 5 mm depth
[21,22]. After 90 days of exposure, the solution was removed and the specimens
were allowed to dry. And then the surface of specimens was wire brushed until
all salt crystal buildup was completely removed. After brushing, specimens ground
in precision miling machine to produce samples at internal depth from the test face.
The powder samples obtained were then dried at 105 °C to constant mass and
ground to pass a 300-lm sieve. The powder samples were analyzed for total chlo-
ride content in accordance with AASHTO T260-97 [23]. After sieving, a 10-g sample
of the powder is weighted and digested using concentrated HNO3 solution. Heat the
acid solution to boiling on a heater and boil for about 1 min and then left to cool.
The cooled samples were filtered through filter paper, the residue being washed
with distilled water. Filtrate and washings were made up to 250 ml with distilled
water. And the sample of filtrate was analyzed using a potentiometric automatic
titratortitration. Two replicate specimens were tested and the mean value of these
measurements is reported.
Compressive strength (MPa)
w/b=0.5
Compressive strength (Mpa)
Fig. 1. The effect of metakaolin on the compressive strength at various ages.
2.3.6. Surface Resistivity (SR)
The electrical resistivity meter was used to measure the Surface Resistivity (SR)
of the specimens. This non-destructive laboratory test method measures the electri-
ð1Þ cal resistivity of water-saturated concrete and provides an indication of its perme-
Saturated cylinders (100  200 mm) were used at each test age. The electrical resis-
tivity test for concretes was carried out by the four-point Wenner array probe tech-
nique. The probe array spacing used was 40 mm. The resistivity measurements
were taken at four quaternary longitudinal locations of the specimen [25].
To examine the crystallography of the binder materials, X-ray Diffraction (XRD)
analysis was carried out and to observe the hydrated products, instrumental SEM
analysis was conducted at the ages of 7 and 28 days for cement paste samples.
3. Results and discussion
3.1. Compressive strength
The compressive strengths of concrete specimens with varying
w/b ratios are shown in Fig. 1. As expected, this demonstrates the
level of compressive strength developed with the period of curing
and with decreasing the w/b ratio. According to the literature, the
main factors that affect the contribution of MK in the strength are
(a) the filling effect, (b) the dilution effect, and (c) the pozzolanic
reaction of MK with CH [26].
In general, the MK concretes had higher compressive strengths at
various ages and up to 180 days when compared with the OPC con-
crete. As the case in point, the strength of the series2 MK concrete at
180 days age were higher than that of the control by about 13.4%,
24.1%and 14.6% for MK10, MK12.5 and MK15, respectively. The
reduction in compressive strength for MK15 compare to MK12.5 is
explained as the result of a clinker dilution effect. The dilution effect
is a consequence of replacing a part of cement by the same quantity
of metakaolin. In MK concrete, the filler effect, pozzolanic reaction of
MK with CH and compounding effect (synergetic effect of mineral
admixture) react opposite of the dilution effects [18,27]. For this rea-
son, there is an optimum MK replacement for MK concrete. However
in series1, replacement rate of 15% gives the best result when com-
pared to other replacement levels. This was in a good agreement
with the measurements reported by Parande et al. [18].
3.2. Sorptivity
Sorptivity, which is an index of moisture transport into unsatu-
rated specimens, has been recognized as an important index of
w/b=0.4 w/b=0.35
 A.A. Ramezanianpour, H. Bahrami Jovein / Construction and Building Materials 30 (2012) 470–479 473

concrete durability, because (a) the test method used for its deter-
mination reflects the way that most concretes will be penetrated
by water and other injurious agents and (b) it is an especially good
measure of the quality of the near surface concrete, which governs
durability related to reinforcement corrosion [28]. Fig. 2 shows the
variation in sorptivity of the concrete with different replacement
levels of MK, w/b ratio, and testing age. It can be seen that sorptiv-
ity progressively decreases with the period of curing and increase
with increasing the w/b ratio. It was found that the addition of
10% of MK gives the best result when compared to other replace-
ment levels irrespective of w/b ratio and testing age. The increasing
MK replacement levels from 10% to 15% adversely affect the inner
permeability. The higher replacement levels of 15% MK are not
helpful in improving inner durability of concrete and make the in-
ner concrete more permeable [29]. According to the literatures
[10,30,31] water absorption of concrete mixtures increased with
the increase in MK content at all curing times. After 180 days,
the maximum sorptivity coefficient is 7.83 (106) (m/s0.5) for the
OPC (series1) mixture and the minimum is 2.07 (106) (m/s0.5)
for the MK10 (series3) mixture.
3.3. Water penetration test
One of the main factors of concrete durability is permeability.
Concrete with lower permeability shows better resistance against
chemical attacks. When water penetrates into the concrete, some
soluble salts including chloride ions penetrate into concrete and
cause corrosion. Generally, it seems that lower permeability causes
higher durability in concretes [32]. Water penetration test was
used to evaluate the permeability of concretes and validity of these
tests has been approved [20]. Fig. 3 shows the results of the water
penetration depths in all concrete mixtures. As expected, the lower
depth was obtained at 180 days for all concretes and the metaka-
olin concretes provided lower water penetration depth than OPC
concretes. This issue is related to filler effect, pozzolanic reaction
and heterogeneous nucleation. For example in series3, MK10 spec-
imens provided a water penetration depth close to 2 mm, while
OPC provided 5 mm water penetration depth. The increase of pen-
etration depths for MK15 compare to MK10 is explained as the re-
sult of a clinker dilution effect. However in this study, this
phenomenon has insignificant effect on water penetration depth.
3.4. Rapid Chloride Permeability Test (RCPT)
The results for chloride penetration, measured in terms of the
electric charge passed through the specimens in coulombs,
obtained at the age of 7, 28, 90 and 180 days are presented in Fig. 4.
With a continuous water-curing of up to 180 days and decreasing
the w/b ratio, the charge passed through all concretes; was reduced.
Results show that using metakaolin significantly enhances the resis-
tance to chloride penetration compared with the OPC concrete. Kim
et al. reported [35] that, all of mixtures with MK revealed very low

sorptivity coefficient (10 -6) (m/s 0.5)

sorptivity coefficient (10 -6) (m/s 0.5)

w/b=0.5 w/b=0.4 w/b=0.35

Fig. 2. The effect of metakaolin on the sorptivity coefficient (106) (m/s0.5) at various ages.

water penteration depth (mm)

w/b=0.35
water penteration

w/b=0.5 w/b=0.4
depth (mm)

Fig. 3. The effect of metakaolin on the water penetration depth (mm) at various ages.
474 A.A. Ramezanianpour, H. Bahrami Jovein / Construction and Building Materials 30 (2012) 470–479

RCPT(Coulomb)

w/b=0.5 w/b=0.4 w/b=0.35

RCPT(Coulomb)

Fig. 4. The effect of metakaolin on the rapid chloride ions permeability (Coulomb) at various ages.

level in permeability. Also, Gruber et al. [17] showed that the use of
8% and 12% high reactivity metakaolin significantly decreased pen- Table 4
etration of chloride ion in concretes. The enhancement of the resis- The effect of metakaolin on the diffusion coefficient ((1012) (m2/s)) at various ages.

tance to chloride penetration can be related to pozzolanic reaction of Series w/b MK (%) C0 (wt.%/concrete) D (1012) (m2/s)
MK with Ca(OH)2 and reduced electrical conductivity of MK con- 1 0.5 0 0.5048 24.27
crete. In series1, at the age of 28 days, the OPC concretes specimens 10 0.6117 18.89
showed the highest value of 5266 coulombs while the charge passed 12.5 0.4034 12.46
through the MK15% concrete was 2052 coulombs. According to 15 0.3859 6.59

ASTM C 1202[24], when the charge passed through concrete during
a 6 h period is below 1000 coulombs, it is categorized as very low
chloride permeability. In series2 (after 180 days), the chloride per-
meability of the concrete specimens incorporating 12.5% and 15%
MK were ‘‘very low’’, while that of the concrete specimens with 0%
and 10% MK were ‘‘moderate’’ and ‘‘low’’, respectively.
3.5. Salt ponding test
The RCPT test is an indirect measurement of the resistance to
chloride ion penetration. The RCPT test has disadvantages such
as, heat evolved in the test [33] and alteration in the pore fluid
characteristics when pozzolanic materials are used. In addition,
the flux in the RCPT may not be in steady-state condition due to
the high potential difference of 60 V [34]. Hence, the results ob-
tained may not represent true chloride diffusion in concrete [32].
The true service life models require the measurement of the mass
transport coefficients that manage chloride movement in concrete
[17]. In this study, the salt ponding test was used to determine the
diffusion coefficient of concrete. Diffusion is the process by which
matter is transported from one part of a system to another due to
concentration gradient [22]. Chloride diffusion into concrete, like
any diffusion process, is controlled by Fick’s second law of diffu-
sion. Fick’s second law of diffusion and Crank’s Solution were fitted
to the data using the Eqs. (2) and (3) to determine the diffusion
coefficient (D) and the surface concentration (C0), respectively.
2 depends both on the microstructure properties of the concrete
dC d C
¼D 2
dt dx
where C is the concentration of ions as a function of distance x,
at anytime t, and D is the diffusion coefficient.
  
x
C x;t ¼ C 0 1  erf pffiffiffiffiffiffi
2 Dt
where Cx,t is the chloride concentration at depth x and time t, C0 is
the chloride concentration at surface (x = 0), erf is the error function
and D is the diffusion coefficient.
2 0.4 0 0.2613 15.77
10 0.2245 7.21
12.5 0.2166 5.79
15 0.2225 5.16
According to the salt ponding test (see Table 4), it can be con-
cluded that the diffusion coefficient of concrete decreased with
the decreasing w/b ratio for two series. The metakaolin concretes
result generally in lesser diffusion coefficient and surface concen-
tration. The metakaolin can improve the distribution of pore size
of concrete, as the result of pozzolanic reaction and forming more
C–S–H gel. Gruber et al. [17] showed that the apparent diffusion
coefficients increased with increasing w/b ratio and considerably
decreased with increasing HRM content. In series2, the diffusion
coefficient in metakaolin concrete varies from 5.16 to 7.21(1012)
(m2/s) while diffusion coefficient in OPC concrete is 15.77(1012)
(m2/s).
3.6. Surface Resistivity (SR)
Concrete Surface Resistivity (SR) test is a suitable indicator for
concrete penetration and chloride ion permeability. It is a non-
destructive, simple, rapid and economical method that can also
be used on site. Electrical resistivity of concrete represents moving
ions (such as chloride ions) in pore solution. Concrete resistivity
ð2Þ and the conductivity of the pore solution. The conductivity prop-
erty of the concrete is predominantly governed by the chemical
compositions of the pore solutions, although also affected by the
pore structure of the concrete [36]. It can specially be used on
concretes when a large portion of their cementitious chemical
ð3Þ reactions have been completed such as those concretes made with
silica fume or metakaolin [32]. Results of the electrical resistivity
tests (see Fig. 5) show that using MK drastically enhances the elec-
trical resistivity compared to OPC concrete at about 2–4 times
higher for the 15% MK concrete. In addition the electrical resistivity
 A.A. Ramezanianpour, H. Bahrami Jovein / Construction and Building Materials 30 (2012) 470–479 475

Surface resistivity (kΩcm)

w/b=0.5 w/b=0.4 w/b=0.35

Surface resistivity (kΩcm)

Fig. 5. The effect of metakaolin on the Surface resistivity (kX cm) at various ages.

y = 11811e-0.032x y = 4.4839e0.0331x
R² = 0.8147 R² = 0.843
Surface resistivity (kΩcm)
RCPT, coulomb

Compressive Strength, MPa Compressive Strength, MPa

(a) Compressive strength and RCPT (b) Compressive strength and SR

y = 31.864e-0.028x y = 1.8441e-0.033x
sorptivity coefficient (10-6) (m/s 0.5)

R² = 0.7353 R² = 0.8683
water penetration depth (mm)

Compressive Strength, MPa Compressive Strength, MPa

(c) Compressive strength and water penetration (d) Compressive strength and sorptivity
Fig. 6. Relationship between compressive strength and durability tests for all mixtures.

increases with decreasing the w/b ratio. The highest value of 3.7. Relationship between compressive strength and durability test
electrical resistivity is 91.75 kX cm for the MK15 (series3) mixture results
after 180 days and the minimum is 15.75 kX cm for the OPC (ser-
ies1) mixture. Parande et al. [18] showed that incorporation of MK Pore structure influenced on both mechanical and durability
up to 15% into PC concrete improves the electrical resistivity of properties. Hence, the relationship between compressive strength
concrete. and durability parameters of concrete can be useful and beneficial
476
[37]. Exponential regressions were used to correlate the results of
compressive strength and durability test results (see Fig. 6).
Generally an increase in strength is associated with an increase
in electrical resistivity and decrease in sorptivity, water penetra-
tion depth and charge passed through the specimens.
However, different factors influencing on compressive strength
and durability of concrete. As the case, the strength of Interlayer
Transition Zone (ITZ) that has no significant effect on concrete
resistivity and sorptivity, whereas it is one of the main factors in
compressive strength. On the other hand, chemical compound of
pore solution has a great influence on concrete resistivity and the
results of RCPT test while not affecting the compressive strength
of concrete [32]. And also, compressive strength of concrete is gov-
erned by the total porosity but, the permeability of concrete is re-
lated to the pore connectivity [38,39].
3.8. Correlation between Surface Resistivity (SR), RCPT and salt
ponding tests
In order to analyze the interdependence between concrete
resistivity, rapid chloride penetration and chloride diffusion coeffi-
cients measured in the present investigation, the correlation be-
tween them was also studied.
It can be seen from Fig. 7 that there is significant exponential
relationship between SR and RCPT tests and the correlation coeffi-
cients are basically larger than 0.92, which indicates that the
RCPT ,coulomb
Surface resistivity (kΩcm)
(a) SR and RCPT
diffusion coefficients (10-12 )(m2/s)
A.A. Ramezanianpour, H. Bahrami Jovein / Construction and Building Materials 30 (2012) 470–479
relationship can be used to estimate permeability of concrete from
the measured resistivity values. The similar conclusion can be
found in the literatures [32,40].
In Fig. 7c, the data of chloride penetration test, expressed as the
total charge passed in Coulombs, are plotted against the diffusion
coefficients ((1012) (m2/s)). A linear relationship in the form of
y = ax ± b seems to be the best fit of the data with a coefficient of
correlation R2 = 0.96. It was observed that Rapid Chloride Perme-
ability Test can provide a reasonable indication of ionic diffusivity
in metakaolin concrete. Similar results were also reported by Gru-
ber et al. and Thomas et al. [18,41]. On the other hand, there is
good relationship between SR and salt ponding test (Fig. 7b), there-
fore Surface Resistivity (SR) can be used as an electrical indicator of
chloride diffusion coefficients of MK concretes.
3.9. Scanning Electron Micrographs
SEM micrographs of the cementitious paste with normal consis-
tency of hydraulic cement (ASTM C187), with or without metaka-
olin at 7 and 28 days after hydration are shown in Fig. 8. The pore
structures (tortuosity and constriction or disconnection) are im-
proved with increasing the curing time. This trend deals with the
hydration progress. Fig. 8c and d reveal that the microstructure
of the MK cement paste is more uniform and compact than that
of the ordinary Portland cement paste at 28 days, whereas this dif-
ference is not evident at 7 days (Fig. 8a and b). Fig. 9 shows higher
y = 6454.4e-0.04x y = 51.239e-0.055x
R² = 0.9219 R² = 0.9488
diffusion coefficients
(10-12 )(m2/s)
Surface resistivity (kΩcm)
(b) SR and Salt ponding at 90 days
y = 0.0067x - 1.4937
R² = 0.9605
RCPT ,coulomb
(c) RCPT and Salt ponding at 90 days
Fig. 7. Correlation between Surface Resistivity (SR), RCPT and salt ponding tests.
 A.A. Ramezanianpour, H. Bahrami Jovein / Construction and Building Materials 30 (2012) 470–479 477

(a) 0% MK (OPC) cement paste at 7 days (b) 15% MK cement paste, at 7 days

(c) 0% MK (OPC) cement paste at 28 days (d) 15% MK cement paste, at 28 days

Fig. 8. SEM photographs of cement pastes (magnification: 500).

(a) 0% MK (OPC) cement paste at 7 days (b) 15% MK cement paste, at 7 days

(c) 0% MK (OPC) cement paste at 28 days (d) 15% MK cement paste, at 28 days

Fig. 9. SEM photograph of cement pastes (magnification: 10,000).

478 A.A. Ramezanianpour, H. Bahrami Jovein / Construction and Building Materials 30 (2012) 470–479
Intensity count

y count
Q
Quarrtz
=3557
I=

Intensity
C OH)2
Ca(O
I=2228
Ca(O
C OH))2 Caa(OH
H)2
Quaartz
I=
=88 I=1330
I=48 Caa(OH
H)2
I=37

θ
2θ 2

(a) (a)

Intensity count
Quaartz
Q
Intensity count

I=4412

Ca(OOH)2
Caa(OH
H)2
II=2448 Ca((OH
H)2 I==112
Ca(O
C OH))2 I=300
Quuartzz
I=
=99 =77
I=

2
(b)
2θ
(b) Fig. 11. XRD patterns of OPC pastes with 15% metakaolin: (a) at 7 days; (b) at
28 days.

Fig. 10. XRD patterns of OPC pastes without metakaolin: (a) at 7 days; (b) at
28 days.

magnification views of electron images than that of micrographs in
Fig. 8. Metakaolin reacts with calcium hydroxide due to a
pozzolanic reaction, therefore producing calcium silicate hydrates
and calcium aluminosilicate hydrates [42]. Incorporation of 15%
metakaolin as replacement material, resulted in the reduction of
needle-like crystals of ettringite (see Fig. 9a), and Fibrous calcium
silicate hydrates and calcium aluminosilicate hydrates are formed
(Fig. 9b). In Fig. 9d, calcium hydroxide was no longer discernible.
Larbi showed that Ca(OH)2 can be virtually eliminated from the
cement matrix by using sufficient adapted metakaolin concentra-
tions [10].
3.10. X-ray Diffraction (XRD) test results
For X-ray diffraction studies, selected cement paste samples
cured for 7 and 28 days were used. The XRD patterns for the ordin-
ary Portland cement pastes without metakaolin and with 15%
metakaolin are shown in Figs. 10 and 11, respectively.
It can be seen that in mixtures containing 15% MK, the peaks of
Quartz are significantly larger than that of OPC mixture. On the
other hand, The amount of portlandite (Ca(OH)2) in the metakaolin
cement paste was lower than in the OPC paste. The results are in a
qualitative agreement with the findings in [43] where was re-
ported that the reduction in the calcium hydroxide (CH) diffraction
peaks was obvious for metakaolin-concrete mixtures. The compar-
ison between the diffractograms of cement pastes reveals that the
addition of 15% metakaolin to cement paste leads to the reduction
of intensity count of maximum peak of calcium hydroxide from
248 to 112 at 28 days. This issue is related to transforming calcium
hydroxide (CH) into secondary C–S–H gel [15,44].
4. Conclusion
In this study, the effect of local metakaolin as supplementary
cementing materials and filling materials on the strength and
durability of concretes was investigated.
From the results obtained in this study, the following conclu-
sion can be drawn:
 Concrete incorporating local metakaolin had higher compressive
strength at various ages and up to 180 days when compared
with the OPC concrete. The level of compressive strength devel-
oped with the period of curing and with decreasing the w/b ratio.
For the materials in this study at w/b ratio 0.4 and 0.35, the opti-
mum replacement of metakaolin is 12.5% and 10%, respectively.
 The metakaolin concretes provided lower water penetration
depth. It was found that in sorptivity test, the addition of 10%
of MK gives the best result when compared to other replace-
ment levels irrespective of w/b ratio and testing age.
 According to salt ponding and RCPT tests, results show that
using metakaolin significantly enhances the resistance to chlo-
ride penetration compared with the OPC concrete. This
improvement increases with increasing metakaolin content.
 Results of the electrical resistivity tests show that using MK
drastically enhances the electrical resistivity compared to OPC
concrete at about 2–4 times higher for the 15% MK.
 A.A. Ramezanianpour, H. Bahrami Jovein / Construction and Building Materials 30 (2012) 470–479
 An exponential relationship between chloride permeability and
compressive strength of concrete is exhibited, which indicates
that the resistance to chloride penetration of concrete increases
with increasing compressive strength. There is a significant lin-
ear relationship between Rapid Chloride Permeability Test and
salt ponding test.
 Scanning Electron Micrographs (SEMs) of cement pastes reveal
that the microstructure of the MK cement paste is more uniform
and compact than that of the ordinary Portland cement paste.
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