375

Physical, mechanical, and durability properties of

gypsum–Portland cement–natural pozzolan blends
Adnan Çolak

Abstract: This paper deals with the effect of gypsum–Portland cement and gypsum–Portland cement–natural pozzolan
ratios on the physical, mechanical, and durability properties of gypsum–Portland cement–natural pozzolan blends. The
results indicate that the setting time of these paste decreases with the increase of gypsum content in the mixture, rang-
ing from 8 to 11 min. The addition of superplasticizer increases the setting time from approximately 11 to 35 min.
This increase is greatly dependent on the plasticizer admixture dosage. These blends show a kinetic of capillary water
absorption very similar to that of the Portland cement binder. Sorptivity is strongly influenced by the type of binder,
binder composition and water–binder ratio. Porosity of blended gypsum binders ranges from 12% to 37%. Their water
absorption is high, reaching 27% in the blends with a greater proportion of gypsum. The gypsum–Portland cement
blends themselves possess good water resistance, which is further enhanced by the addition of natural pozzolan and
superplasticizer. The water-cured blends with the composition of 41:41:18 (gypsum : Portland cement : natural
pozzolan) and 41:41:18S1 (gypsum : Portland cement : natural pozzolan : 1% superplasticizer) offer a compressive
strength of approximately 20 MPa at room temperature. These blends give excellent properties retention after aging in
water at 20°C for 95 days. Their good resistance to water decreases as the gypsum content in the mixture is raised.
However, the strength loss for the gypsum–Portland cement–natural pozzolan blends is generally less than that ob-
served for the gypsum binder.

Key words: gypsum, Portland cement, natural pozzolan, physical, mechanical, durability.

Çolak
Résumé : Cette étude traite des effets des proportions de gypse-ciment Portland et de gypse–ciment Portland–pouzzo-
lane naturelle sur les propriétés physiques, mécaniques et de durabilité des mélanges de gypse–ciment–pouzzolane. Les
résultats indiquent que le temps de prise de ces pâtes diminue avec l’augmentation du contenu en gypse dans le mé-
lange, et cela de 8 à 11 min. L’ajout de superplastifiants augmente le temps de prise d’environ 11 à 35 min. Cette aug-
mentation dépend grandement du dosage du plastifiant dans le mélange. Ces mélanges démontrent une cinétique
d’absorption capillaire d’eau très similaire à celle du liant avec ciment Portland. La sorptivité est grandement in-
fluencée par le type de liant, la composition du liant et le rapport eau–liant. La porosité des liants avec gypse varie de
12% à 37%. Leur capacité d’absorption en eau est grande, atteignant 27% dans les mélanges avec une plus grande pro-
portion en gypse. Les mélanges gypse–ciment Portland eux-mêmes possèdent une bonne capacité pour résister à l’eau,
résistance qui est encore plus accrue par l’addition de pouzzolane naturelle et de superplastifiants. Les mélanges subis-
sant une cure à l’eau et ayant une composition de 41:41:18 (gypse : ciment Portland : pouzzolane naturelle) et
41:41:18:S1 (gypse : ciment Portland : pouzzolane naturelle : 1% de superplastifiants) offrent une résistance en com-
pression d’approximativement 20 MPa à température de la pièce. Ces mélanges donnent d’excellentes propriétés de ré-
tention après avoir vieilli dans l’eau à 20°C pour 95 jours. Leur bonne résistance à l’eau diminue lorsque le contenu de
gypse dans le mélange augmente. Cependant, la perte de résistance pour les mélanges gypse–ciment Portland–pouzzo-
lane naturelle est généralement moindre que celle observée pour le liant avec gypse.

Mots clés : gypse, ciment Portland, pouzzolane naturelle, physique, mécanique, durabilité.

[Traduit par la Rédaction] 382

Introduction of water resistance. For this reason gypsum products are

Gypsum is a fast-setting and rapid strength-developing
material. The major disadvantage of this material is its lack
Received July 18, 2000. Revised manuscript accepted
December 11, 2000. Published on the NRC Research Press
Web site at http://cjce.nrc.ca on May 16, 2001.
A. Çolak. Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of
Engineering, Istanbul University, 34850 Avc2lar, Istanbul,
Turkey (e-mail: adnan@istanbul.edu.tr).
Written discussion of this article is welcomed and will be
received by the Editor until October 31, 2001.
generally used in the building industry as a surface finish on
interior walls and in the production of drywall products for
interior lining and partitioning where structural requirements
are low. In recent years, a considerable amount of work has
been undertaken in an attempt to enhance the water resis-
tance of this material. Polymer modification and impregna-
tion (Çolak 1997) made it possible to produce gypsum
products with improved water resistance. However, the use
of these processes in the production of gypsum products is
limited by their very high cost. Therefore, water resistant
gypsum binders suitable for plaster and masonry work have
been developed by blending gypsum with Portland cement

Can. J. Civ. Eng. 28: 375–382 (2001) DOI: 10.1139/cjce-28-3-375 © 2001 NRC Canada
376
Table 1. Chemical compositions of natural pozzolan and ordinary Portland cement (%).
SiO2 Fe2O3 Al2O3 CaO
Portland cement 21.18 3.75 4.72 61.13
Natural pozzolan 68.4 11.15 2.05 0.35
and pozzolan. In a study by Bentur et al. (1994), resistance
of gypsum-based materials to humid environment was im-
proved by the use of blends containing 75% gypsum, 20%
Portland cement, and 5% silica fume. Similar results have
also been obtained for the gypsum–Portland cement blends
containing fly ash (Yan and You 1998) or granulated blast
furnace slag (Singh and Garg 1996; Singh et al. 1990). The
major drawback of gypsum–Portland cement systems is the
formation of ettringite and thaumasite, which cause expan-
sion and lead to deterioration. Recent studies indicated that
the formation of thaumasite is prevented by the addition of
silica fume (Kovler and Bentur 1996; Alksnis 1988). How-
ever, silica fume is an expensive industrial by-product and
its production is limited. On the other hand, low-cost hous-
ing requires consumption of natural or cheap and low energy
industrial by-products. For these reasons, in this study a new
kind of binder containing gypsum, natural pozzolan, and
Portland cement was developed using a simple grinding pro-
cess. The physical, mechanical, and durability properties of
binder pastes were investigated. The durability performance
of blended gypsum binder was studied by immersing the 28-
day hardened cubes of the binder in water. The effect of im-
mersion in water on the mechanical strengths of the binder
was determined.
Materials and method
In this study, a water-resistant gypsum binder was pro-
duced by blending natural pozzolan and ordinary Portland
cement with calcium sulphate hemihydrate (b-hemihydrate).
The natural pozzolan was uniformly ground in a ball mill to
a fineness with a Blaine specific surface area of 4875 cm2/g.
The chemical compositions of the natural pozzolan and ordi-
nary Portland cement are given in Table 1.
To effectively counteract the loss of workability and rapid
setting caused by high gypsum content, a naphtaline-based
superplasticizer was incorporated into the mixtures. The ad-
dition of superplasticizer allows the same workability to be
obtained with a lower water–binder ratio. The water–binder
ratio was 0.50 by weight, except in the mixtures containing
superplasticizer where the water–binder ratio ranges from
0.40 to 0.45. The consistency of all paste was the same,
namely plastic. Each mix was designated by the mixing pro-
portions of the materials. For example, 41:41:18 identifies a
mix with a composition of 41% gypsum, 41% Portland ce-
ment, and 18% natural pozzolan. Similarly, 41:41:18S1 rep-
resents the same mix containing a superplasticizer at a
dosage of 1% by weight of binder. When the aggregate is
used in conjunction with a superplasticizer, the composition
of the same mix becomes 41:41:18S1A. In the gypsum–
Portland cement blends, the gypsum was replaced by cement
in the proportions 20%, 30%, 40%, and 50% respectively.
The Portland cement–natural pozzolan blends were made
with ordinary Portland cement with 20%, 30%, and 40%
Can. J. Civ. Eng. Vol. 28, 2001
MgO Na2O TiO2 K2O SO3 LOI
2.56 0.21 0.10 0.80 2.08 2.56
0.03 0.28 0.37 2.2 4.58 10.5
natural pozzolan replacements. The mix proportions that
yield the maximum strength in these mixtures were used for
determination of the composition of gypsum–Portland ce-
ment–natural pozzolan blends. With this mix proportioning
method, it is possible to produce gypsum–Portland cement–
natural pozzolan blends to have strengths equal to or ex-
ceeding that of gypsum at ages beyond about 28 days. The
composition of gypsum–Portland cement–natural pozzolan
blends was modified by the addition of gypsum. The effects
of variations in binder composition on the physical, mechan-
ical, and durability performance of the composite were in-
vestigated in this study. The pastes were mixed by hand for
1 min, cast into 4 × 4 × 4 cm moulds for compressive
strength test or 4 × 4 × 16 cm moulds for physical tests and
then compacted by jolting. The samples were stored in a fog
room at 20°C and about 95% relative humidity for 1 hour.
At the end of this period, they were demoulded and cured in
the following regimes:
(a) water curing for 28 days at 20 ± 2°C (A cured);
(b) fog curing for 28 days at 20 ± 2°C and 95% relative hu-
midity (B cured); and
(c) fog curing for 28 days at 20 ± 2°C and 95% relative hu-
midity, followed by further curing in an oven at 40°C to
a constant weight (C cured).
These curing regimes were tested to see the effect of curing
conditions on the mechanical behaviours of gypsum–Port-
land cement–natural pozzolan blends. The C-cured speci-
mens were used for the water absorption, capillary water
absorption, porosity, and durability tests. These specimens
were weighed and then immersed into water to measure their
compressive strength after different periods. After 7 days,
the absorbed volume of the liquid was determined by mea-
suring the increase in weight. The porosity of samples was
determined by the water-replacement method (Archimedes
method), the weight of the dry and wet specimen and its
weight in water were measured (apparent porosity). In the
capillary water absorption test, the specimens were exposed
to a liquid on one of the plane ends by placing them in a
pan. The fluid level in the pan was maintained at a constant
height throughout the experiment. At regular intervals, the
mass of the specimens was measured using a balance. Set-
ting measurements were performed with the usual Vicat nee-
dle method.
Results and discussion
Setting time
The development of the setting process with elapsed time
after mixing was determined for paste specimens having dif-
ferent gypsum–Portland cement and gypsum–Portland ce-
ment–natural pozzolan ratios and admixture dosages. Each
setting time represents an average of three tests on essen-
tially identical samples. Figure 1 represents a typical setting
curve illustrating the influence of the gypsum–Portland ce-
© 2001 NRC Canada
Çolak
Fig. 1. Effect of gypsum–Portland cement and gypsum–Portland cement–natural pozzolan ratios and the admixture dosage on the initial
and final setting times of pastes.
ment and gypsum–Portland cement–natural pozzolan ratios
and admixture dosage on the indentation depth of pastes at
water–binder ratios of 0.40–0.50. The setting time of these
pastes is influenced by the gypsum content in the mixture
and by the presence of superplasticizer. The final setting
time decreases with an increase in gypsum content, ranging
from 8 to 11 min. The addition of 1% superplasticizer by
weight of binder to these pastes increases the final setting
time from approximately 11 to 30 min. The increase in ad-
mixture dosage from 1% to 1.5% causes a further increase in
setting time. The results relating to 20°C setting temperature
seem to form a family of parallel curves regardless of varia-
tions in the gypsum–Portland cement ratio. It can also be
seen that the setting curves for pastes with the super-
plasticizer admixture and of a given gypsum–Portland ce-
ment ratio form approximately a parallel curve to gypsum–
Portland cement systems. These curves show that for differ-
ent gypsum–Portland cement ratios an exponential relation-
ship exists between the indentation depth of gypsum–
Portland cement pastes and the elapsed time after mixing.
Therefore, the standard setting curves can be expressed
mathematically as
[1] d = a ebt
where d is the indentation depth and t is the time elapsed
since mixing.
The parameters a and b are the material constants. These
parameters obtained from regression analysis are given in
Table 2. The a parameter is a function of the composition
and type of paste, the water–binder ratio, and to some extent
the admixture dosage. The b parameter is a function of the
type of paste and the superplasticizer admixture dosage, but
is independent to a great extent of the gypsum–Portland ce-
ment and gypsum–Portland cement–natural pozzolan ratios.
Equation [1] makes it possible to establish a reliable method
for the evaluation of the setting process. For instance, when
377
two pairs of readings regarding the indentation depth, d, and
the elapsed time, t, have been determined at an early stage
while carrying out the standard Vicat test, the times of initial
and final settings can be directly estimated. Times of initial
and final settings of all pastes corresponding to an indenta-
tion depth of 39–38 mm and 1–2 mm, respectively, were de-
termined from the setting curves in Fig. 1. Analyses of
Fig. 1 reveal the following regarding the influence of vari-
ous factors on the time of initial and final settings: An in-
crease in the gypsum content from 50% to 80% reduces the
time of initial set of gypsum–Portland cement paste from 6
to 3 min. For a water–binder ratio of 0.50, the larger per-
centage of reduction occurs with the paste having a higher
gypsum content. Addition of a superplasticizer admixture
prolongs the time of initial setting at 20°C compared to plain
paste; the larger increase is observed for the smaller water–
binder ratio. For example, for an admixture dosage of 1.5%,
the increase in the initial set time at a water binder ratio of
0.40 is 416%, compared to the reference mixture 41:41:18.
Similar conclusions can be advanced from Fig. 1 regarding
the time of final setting and its independence on variations
in the gypsum–Portland cement ratio. However, the addition
of a superplasticizer admixture has a larger effect on the fi-
nal set time than on the initial set time.
The rate of stiffening, defined as the ratio between the fi-
nal and initial setting times, decreases with the decrease of
gypsum content in the mixture and also with the addition of
superplasticizer admixture. Similar conclusions for pastes
with different admixture dosage levels but setting at 20°C
can also be drawn from Fig. 2, which exhibits the straight
line approximation of the setting curves when plotted in the
ln d versus time scale. It can be noticed that the slope of the
setting lines for pastes with a superplasticizer admixture is
greater than that for plain pastes. This means that the addi-
tion of a superplasticizer admixture reduces the rate of stiff-
ening. It can also be seen that the setting curves for pastes
© 2001 NRC Canada
378 Can. J. Civ. Eng. Vol. 28, 2001

Table 2. Setting times and test data parameters of blended gypsum binders obtained from regression analysis.
Water–binder Material constants Correlation Setting times (min)
2
Material type ratio (%) a b coefficient, R Initial Final
50:50:00 50 3453.1 –0.745 0.9955 6 11
80:20:00 50 397.61 –0.7501 0.9948 3 8
50:30:20 50 740.02 –0.6006 0.9968 5 10
41:41:18 50 1256.6 –0.5987 0.9917 6 11
41:41:18S1 45 4 × 1015 –1.1924 0.9967 27 30
41:41:18S1.5 40 3 × 1011 –0.7324 0.9946 31 35

Fig. 2. Plots of ln d versus time for the results given in Fig. 1.

with a superplasticizer admixture and of a given gypsum–
Portland cement–natural pozzolan ratio form approximately
parallel straight lines in the ln d versus time scale, indicating
an equal rate of stiffening independent of the level of the ad-
mixture dosage utilized in this study.
Capillary water absorption
Figure 3 shows the plot of the average capillary absorp-
tion values versus time on samples. The different trend of
capillarity curves for the two classes of binders is very sig-
nificant.
Gypsum binder shows a rapid water absorption in an
amount six times larger than gypsum–Portland cement–natu-
ral pozzolan binders, whereas gypsum–Portland cement–nat-
ural pozzolan binders show a kinetic of capillary water
absorption very similar to that of the Portland cement binder.
These binders are characterized by a particular structure
lacking of interconnections among various capillary channels.
This causes a very slow and different capillary water absorp-
tion. The effect of 1% by mass addition of superplasticizer to
gypsum–Portland cement–natural pozzolan blends can be
seen by comparing mixtures 41:41:18 and 41:41:18S1. The
result shows that superplasticizer has a very beneficial influ-
ence. The reduction of the water–binder ratio from 0.50 to
0.45 reduces the capillary water absorption of this blend by
about 14%. The addition of aggregate leads to a significant
increase in water content of the blends with the composition
of 41:41:18S1A. However, these blends show a moderate in-
crease of water absorption with respect to the reference mix-
ture 41:41:18. The experiments measuring the capillary
absorption of water in binders exhibit conflicting results
concerning the time dependence of the total water uptake. In-
stead of the standard t1/2 behaviour of simple capillary absorp-
tion theories, other ta behaviour is observed. For this reason,
the equation describing the capillary water absorption behav-
iour of gypsum, Portland cement, and gypsum–Portland ce-
ment–natural pozzolan binders is given by
[2] W = Sta
where W is the cumulative weight of water absorbed per unit
cross section, S is the sorptivity coefficient, t is time, and a
is the material constant. This equation evidently represents
the data well and allows the sorptivity S to be extracted as a
material property value.
Table 3 contains some representative values of coefficients
for eq. [2]. Higher values of correlation coefficients (r) indi-
cate that reasonably good fits are obtained for all the mix de-
signs. As can be seen from Table 3, the sorptivity values (S)
derived from eq. [2] lie between 0.07 and 0.10 g/cm2 ta.
These values are strongly influenced by the type of binder,
binder composition, and water–binder ratio. The higher the
water–binder ratio, the more and larger are the capillary

© 2001 NRC Canada

Çolak 379

Fig. 3. Water absorption by capillarity.

Table 3. Regression results for binders.

Water–binder Material Capillarity Correlation
Material type ratio (%) constant, a coefficient (g/cm2 ta) coefficient, r
Gypsum 50 0.455063 0.435969 0.9968
Cement 50 0.479385 0.0874698 0.98177
41:41:18 50 0.466479 0.0814 0.99416
41:41:18S1 45 0.442174 0.080378 0.99274
41:41:18S1A (silica filler) 70 0.4862 0.1003 0.9958
41:41:18S1A (sand) 64 0.5246 0.0728 0.9937

pores. The difference between water–binder ratios of 0.5 and
0.7 is very pronounced, whereas the difference between 0.5
and 0.45 is less significant.
It is apparent that predicting the effect of aggregate on the
capillary water absorption performance of binder–aggregate
combinations from test results poses complex problems in-
volving differences in water content of these mixtures. How-
ever, the data in Table 3 may provide a basis for assessing
the general trends in capillary water absorption behaviour of
these composites. It can be seen that the addition of sand
with relatively large particle size (2–0.25 mm) to gypsum–
Portland cement–natural pozzolan blend decreases the
sorptivity. This mortar was made with a sand to binder ratio
of 3:1 by weight. The water–binder ratio of this mixture was
increased from 45% to 64% to maintain constant work-
ability. Replacement of sand with extremely finely divided
silica filler (under 0.25 mm) causes the sorptivity to in-
crease. The filler to binder ratio of this mixture is 1:1 by
weight. This high percentage addition of quartz filler affects
the water requirement for flow of the fresh mixture. In this
mix, the higher amount of water (70%) was required to
bring the consistency to the required level. These results in-
dicate that the variation of water requirement for a given
consistency of gypsum–Portland cement–natural pozzolan
blends containing aggregate and the physical properties of
aggregate play a strong role in controlling the uptake of wa-
ter of these mortars.
Water absorption
Table 4 shows the 7-day water absorption of binders. In
general, the water absorption of gypsum–Portland cement–
natural pozzolan blends is somewhat higher than those of
gypsum–Portland cement blends. However, a different trend
of water absorption is observed for the gypsum–Portland ce-
ment–natural pozzolan blend with a composition of 50:30:20.
The water absorption of this blend is considerably lower

© 2001 NRC Canada

380 Can. J. Civ. Eng. Vol. 28, 2001

Table 4. Physical and mechanical properties of binders.

Compressive strength (MPa)
Gypsum:cement: Density Porosity Water absorption
pozzolan (g/cm3) (%) (%) Dry Wet
100:0:0 1.313 34 25.7 12.54 5.857
50:50:0 1.53 23.95 16 13.37 12.00
60:40:0 1.54 21 17 12.22 10.88
70:30:0 1.54 21.33 16 12.23 10.95
80:20:0 1.45 26.25 20 13.05 10.31
0:100:0 1.678 9 7 31.00 22.22
0:60:40 1.503 18 10 21.27 17.77
0:70:30 1.56 15.09 10 23.43 19.63
0:80:20 1.567 15.6 9 18.15 18.82
41:41:18 1.42 30 20 13.05 17.51
41:41:18S1 1.44 23 15 14.51 15.59
44:44:11 1.42 27.5 19 11.14 11.14
50:30:20 1.55 12 8 14.78 14.78
50:40:10 1.3425 36.8 27 12.73 17.66
62.5:30:7.5 1.348 33 25 19.9 12.48
75:20:5 1.3496 32.3 24 20.53 14.10

be filled by hydration products. It appears reasonable to as-

Table 5. Effect of curing conditions on the compressive strength
of gypsum–Portland cement–natural pozzolan blends at 28 days.
Cure type
Type of blend A B C
41:41:18 20.12 17.51 13.05
41:41:18S1 21.05 15.59 14.51
than that of the gypsum–Portland cement blends and is al-
most the same as that of the Portland cement–natural
pozzolan blends. The reason for this may be due to a differ-
ence in the microstructures of the blends. Mixes 41:41:18,
44:44:11, 50:40:10, 62.5:30:7.5, and 75:20:5 all have a wa-
ter–binder ratio of 0.50 and the water absorption after 7 days
for these mixes are 20%, 19%, 27%, 25%, and 24% respec-
tively, whereas the mix 41:41:18S1 gives water absorption
values lower than 16%. A decrease in the water absorption
is found to be due to a reduction in porosity.
Porosity
Pastes were cured for periods of up to 28 days. After cur-
ing, the apparent porosity of samples was determined. As
seen in Table 4, the porosity of gypsum is found to be about
34%, whereas that of gypsum–Portland cement blends ranges
from 21% to 26%. In gypsum–Portland cement blends, the
porosity of the hydrated blend is somewhat different because
of the influence of gypsum on the Portland cement paste.
Gypsum affects the progress of hydration of Portland cement
and thus the porosity within the hydrated Portland cement
paste. On the other hand, the considerably lower porosities
for the Portland cement pastes with natural pozzolan are de-
termined. It can be concluded that in the gypsum–Portland
cement blends, the extent of filling of the pore space with
hydration products is lower than that of the Portland ce-
ment–natural pozzolan blends. This is at least partly because
the porosity of the natural pozzolan provides more space to
sume that the natural pozzolan particles containing large
pores serve as nucleation sites for the growth of C–S–H and
other hydrates. The addition of natural pozzolan to gypsum–
Portland cement blends increases the porosity by about 40%.
Since the water–binder ratio is the same for the gypsum–
Portland cement mixture and that containing natural
pozzolan, the increase in the porosity could be ascribed to a
decrease in the degree of hydration and, therefore, to a
higher porosity or a change in the paste microstructure. It is
apparent that although the porosity produced in gypsum–
Portland cement–natural pozzolan blends is very similar to
those in gypsum paste, there are also some significant differ-
ences. The paste with a composition of 50:30:20 has a po-
rosity lower than that of the gypsum paste. Moreover, the
porosity of gypsum–Portland cement–natural pozzolan blends
is remarkably decreased by the addition of superplasticizer.
The reason for the relatively low level of porosity is the re-
duction in water–binder ratio.
Curing
Table 5 gives the variation of strength with curing condi-
tion for each type of blends. It is evident that the curing con-
ditions influence the strength development significantly. The
gypsum–Portland cement–natural pozzolan blends show sig-
nificantly higher strength at 28 days for the water-cured con-
dition. The attainment of high strength in water-cured blends
may be attributed to the hydration of the gypsum–Portland
cement–natural pozzolan binder to a greater extent than oc-
curs in the other two regimes. The addition of superplasticizer
does not strongly affect the strength of these blends. The
blends cured in the other two regimes suffer considerable
loss of strength at 28 days when compared to the water
cured. However, the loss of strength is more pronounced in
the C-cured specimens. In this curing condition, there is no
significant difference in the loss of strength between plain
and superplasticized blends. It is evident from these results
that the dry cure after the fog cure causes mechanical dam-

© 2001 NRC Canada

Çolak 381

Table 6. Influence of water immersion at 20°C on the strength of binders.

Time (h)
Gypsum:cement:
pozzolan 0 24 240 432 480 720 744 1464 2280
100:0:0 12.54 5.888 4.265 5.65
50:50:0 13.37 11.3 12.29 13.21
60:40:0 12.22 10.63 10.185 11.28
70:30:0 12.23 9.89 8.99 9.8
80:20:0 13.05 9.056 9.14 10.1
0:100:0 31.00 22.22 16.36 23.94 16.87
0:60:40 21.27 19.93 21.52 18.78
0:70:30 23.43 19.29 28.32 30.08
0:80:20 18.15 20.37 17.46 22.92
41:41:18 13.05 16.23 21.34 19.75 21.34
41:41:18S1 14.51 16.65 22.61 20.70 24.50
44:44:11 11.14 14.37 16.08 18.92
50:30:20 14.78 14.45 14.19 19.13
50:40:10 12.73 14.06 15.597 15.47
62.5:30:7.5 19.9 12.286 10.5 15.92
75:20:5 20.53 11.96 10.63 9.55

age due to the crystallization of salts in the pores of the
paste. The effect of B curing on the 28-day strength of the
mixes with superplasticizers is extremely different from that
of the other two regimes. In this case, plain blend develops
somewhat higher strength than the superplasticized blend.
Effect of moisture on mechanical properties
To assess the influence of moisture on the mechanical in-
tegrity of the composites, B- and C-cured specimens were
used. The wet compressive strength was determined on the
B-cured specimens that always contain a certain amount of
water. The oven-dry composites (C-cured specimens) that
are kept in a desiccator where moisture content is main-
tained at a relative constant level were tested for evaluating
the dry compressive strength. The results are given in Ta-
ble 4. Each test value in this table represents the average of
three experiments. As can be seen in Table 4, the 28-day
compressive strength of Portland cement–natural pozzolan
blends goes through a maximum at 30% natural pozzolan
content. The compressive strengths of the Portland cement
and Portland cement–natural pozzolan binders are affected
by the change in moisture content. The variation in strength
due to moisture is a function of binder composition. For the
Portland cement binder, there is a considerable decrease in
compression strength at high moisture content, whereas
Portland cement–natural pozzolan blends are somewhat
more resistant to moisture degradation than Portland cement
binder. Even in the case of Portland cement with 20% natu-
ral pozzolan replacement, the increase in strength is ob-
served. These results indicate that natural pozzolan reduces
the moisture sensitivity of Portland cement binder.
Portland cement content affects the compressive strength
of the gypsum–Portland cement blends. At all moisture con-
ditions, compressive strengths of these blends continue to in-
crease with increasing Portland cement content. Maximum
compressive strengths for different moisture conditions
(13.37 MPa for oven-dry condition and 12 MPa for wet con-
dition) are reached at 50% Portland cement content. The ef-
fect of natural pozzolan on the 28-day compressive strength
of gypsum–Portland cement–natural pozzolan blends is given
in Table 4. Pozzolan is observed to increase the compressive
strength of the blends. The highest increases in compressive
strength in the presence of pozzolan are obtained in the dry
condition. However, no significant difference is observed
between the compressive strength of oven-dried and wet
composites containing gypsum up to 50%. Moreover, the
blends with the composition of 41:41:18, 41:41:18S1, and
50:40:10 exhibit a relatively high wet–dry strength ratios.
These results show that wetting has no detrimental effect on
the compressive strength of gypsum–Portland cement–natu-
ral pozzolan blends described above. However, increasing
the gypsum content from 50% to 62.5% negatively influences
the mechanical behaviour of gypsum–Portland cement–
natural pozzolan blends under wet conditions.
Durability
The single most important factor likely to influence the
strength of gypsum binders is water. The presence of atmo-
spheric moisture even at low relative humidity is sufficient
to bring about a dramatic reduction in strength of gypsum
binders. Table 6 gives the compressive strength data for the
blended binders as a function of gypsum–Portland cement,
Portland cement–natural pozzolan, and gypsum–Portland ce-
ment–natural pozzolan ratios. The blends consisting of 50%
Portland cement and 50% gypsum by weight show no de-
crease in compressive strength after 1 month of immersion
in water, with respect to the initial values. However, the me-
chanical properties of these binders are influenced by the
amount of gypsum in the mixture. The high proportioning of
gypsum in the blend causes a rise in the sensitivity to water.
The strength of gypsum–Portland cement systems modified
with pozzolan can be regarded as impressive, with strength
values in excess of 20 MPa at room temperature. This is a
direct effect of the improvements of strength brought about
by pozzolan addition. The ability of these blends to retain
significant strength at moist environment up to 95 days is

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apparent. Although it is clear that significantly higher
strengths can be obtained at dry environment for the gypsum–
Portland cement–natural pozzolan systems, gypsum content in
excess of 50% causes a precipitous strength decline at moist
environment. With these systems, durability is related to the
gypsum content in the mixture. The 41:41:18 system clearly
exhibiting substantially less gypsum content than the other
systems is relatively unaffected by moist environment. It of-
fers significant strength advantages at a gypsum content of
41%. The addition of superplasticizer does not affect re-
markably the durability performance of this blend.
The blend with a composition of 30% natural pozzolan
and 70% Portland cement by weight yields good strength
with this highly reactive natural pozzolan. However, in Port-
land cement paste made with a greater percentage of such a
natural pozzolan, loss of strength occurs at advanced stages
of reaction. This is probably due to failure in obtaining reac-
tion products of the desired range of compositions at com-
plete reaction. The data in Table 6 indicate that the strengths
of gypsum–Portland cement–natural pozzolan blends are
variable. These variations may result mainly from changes in
the fundamental chemical or physical properties of each of
the ingredients entering into the mixture or from differences
in the processes of mixing, placing, and compacting, which
make the production of homogeneous material difficult.
Conclusions
From this study, the following conclusions can be drawn
about the properties of blended gypsum binders.
1. The gypsum–Portland cement and gypsum–Portland ce-
ment–natural pozzolan ratios within the levels tested in
this study do not seem to significantly influence the set-
ting time. However, the addition of superplasticizer to
these pastes increases the setting time.
2. The rate of stiffening decreases with the decrease of
gypsum content in the mixture and also with the addi-
tion of superplasticizer admixture.
3. gypsum–Portland cement–natural pozzolan blends show
a kinetic of capillary water absorption very similar to
that of the Portland cement binder.
Can. J. Civ. Eng. Vol. 28, 2001
4. In general, the water absorption of gypsum–Portland ce-
ment–natural pozzolan blends is somewhat higher than
those of gypsum–Portland cement blends.
5. The addition of natural pozzolan to gypsum–Portland
cement blends increases the porosity.
6. Water curing is essential for the strength development of
the gypsum–Portland cement–natural pozzolan blends.
The dry cure after the fog cure causes a marked reduc-
tion in the strength of these blends.
7. The 41:41:18, 41:41:18S1, and 50:40:10 systems exhibit
a relatively high wet–dry strength ratios. However, in-
creasing the gypsum content from 50% to 62.5% nega-
tively influences the mechanical and durability
behaviour of gypsum–Portland cement–natural pozzolan
blends under wet conditions.
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© 2001 NRC Canada