Cement

Cement is essentially a finely powdered mixture of calcium silicate and

aluminates along with small quantities of gypsum which sets into a hard
stone like mass when treated with water.

Average composition of Portland cement

Cement is obtained by combining a material rich in lime, CaO with other

materials such as clay, which contains silica, SiO2 along with oxides of
aluminium, iron and magnesium.

Lime (CaO) 50-60%

Magnesium oxide (MgO) 2-3%

Silica (SiO2) 20-25%

Ferric oxide (Fe2O3) 1-2 %

Alumina (Al2O3) 5-10%

Sulphur trioxide (SO3) 1-2%

For a good quality cement, the ratio of alumina to silica should lie between
2.5 to 4 while that of lime to that of silica ,alumina and ferric oxide should
be as close to 2 as possible.

Raw material

Raw materials required for the manufacture of cement are 1) limestone

(CaCO3) , 2) clay which provides both silica and Alumina 3) gypsum. Small
amount of magnesia and iron oxide are also required for imparting suitable
colour to cement.
Manufacture of cement
Cement is manufactured by two processes:

(1) Wet process

(2) Dry process

The selection of process for the manufacture of cement is normally dependent upon the
nature of raw material. If the raw material is had then dry process is normally preferred.
Whereas if the raw material is soft, then wet process is preferred. Other than nature of
raw material, the factors like consumption of fuel, availability of raw material, the climate
of the factory place are also considered for the selection of process for manufacture of
cement. Normally in both processes, the basic processes involves following major
operations:- The wet process is preferred when the raw materials i.e.
limestone and clay are soft, climate is humid and fuel is cheap. The dry
process is preferred when the raw materials are hard.

The main raw materials are limestone and clay. Wet process supplies lime
while the dry process is a source of silica , alumina and iron oxides.

1. Selection of raw materials

2. Crushing and grinding
3. Storage of slurry
4. Burning the ground mix in a rotary kiln
5. Cooling of hot clinkers
6. Grinding of clinkers
7. Storage and packing

WET PROCESS MANUFACTURING OF PORTLAND CEMENT

In this process, the materials are finely ground and blended in the required proportion
and stored in big storage tanks, known as silos. Argillaceous materials are thoroughly
mixed with water for washing to remove organic matter, if any and then stored.
Powdered calcareous and washed wet clay are allowed to flow in proportioning tank.
From this, two raw materials led to grinding mills where they are mixed intimately to
form paste called as slurry. This slurry is introduced into a rotary kiln. This process
involves following major operations:-
 MIXING OF RAW MATERIALS

1. Limestone(Calcareous materials) are crushed in crusher and forwarded to tube mills to

convert ground and fine powder, which is further stored in storage tank known as silos,
fine clay or shale is mixed with water for washing to remove organic matter and stored
in.
2. Powdered limestone and washed wet clay are allowed to flow in a channel in the right
proportions and led to grinding mills where they are mixed homogenously to form paste
called slurry.
3. Then slurry is led to connecting basin where the chemical composition is adjusted if
necessary. This slurry is finally stored and fed to rotary kiln.

4. (1) The raw materials are first crushed separately in a suitable

machine. They are then mixed in the required proportion( 3 parts
limestone + 1 part clay) and grounded together finely. This grinding is
done either by the dry process or by the wet process.
5. (2) In the wet process ,the clay is washed with water in a wash mill to
remove flint and other foreign substances. It is then mixed with
requisite quantity of limestone and pulverised in a special mill.The
resulting pasty mass is then throughly homogenised to get raw slurry
containing about 40% water.
6. (3) In the dry process, the raw materials are dried and mixed in
desired proportion. The mixture is then finely powdered and passed
through 300 mesh sieves and homogenised with the help of
compressed air. The homogeneous mass is called raw meal.

 BURNING OF RAW MATERIALS

1. Burning of raw materials is usually done in rotary kiln which is made up of steel tube,
lined inside with refractory bricks and rotating at speed of 0.5 to 2 rotations per minute.
2. The kiln is slightly inclined so that the material fed in at the upper end travels slowly to
the lower and firing and discharging end.
3. The kiln is supported by several tiers which run on rollers and the kiln is driven by an AC
commulator motor.
4. The slurry of raw materials enters from the upper end of the rotary kiln while the burning
fuel like pulverised coal, oil or natural gas and air are induced from the lower end of kiln.
 5. The slurry gradually descends in the kiln into different zones of increasing temperatures.
A typical rotary kiln is shown above.

CHEMICAL REACTIONS IN VARIOUS ZONES OF ROTARY KILN

With reference to the temperature, there are three zones in which various reactions take
place. The zones and reactions are discussed as below.

 Drying Zone

The upper part of kiln is known as Drying zone, where the temperature is about 400
degree Celsius. In this zone, most of the water is driven out of slurry due to hot gases.

 Calcination zone

The central part of kiln is called calcination zone, where the temperature is about 1000
degree Celsius. In this zone, limestone of slurry undergo decomposition to form quick
lime and carbon dioxide which is latter escaped out. The material forms small lumps
called nodules. The following reaction takes place in this zone.

CaCO3→CaO+CO2

 Clinkering zone

This is the lower part of kiln, where the temperature is between 1500-1700 degree
Celsius. Here lime and clay undergo chemical interaction that is fusion, yielding various
products are shown in following reactions:-

2CaO+SiO2→Ca2SiO4(C2S)2
3CaO+SiO2→Ca3SiO5(C3S)3
3CaO+Al2O3→Ca3Al2O6(C3A)3
4CaO+Al2O3+Fe2O3→Ca4Al2Fe2O10(C4AF)4
The aluminates and silicates of calcium then fuse together to form small, hard greyish
stones called clinkers.

 GRINDING

The hot clinkers discharging from the kiln is cooled by various systems such as
planetary coolers, rotary coolers. In the coolers, clinker is cooled with atmospheric air.
The cooled clinker is then tinely pulverised together with 2 to 6% gypsum in long tube
mills. The finer the cement, greater is the strength.

 PACKING

The ground cement is stored in concrete storage silos. Moisture free compressed air is
used to agitate the cement and to keep it free from compaction by its own weight.
Further it is fed to automatic packing machines. Usually, cement is packed in jute bags
each holding 50kg of cement.
(3) The lower part of the kiln, from where coal dust is blown in is the
hottest with the temperature ranging between 1770-1870 K. As the charge
reaches here ,chemical combination takes place between lime, alumina and
silica to form calcium silicate and aluminates.

Setting of cement

Setting time of cement:

When cement is mixed with water, it hydrates and makes cement paste. This paste can be
moulded into any desired shape due to its plasticity. Within this time cement continues with
reacting water and slowly cement starts losing its plasticity and set harden. This complete cycle
is called Setting time of cement.

Initial Setting time of Cement:-

The time to which cement can be moulded in any desired shape without losing it strength is
called Initial setting time of cement

Or
The time at which cement starts hardens and completely loses its plasticity is called Initial setting
time of cement.

Or
The time available for mixing the cement and placing it in position is an Initial setting time of
cement. If delayed further, cement loses its strength.

Final setting time of Cement:-

The time at which cement completely loses its plasticity and became hard is a final setting time
of cement.

Or

The time taken by cement to gain its entire strength is a Final setting time of cement.
Significance of calculating Initial and final setting time of cement:-
Well, After mixing cement with water, it takes time to place the cement paste in position, initial
setting time possess a primary role in strength & it is mandated that cement paste or concrete is
placed in position before it crosses initial setting time. i.e.,30mins. And it shouldn’t be disturbed
until it completes Final setting time i.e., 600mins for Ordinary Portland Cement.

Factors that affect initial and final setting time of cement:-

The fineness of cement, the presence of salts in sand, atmospheric conditions. For example,
cement requires a temperature of 27°c to complete Hydration, during winters the climate is low
which stops the hydration and takes a longer time to set harden.

Calculation of Initial and Final Setting time of Cement:-

As Per IS: 4031 (Part 5) – 1988. Initial and final setting time of cement is calculated using
VICAT apparatus conforming to IS: 5513 – 1976,
Apparatus Required:-
Weighing balance of 1000g with accuracy 1g and Measuring cylinder of 200ml, VICAT
apparatus, VICAT Mould, Glass plate, the plunger of 10mm dia and Hand Trowel, stop watch

The important constituents present in Portland cement are dicalcium silicate

( Ca2SiO4) , tricalcium silicate ( Ca3SiO5) and tricalcium aluminate ( Ca3Al2O6).

When water is added to cement, an exothermic reaction occurs. During this

process , cement reacts with water to form a gelatinous mass which slowly
sets into a hard mass having three dimensional network structure involving -
Si-O-Si- and -Si-O-Al chains.

Tricalcium silicate sets quickly and develops considerable strength within a

few days. Dicalcium silicate sets slowly and develops appreciable strength
after a month or so. Tricalcium aluminate sets instantaneously in presence
of water. The internal strength acquired by cement is primarily due to the
setting of tricalcium aluminate.

1. Dicalcium silicate/tricalcium silicate + Water--->Calcium silicate hydrate + Calcium

hydroxide +heat