Construction and Building Materials 41 (2013) 751–765

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Construction and Building Materials

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Review

Alkali-activated metakaolin: A short guide for civil Engineer – An overview

Alaa M. Rashad ⇑
Building Materials Research and Quality Control Institute, Housing & Building National Research Center, HBRC, Cairo, Egypt

h i g h l i g h t s g r a p h i c a l a b s t r a c t

" AAMK system has better acid,

seawater attack, sodium sulfate
resistance than PC.
" AAMK system has very good heat
resistant up to 1200–1400 °C.
" Polypropylene and short fibers
increase AAMK flexural, strength and Flexural strength of MK-based geopolymer at different NaOH
impact energy. concentrations [32]

" Replacing 10% MK with FA or lime or

20% with calcite gave higher
strength.
" MK and blended MK with steel slag
can be used as repair materials.

Effect of slag replacement percentages on compressive strength [90]

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

Article history: The development of new binders, as an alternative to Portland cement (PC), by alkaline activation, is a
Received 10 October 2012 current researchers interest. Alkali-activated metakaolin (AAMK), belongs to prospective materials in
Received in revised form 24 November 2012 the field of Civil Engineering. This paper presents a comprehensive overview of the previous works car-
Accepted 19 December 2012
ried out on the use of MK in alkali activation.
Available online 4 February 2013
Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords:
Metakaolin alkali activation
Durability
Blended alkali-activated metakaolin

Contents

1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 752
2. Hydration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 752
3. Nature, concentration of activator, SiO2/Al2O3 ratio and solid/liquid ratio. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 753
3.1. Nature and concentration of activator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 753
3.2. SiO2/Al2O3 ratio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 754
3.3. Solid/liquid ratio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 754
4. Effect of curing condition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 755
5. Effect of ultrasound . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 755
6. Effect of MK fineness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 755
7. Resistance of aggressive solutions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 755

⇑ Mobile: +20 1228527302; fax: +20 233351564, 233367179.

E-mail address: alaarashad@yahoo.com

0950-0618/$ - see front matter Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2012.12.030
752 A.M. Rashad / Construction and Building Materials 41 (2013) 751–765

8. Resistance of elevated temperature and fire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 756

9. Fibers effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 757
10. MK blended with FA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 758
11. MK blended with slag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 758
12. MK blended with calcium hydroxide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 760
13. MK blended with other materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 760
14. Special applications of MK based geopolymer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 762
15. Conclusions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 763
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 763

1. Introduction on calorimetric results, they also reported that the induction peri-
od was lengthened as the NaOH solution concentration and liquid
Concrete is one of most extensively used construction materials percentage increased. The induction period was shortened as the
in the world. Each year, the concrete industry produces approxi- temperature increased. The total heat increased as the liquid per-
mately 12 billion tonnes of concrete and uses about 1.6 billion ton- centage and the NaOH concentration increased.
nes of PC worldwide [1]. Indeed, with the manufacture of 1 tonne Granizo et al. [14] reported that the reaction product of MK acti-
of cement approximately 0.94 tonnes of CO2 are launched into vation with sodium silicate + NaOH solutions is an amorphous hy-
the atmosphere [2]. The cement industry accounts for 5–8% of drated sodium aluminosilicate. Some authors [9,15] have found the
worldwide CO2 emission [3]. Not only CO2 releases from cement product of MK activation with NaOH solutions is N–A–S–H gel with
manufacture but also SO3 and NOx which can cause the greenhouse good mechanical properties. Granizo et al. [16] studied different
effect and acid rain [4,5]. These cause serious environmental im- concentrations of NaOH (from 12 to 18 M) to activate two different
pact. To reduce the environmental impact of cement industries, types of MK with variable solution/solid ratios. They concluded
MK and other cementitious materials are used to replace part of that the material obtained after MK alkaline activation is mainly
cement or as a source of new cementless materials. MK reacts an amorphous sodium aluminosilicate. The total heat released in-
chemically with hydrating cement to form modified paste micro- creased as Na2O concentration increased as well as the fineness
structure. In addition, to its positive environmental impact, MK im- of MK increased. The insoluble residues (IR) of the samples made
proves concrete mechanical properties and durability. The term of from coarse MK are higher than those of fine MK. IR decreased
MK pozzolan refers to a silecious material which, in the presence of exponentially as Na2O in solution increased. So, reaction degree in-
water, will react chemically with calcium hydroxide to form creased as NaOH concentration increased.
cementitious compounds. On the same line, to reduce the environ- Davidovits [17] described the alkali activation of MK using a
mental impact resulting from cement industries, AAMK (future polymerization model similar to that proposed to describe the for-
cement) is recently used. mation of zeolites [18] or zeolite precursors from alkali alumunos-
Investigations in the field of alkali activation had an exponential ilicate solutions. Madani et al. [12] reported that the MK activation
increased after the research results of the French author Davidovits involved a dissolution step followed by a step of polycondensation
[6] that developed and patented binders obtained from alkali acti- that could be assigned to those described for zeolites which form
vation of MK. Alkali activation of MK and other materials can be when kaolinites or metakaolinites are attacked by NaOH solution.
classified this new kind of binders as the third generation cement Rahier et al. [19] reported that when the activator is a NaOH and
after lime and PC. The alkali activation of MK is a way to reduce waterglass mixture, the material formed is amorphous and cemen-
carbon dioxide lunched into the atmosphere. The alkali activation titious, but its structure and composition are different from the
of MK yields strong [7–10] and durable cementitious materials that product formed if NaOH is used alone. The amorphous N–A–S–H
harden at temperatures under 100 °C [7,9,10]. The composition, gel had thus similar chemical composition as natural zeolitic mate-
structure and properties of the reaction product obtained in alkali rials but without the extensive crystalline zeolitic structure [20].
activation of MK are directly impacted by the specific surface and Zhang et al. [21] studied the effect of the NaOH content and the
composition of the initial kaolin and the activator type and its con- presence of sodium silicate activators on the formation of crystal-
centration. However, in this investigation, the author conducted a line phases from MK-based geopolymers. They reported that geo-
literature review focused on AAMK. Hydration, natural of activa- polymers activated with NaOH alone with Si/Na ratios of 4/4 or
tors, curing condition, resistance of aggressive solutions and fire less formed the crystalline zeolite Na–A (Na96Al96Si96O384.216H2-
resistance of AAMK were reviewed. In addition, a review on O), but at ratios > 4/4 nanosized crystals of another zeolite (Na6[-
blended MK with other materials, in alkali activation system was A1SiO4]6.4H2O) were formed. The Si/Na ratio of 4/4 produced a
presented. product of greatest crystallinity. The addition of sodium silicate
in addition to NaOH significantly reduced crystallite formation.
2. Hydration However, Li et al. [22] reported that it could be confidently sta-
ted regarding the nanostructure of N–A–S–H gel is: the N–A–S–H
The dissolution–reprecipitation reactions occurring during the gel structure was that of a charge-balance aluminosilicate, which
leaching of MK with alkaline hydroxide or silicate solutions were was influenced by the Si/Al ratio and the alkali cations presented.
relatively well described in terms of the conditions under which In the structure, Al trended to be surrounded by four Si neighbors
certain zeolitic products will form [11,12]. Granizo and Blanco in a 4-coodinated geopolymer framework. The charge-balanced al-
[13] studied the reaction of MK with NaOH solutions. They re- kali metal would not associate the Al atom, but rather would asso-
ported that the alkaline activation of MK to yield a cementitious ciate with one or more negatively-charged oxygen atoms
material was an exothermic process involving three steps: an ini- surrounding the aluminum. As in the case for CSH gel, N–A–S–H
tial and very fast process of dissolution, followed by an induction gels were difficult to characterize with XRD due to their amor-
period in which the heat exchanged rate decreased and finally an phous or nanocrystalline nature. Valuable information about gel
exothermic step of reaction in which cementitious materials pre- nanostructure and composition could be finished using techniques
cipitated and after which the heat exchanged rate decreased. Based of FTIR, SEM or TEM [23].
 A.M. Rashad / Construction and Building Materials 41 (2013) 751–765
Yunsheng et al. [24] studied the hydration process of MK geo-
polymer activated with potassium silicate solution, KOH. They
reported that at the early stage of hydration the MK particles
pack loosely together resulting in the existence of many large
voids. As hydration progressed, sponge like gel products were
gradually produced and precipitated on the surface of these par-
ticles and extended outwards. As a result, these voids were fully
filled. At the later stage, the MK particles were covered by a
thick gel layer, and the microstructure of geopolymeric paste be-
came very compacted. Sum et al. [25] and Zhang et al. [26] stud-
ied MK geopolymer activated with potassium solution. They
concluded that at early stage, the MK particles pack loosely to-
gether resulting in the existence of many large voids. As hydra-
tion preceded, gel products gradually precipitated on the surface
of these particles and extended outsides; as a result, these voids
were fully filled. At later stage, the MK particles were wrapped
by a thick gel layer, and the microstructure of geopolymer paste
became very denser.
Alonso and Palomo [27] believed that when MK activation was
carried out with highly concentration of alkaline solutions (NaOH)
in the presence of calcium hydroxide, the main reaction product
was a sodium aluminosilicate similar to that obtained when MK
was activated in the absence of calcium hydroxide and the forma-
tion of CSH gel as product was observed as a secondary reaction
product. This system was influenced by parameters such as curing
temperature, alkali concentration, initial solids content, etc. When
the activator concentration increased, a delay in polymer forma-
tion was produced, whereas temperature accelerated its formation.
The solids ratio did not influence the rate of aluminosilicate forma-
tion. In another study, Alonso and Palomo [28] did the calorimetric
study of alkaline activation of calcium hydroxide–MK solid mix-
tures. A series of MK and calcium hydroxide mixtures were acti-
vated in 1:1 proportion, with different NaOH concentrations (5,
10, 12, 15 and 18 M) at 45 °C during 24 h. The activation steps
and reaction products were examined through isothermal conduc-
tion calorimetry and the reaction products characterizations were
carried out by means of chemical analysis and instrumental tech-
niques (XRD, FTIR and nuclear magnetic resonance NMR). Based
on the investigation, they concluded that: (a) when NaOH concen-
tration was 5 M or lower in the MK activation in calcium hydroxide
presence, the main product formed was CSH gel; (b) when the acti-
vation was 10 M or higher the main reaction product was the alka-
line aluminosilicate with polymeric character similar to the one
obtained in the MK activation with the same activator but in cal-
cium hydroxide absence. As secondary reaction product (between
20% and 30%), CSH gel was obtained; (c) a threshold OH concen-
tration existed above which, the alkaline polymer was mainly
formed, and beneath which, the CSH gel was the main reaction
product; (d) a high hydroxyl group concentration impeded the cal-
cium hydroxide dissolution, Ca2+ concentration was small and the
dissolved silicates were fixed as sodium aluminosilicate, when
OH was not so high, Ca2+ in solution increased and it precipitated
as hydrated calcium silicate.
Table 1
Hydration product versus activator type.
Author Activator
Granizo et al. [14] Sodium silicate + NaOH
Granizo et al. [9] NaOH
Granizo et al. [15] NaOH
Madani et al. [12] NaOH
Zhang et al. [21] NaOH
Alonso and Palomo [27] NaOH
Alonso and Palomo [28] NaOH
Granizo et al. [15] NaOH
753
Granizo et al. [15] investigated MK and mixtures of (MK + cal-
cium hydroxide) with a 1:1 ratio activated with 5 and 12 M NaOH
solutions cured at 45 °C. They concluded that CSH gel was pro-
duced readily with a low NaOH concentration in the presence of
calcium hydroxide. The main product formed both with and with-
out calcium hydroxide was the same network structure, with the
general approximate formula: Si2Al2Na2H4O10. The rate of alkali
material formation was very low in the presence of calcium
hydroxide. The reaction rate of alkali material formation was very
low in the presence of calcium hydroxide. Table 1 summarizes the
hydration product versus activator type.
3. Nature, concentration of activator, SiO2/Al2O3 ratio and solid/
liquid ratio
3.1. Nature and concentration of activator
Alkali hydroxides and waterglass or a combination of them have
been studied for AAMK cements. Waterglass-activated cements of-
ten give much higher strength than alkali hydroxide-activated ce-
ments. However, high curing temperature and high concentration
of alkalis are also required to achieve high strength from the acti-
vation of MK [29–31]. Wang et al. [32] studied MK geopolymer
activated with NaOH. They reported that mechanical properties
of the geopolymers were greatly dependent on the concentration
of NaOH solution. Flexural strength (Fig. 1), compressive strength
and apparent density of the geopolymer increased along with
increasing of NaOH concentration within 4–14 mol/l. This attrib-
uted to the enhanced dissolution of the metakaolinite particulates
and hence the speeded condensation of the monomer in the pres-
ence of NaOH with higher concentration.
Granizo et al. [14] supported the idea that the alkali activation
of MK using solution containing sodium silicate and NaOH results
in the production of materials exhibiting higher mechanical
strength compared to the activation with only NaOH. Moreover,
the flexural strength increased when the concentration of Na in-
creased. Pinto [33] studied AAMK and found that mechanical
strength increased when using a 12 M concentration of NaOH acti-
vator and calcium hydroxide percentage from 0% to 20%. However,
for a concentration of 15 M it was noticed that the calcium hydrox-
ide percentage did not influence strength. Also the alkali activation
of MK was studied and reported that the used of an alkaline activa-
tor with waterglass caused an increase in mechanical strength,
from 30 to 60 MPa in compression and from 5 to 7 MPa in flexural
strength. Duxson et al. [34] reported that the concentration of sol-
uble silicon affected the distribution of porosity in MK-based geo-
polymers, i.e. low concentrations result in the formation of dense
gel, while high concentrations result in reduced gel skeletal densi-
ties. They also reported that the compressive strength of MK based
geopolymers increased linearly by approximately 400% from Si/
Al = 1.15 to Si/Al = 1.9, where it obtained its maximum value,
before decreasing again at the highest Si/Al ratio of 2.15. Higher
Hydration product Notes
Hydrated sodium aluminosilicate
N–A–S–H gel
N–A–S–H gel
Zeolite
Zeolite
Sodium aluminosilicate
Alkaline aluminosilicate
CSH MK + lime
754 A.M. Rashad / Construction and Building Materials 41 (2013) 751–765
Fig. 1. Flexural strength of MK-based geopolymer at different NaOH concentrations
[32].
strength was recorded when the ratios of SiO2/Al2O3 and Na2/Al2O3
were 3.0–3.8 and about 1, respectively.
3.2. SiO2/Al2O3 ratio
Pinto [33] studied AAMK based mixtures and found that some
mixtures with calcium hydroxide and an atomic ratio of SiO2/
Al2O3 = 5.1 led to higher compressive strength performance. Other
authors [35] working with high SiO2/Al2O3 molar ratio MK. They
found out that hydration products developed during geopolymer-
ization have lower SiO2/Al2O3 molar ratio than in the original pre-
cursor material. De Silva et al. [36] studied the early-stage reaction
kinetics of MK/sodium silicate/NaOH geopolymer system. The set-
ting time and early strength development characteristics of mix-
tures containing varying SiO2/Al2O3 ratios, cures at 40 °C for up
to 72 h were studied. They concluded that (a) increasing SiO3/
Al2O3 ratio led to longer setting times; (b) increasing SiO3/Al2O3
molar ratios up to 3.4–3.8 was responsible for the high-strength
gained observed at later stages; (c) increasing in Al led to lower
strengths with increasing Na–Al–Si grained rather than amorphous
Na–Al–Si containing geopolymers. Rowles and O’Connor [37] stud-
ied the alkali-activation of MK, noticing that the mechanical
strength was higher for a molar ratio Si/Al/Na of 2.5:1:1.3, Provis
and van Deventer [38] used potassium, sodium and mixed (1:1) so-
dium/potassium silicate solutions that prepared by dissolving
amorphous silica in KOH solution with H2O/M2O = 11 (M = K and/
or Na), giving solutions with composition SiO2/M2O = 0.0–2.0.
These solutions were then mixed with MK. They investigated the
effects of sample SiO2/Al2O3 ratio, Na/(Na + K) ratio and reaction
temperature. The results obtained indicated that the initial gel
phase formed during geopolymerisation was later transformed to
a second, more-ordered gel phase, and provided detailed informa-
tion of the first gel phase during the first 3 h of reaction. Increasing
the SiO2/Al2O3 ratio generally decreased the initial rate reaction.
Zhang et al. [39] studied the effect of SiO2/Al2O3, K2O/Al2O3 and
H2O/K2O on the compressive strength of K-PSS geopolymer. They
prepared K-PSS geopolymer with different SiO2/Al2O3, K2O/Al2O3
and H2O/K2O ratios by activation the mixture of MK, silica fume
(SF) and NaAlO2 with potassium silicate (KOH) solution. The spec-
imens were cured at temperature of 20 °C and 95% RH. They con-
cluded that the SiO2/Al2O3 had a significant impact on the
compressive strength. The highest compressive strength was ob-
tained when SiO2/Al2O3 = 4.5, K2O/Al2O3 = 0.8 and H2O/K2O = 5.0.
Yunsheng et al. [40] studied the influence of three key parameters
of SiO2/Al2O3, M2O/Al2O3 and H2O/M2O on the synthesis of MK-
based geopolymer cement. MK was activated with NaOH and so-
dium silicate solution with the mole ratio of SiO2/Na2O of 3.2
and a solid content of 37%. The silicon content was increased by
the addition of SF with 95% or higher SiO2 content to compensate
for the shortage of silicon in MK. The mole ratios were varied:
5.5 6 SiO2/Al2O3 6 6.5, 0.8 6 Na2O/Al2O3 6 1.2, 7.0 6 H2O/Na2-
O 6 10. The levels for each of the factors were set at three grades
(low, intermediate and high). They concluded that Na2O/Al2O3
and H2O/Na2O had significant impact on the compressive strength.
The highest compressive strength (34.9 MPa) was achieved at SiO2/
Al2O3 = 5.5, Na2O/Al2O3 = 1.0 and H2O/Na2O = 7.0.
Temuujin et al. [41] studied the effect of Si:Al variation on the
adhesion strength of MK geopolymers to stainless and mild steels.
Sodium silicate was employed to activate MK. They used different
Si:Al ratios of 1. 2 and 2.5 with water/binder (w/b) ratios of 0.61,
0.45 and 0.74, respectively, at fixed Na:Al ratio of 1. They reported
that adhesion strength > 3.5 MPa to stainless and mild steels for
geopolymer with Si:Al = 2.5 and Na:Al = 1 while for compositions
with Si:Al = 1 and 2 the adhesion to the metal substrates was very
weak. Aquino et al. [42] studied some of mechanical properties of
geopolymers synthesized by alkali (NaOH or KOH) activation MK
and SiO2 mixture. Samples with K/Al or Na/Al atomic ratios equal
to 1, Si/Al atomic ratios in the 1.25–2.5 range and H2O/Al2O3 molar
ratios of 11 or 12 were cured at 80 °C for 24 and 48 h. The results
indicated that the density of the geopolymers increased with
increasing Si/Al ratios for NaOH and KOH activators. Increasing
density of the geopolymers with increasing Si/Al ratios had signif-
icant effect on increasing Young’s modulus, Vickers hardness, frac-
ture toughness and strengths only at lower Si/Al ratios (below Si/
Al = 1.5–2). At higher Si/Al ratios, all mechanical properties de-
creased regardless of increasing density of the geopolymers. The
samples cured for 48 h gave higher strength than those cured for
24 h.
3.3. Solid/liquid ratio
Strength decreases as the water/solid ratio increases. This trend
is analogous to water/cement ratio in the compressive strength in
PC system. Mostowicz and Berak [43] mentioned the tendency of
zeolitic synthesis mixtures to form larger crystals when the total
amount of water in the reaction mixture is increased. Yao et al.
[44] reported that high solid/liquid (S/L) ratios resulted in low vis-
cosity of slurry and the lower S/L ratios increased the geopolymer-
ization period. On the other hand, Zuhua et al. [45] stated that low
S/L ratios could accelerate the dissolution of source materials.
Zhang et al. [46] activated MK/granulated ground blast-furnace
slag (donated as slag)-based geopolymers with alkaline activator.
Different L/S ratios were employed. Permeability was measured
Fig. 2. Effect of L/S ratio on permeability of air curing geopolymer [46].
 A.M. Rashad / Construction and Building Materials 41 (2013) 751–765
Fig. 3. Compressive strength of MK-based geopolymers with various S/L ratios [49].
by using Darcy method. They reported that the permeability coef-
ficient (k) increased along with increasing L/S ratio (Fig. 2). The
more connective pores exist in the geopolymer matrix prepared
at higher L/S ratio. When the L/S ratio was 0.6, k was
1.0  10 6 lm2, almost twice that of 0.55.
Kong et al. [47] reported that S/L ratio of 0.8 gave nearly opti-
mum strength and provided good workability. Higher S/L ratio
than 0.8 had very low workability and deteriorated the properties
of the paste produced. Liew et al. [48] activated MK pastes with al-
kali activation solution at S/L ratios, by mass, ranging between 0.40
and 1.20. The alkali activation solution was Na2SiO3/NaOH with
different ratios. The results of bulk density and compressive
strength showed that the S/L of 0.8 gave the highest values at Na2-
SiO3/NaOH ratio of 0.20. Lin et al. [49] activated MK with alkaline
activator. The alkaline activator was a NaOH solution and sodium
silicate. The effects of S/L ratios ranging from 0.4 to 1.0 (donated
as: SL04, SL06, SL08 and SL10 for S/L ratios of 0.4, 0.6, 0.8 and
1.0, respectively) and SiO2/Na2O ratios ranging from 0.8 to 2.0 on
the compressive strengths at ages of 1, 7, 28 and 60 days were
studied. The results indicated that after 1 day of curing, a S/L ratio
of 0.4 yielded the lowest strength. After 60 days, the strength in-
creased to only 27.7 MPa. The specimen with a S/L ratio of 0.8
was the strongest and its strength increased continuously during
60 days of curing (Fig. 3). The silica and alumina reaction in the
MK-based geopolymer system caused the increase in strength. As
the S/L ratio approached 1.0, the paste stiffened with low workabil-
ity. Therefore, the SiO2/Na2O ratio was set to 2, and the S/L ratio
was set to 0.8. Other authors as Živica et al. [50] studied the effects
of the combination of low L/S ratio and pressure compaction of the
fresh pastes on the properties of hardened MK geopolymer pastes.
The AAMK pastes were prepared with activator solution/MK ratio
of 0.08 and compacted by pressure of 300 MPa. The prepared spec-
imens were 20 mm-edge cubes. The reference specimens were pre-
pared with L/S of 0.7 using the compaction by hand. NaOH was
used as alkali activator. The results indicated that the use of L/S
0.08 and 300 MPa compaction pressure produced very dense
near-nano-pore structure with the degree of the homogeneity
and the compressive strength overcoming 500 times reference
hardened paste.
4. Effect of curing condition
Muñiz-Villarreal et al. [51] studied the effect of curing temper-
atures on the geopolymerization process, physical, mechanical and
optical properties of MK-based geopolymer activated with NaOH
and sodium silicate. The influence of different curing temperatures
of 30, 40, 50, 60, 75 and 90 °C was studied. They reported that the
755
optimum curing temperature was 60 °C which gave the best geo-
polymerization process. Perera et al. [52] studied the curing at
ambient and controlled RH with mild heating (40–60 °C) of a
MK-based geopolymer of molar ratios Si/Al and Na/Al of 2 and 1,
respectively. They monitored the effect of curing condition on
the open porosity. They concluded that the curing in the absence
of rigorous sealing, in an oven in which the RH was held at 30–
70% did not offer any advantage over curing at ambient followed
by mild heating (40–60 °C).
Rovnaník [53] studied the effect of curing temperatures of 10,
20, 40, 60 and 80 °C and time on the compressive strength, flexural
strength and pore distribution of MK-based geopolymer mortars.
Alkaline silicate solution with modulus (SiO2/Na2O) of 1.39 was
used as activator. This alkaline was prepared by dissolving of solid
hydroxide in sodium silicate. The results showed that the treat-
ment of fresh mixture at higher temperature accelerated the
strengths development, but the 28 days mechanical properties
were deteriorated in comparison with results obtained for mix-
tures that were treated at room or slightly decreased temperature.
The results also showed that there is an increase in pore size and
cumulative pore volume with rising temperature.
5. Effect of ultrasound
Feng et al. [54] studied the feasibility of using ultrasound to en-
hance the geopolymerisation of metakaolinite/sand and fly ash
(FA)/metakaolinite mixtures. They found that the introduction of
ultrasonication into the geopolymerisation systems increased the
compressive strength of the formed geopolymers and the strength
increased with increasing ultrasonication up to certain time. The
dissolution of metakaolinite and FA in alkaline solutions was en-
hanced by ultrasonication, hence releasing more Al and Si into
the gel phase for polycondensation. They also found that the ultra-
sonication improved the distribution of the gel phase in the geo-
polymeric matrices and strengthened the binding between the
particle surfaces and the gel phases. The ultrasonication enhanced
the formation of semi-crystalline to crystalline phases in the
formed geopolymers. They also concluded that the improved per-
formance of the ultrasonically formed geopolymers in term of
compressive strength could be attributed to the accelerated disso-
lution of the Al–Si source materials, the strengthened bonds at the
solid particle/gel phase interfaces, the enhanced polycondensation
process and the increased semi-crystalline and crystalline phases.
6. Effect of MK fineness
Weng et al. [55] studied different specific surface areas of MK
activated with sodium silicate and NaOH They concluded that
higher specific surface area of MK powders were characterized
by quicker setting time, higher compressive strength and more
homogeneous microstructure.
7. Resistance of aggressive solutions
Davidovits [56] studied the acid corrosion resistance of several
different cements in 5% H2SO4 and HCl indicated that AAMK ce-
ment had the best acid resistance. PC and Portland slag cement
were destroyed easily in acidic environments. Calcium aluminate
lost 30–60% of the mass, while AAMK lost only 5–8% mass. Other
authors [57] investigated the MK when exposed to aggressive solu-
tions. The alkali activation of MK is a way of producing high
strength cementitious materials. Prisms of mortar made of sand
and AAMK were immersed in deionized water, ASTM seawater, so-
dium sulfate solution (4.4 wt.%) and sulfuric acid solution
(0.001 M). The prisms were removed from the solutions at 7, 28,
756 A.M. Rashad / Construction and Building Materials 41 (2013) 751–765
56, 90 180 and 270 days. Their microstructure was characterized
and their physical, mechanical and microstructural properties
were investigated. It was observed that: (a) the nature of the
aggressive solution had little negative effect on the evolution of
microstructure and the strength of these materials; (b) 90-day
and older specimens experienced a slight increase in their flexural
strengths with time. This tendency was most pronounced in sam-
ples cured in sodium sulfate solutions; and (c) the resultant hydro-
ceramic demonstrated good stability for up to 270 days when
submerged in aggressive liquids of various types.
8. Resistance of elevated temperature and fire
Kuenzel et al. [58] investigated some properties of MK derived
geopolymer mortars containing 50%, by weight, silica sand after
exposure to elevated temperatures up to 1200 °C, for 2 h. The acti-
vating solution was mixing sodium silicate, water and NaOH. The
specimens were cured at 22 ± 3 °C for 77 days. The used sand had
three different grades of coarse, medium and fine. The results indi-
cated that the compressive strength, porosity and microstracture
of the geopolymer mortar specimens were not significant affected
by temperatures up to 800 °C. Nepheline (NaAl/SiO4) and carnegie-
ite (NaAlSiO4) formed at 900 °C. After exposure to 1000 °C, the
mortar specimens were transformed into polycrystalline nephe-
line/quartz ceramics with relatively high compressive strength. Be-
tween 1000 and 1200 °C, the specimens softened with gas
evolution causing the formation of closed porosity that reduced
specimen density and limited mechanical properties. Also, the re-
sults indicated that as the grade of sand finer as the higher com-
pressive strength, before or after exposure to elevated
temperature (Fig. 4). On the other hand, Kong et al. [59] studied
the behaviour of AAMK activated with waterglass and potassium
hydroxide after exposure to 800 °C at an incremental rate of
4.4 °C /min, with fire duration 1 h, versus alkali-activated FA. The
results indicated that the strength of MK-based geopolymer de-
creased after exposure to 800 °C. On the contrast, the strength of
the corresponding FA-based increased after exposed to 800 °C.
Whilst Davidovits [60], Davidovits et al. [61], Barbosa and Macken-
zie [62,63] reported very good heat resistant properties of materi-
als prepared using sodium silicate, potassium silicate and MK,
having thermal stability up to 1200–1400 °C.
Kong et al. [64] studied the MK geopolymer binder system ex-
posed to elevated temperatures. The combinations of sodium/
potassium silicate and sodium/potassium hydroxide were used as
source of activators. They studied different parameters as Si/Al ra-
tio, activator/MK ratio and alkali cation type. The results indicated
Fig. 4. Compressive strength of geopolymer/sand mortar specimens as a function of
the heat treatment temperature [58].
that compressive strength of geopolymer that had Si/Al = 1.54, M/
Al = 0.66 higher than those had Si/Al = 1.4, M/Al = 0.42. The
strength deterioration due to temperature exposure reduced with
increasing Si/Al ratio up to 1.5 then the deterioration began to in-
crease. Potassium-based geopolymer (synthesized with potassium
silicate and hydroxide) exhibited less strength regression after ele-
vated temperature exposure compared to equivalent sodium-
based geopolymer systems. Activator/MK around 1.11 seemed to
be the optimum that gave higher compressive strength before
and after exposure to elevated temperature.
Lin et al. [65] studied the effect of addition a-Al2O3 particles to
the MK geopolymer activated with potassium silicate solution ex-
posed to 400, 600 °C, 800, 1000, 1200 and 1400 °C. They reported
that no further change until 1400 °C. The addition of a-Al2O3 par-
ticle filler into MK geopolymers increased the onset crystalline
temperature and reduced the crystalline velocity. The thermal
shrinkage of MK geopolymers increased with increasing in the heat
treatment temperature. The increase in content of a-Al2O3 parti-
cles could reduce the thermal shrinkage and maintain a relatively
lower density and higher porosity. The increase in content of a-
Al2O3 particles had no distinct influence on the flexural strength
after heat treatment despite an increase in the porosity of the geo-
polymers. Barbosa and Mackenzie [66] synthesized potassium
polysialte (K-PS) and potassium polysialate disiloxo (K-PSDS) geo-
polymers from metakaolinite and found these kind of geopolymers
had excellent thermal stability, especially, the K-PS which showed
little sign of melting up to 1400 °C. Bernal et al. [67] studied the ef-
fect of elevated temperatures of 200, 400, 600, 800 and 1000 °C, for
2 h, on geopolymers formulated with an overall SiO2/Al2O3 molar
ratio of 3, slag/(slag + MK) ratios of 0.0 and 0.2, constant H2O/
Na2O ratio of 12 and Na2O/SiO2 ratio of 0.25. The results indicated
that the geopolymers formulated with MK and slag had higher
residual compressive strength than the pure MK-based geopoly-
mer up to 800 °C. On the other hand, the pure MK system showed
a much higher residual strength upon cooling from 1000 °C to
room temperature, indicating that the extent of glass formation
from the geopolymer gel at 1000 °C is reduced by the incorporation
of Ca into the gel, as a consequence of formation of CSH type gel
that coexisted with the aluminosilicate geopolymer gel. Cheng
and Chiu [68] studied fire resistance of slag geopolymer blended
with metakaolinite. They reported that when a 10 mm thick panel
of geopolymer is exposed to 1100 °C flame: the measured reverse-
side temperature reached 240–283 °C after 35 min. They observed
that the fire characteristics could be improved by increasing the
KOH or the alkali concentration and amount of MK.
He et al. [69] studied the effect of elevated temperatures of
1000, 1100, 1200, 1300 and 1400 °C, for 90 min in an argon
Fig. 5. Variations of flexural strength and work of fracture of the carbon fibers
reinforced MK geopolymer composite [69].
 A.M. Rashad / Construction and Building Materials 41 (2013) 751–765
atmosphere, on some mechanical properties of MK geopolymer
and MK/carbon fibers. Composites without and after heat treat-
ment were denoted as C-W, C-1000, C-1100, C-1200, C-1300 and
C-1400. Potassium silicate solution was used as activator. The con-
tent of carbon fibers was 20 vol.% for the composites without heat
treatment and 25 vol.% for composites after heat treatment. When
the composites were heated in a temperature range from 1100 to
1300 °C, it is found that mechanical properties were improved
(Fig. 5). The improvement could be attributed to the densified
and crystallized matrix, and enhanced fibers/matrix bonding based
on fine-integrity of carbon fibers. On the contrary, for composite
heat treated at 1400 °C, the strengthening effect of carbon fibers
was dramatically decompensated. It was resulted strong fibers/ma-
trix interface bonding strength. The composite showed substan-
tially decreased in mechanical properties and fractures in a very
brittle manner. He et al. [70] prepared unidirectional carbon fibers
reinforced MK geopolymer composite by ultrasonic-assisted slurry
infiltration method and heat treated at 1100 °C. Then it was
impregnated with Sol–SiO2 to seal the cracks and pores formed
during heat treatment. Composites before and after Sol-SiO2
impregnation were denoted as HC and ImHC, respectively. Over
an elevated temperatures ranging from 700 to 900 °C, the strength
of the two composites showed anomalous gained and reached
their maximum values at 900 °C, 322.1 and 425.1 MPa, respec-
tively, (Fig. 6). These values were 19.8% and 16.8% higher than their
ambient ones. At 1100 °C, the impregnated composite showed
superior high-temperature properties.
Bernal et al. [71] studied the mechanical performance of MK-
based geopolymer reinforced with refractory aluminosilicate parti-
cles and fibers after exposed to elevated temperatures of 600, 800
and 1000 °C. The aluminosilicate particles were obtained by mill-
ing the commercial refractory brick. The alumina–silica–zirconia
fibers were used. The alkali activator was formulated in order to
obtain overall matrix SiO2/Al2O3 molar ratios of 3.0 and 3.4 at a
constant Na2O/SiO2 ratio of 0.25. The quantity of water was ad-
justed to achieve an H2O/Na2O ratio of 12. The compressive
strength and flexural strength results indicated that the inclusion
of refractory particles, both with and without additional refractory
fibers, improved post-exposure compressive and flexural strengths
compared with sample without reinforcement. The inclusion of
higher contents of refractory particles and fibers reduced shrinkage
of exposed specimens.
9. Fibers effect
Lin et al. [72] used short fibers (2, 7 and 12 mm) to strengthen
MK-based geopolymer. Potassium silicate solution was used as
Fig. 6. Flexural strength versus temperature of HC and InHC [70].
757
Fig. 7. Variation of flexural strength and work of fracture of geopolymer matrix and
fibers reinforced MK geopolymer [72].
activator. The results of flexural strength and work of fracture
showed that the composites geopolymer with 7 mm short carbon
fibers length gave the maximum flexural strength and work of frac-
ture values, which were increased by 4.4 times and 118 times,
respectively, (Fig. 7). Lin et al. [73] studied the effects of fibers con-
tent on mechanical properties and fracture behaviour of short car-
bon fibers reinforced MK-based geopolymer matrix. MK powder
activated with potassium silicate solution. Different volume frac-
tions of short carbon fibers (from 3.5 to 7.5 vol.%) were prepared.
Specimens were cured at 80 °C for 24 h. At the early stage of curing,
a pressure of 0, 0.2, 1.2 or 2.0 MPa was loaded to obtain composites
reinforced geopolymers. The results showed that short carbon fi-
bers had a great strengthening and toughening effect at low vol-
ume contents of fibers (3.5 and 4.5 vol.%). With the increase in
fibers content, the strengthening and toughening effect of short
carbon fibers reduced.
Natali et al. [74] modified some properties of the MK/slag geo-
polymer with different types of dispersed short fibers. Sodium sil-
icate solution, with a SiO2:Na2O ratio of 1.99, and 8 M NaOH
solution were used as alkaline activators. The used fibers were:
HT-carbon fibers (average fiber diameter 10 lm, tensile strength
5490 MPa), commercial E-glass fibers (average fiber diameter
10 lm, tensile strength 2500 MPa), PVA fibers (average fiber diam-
eter 18 lm, tensile strength 1800 MPa) and PVC fibers (average fi-
ber diameter 400 lm, tensile strength 215 MPa). Regardless the
fibers type, the same content of fibers (1 wt.% fraction on the total
mixture) was added to MK/slag mixture. The used fibers were cut
to obtain a 7 ± 1 mm length. They concluded that all different types
of fibers had good adhesion properties, micro-cracks propagation
along the matrix and created a favourable bridging effect. 1 wt.%
of reinforcing fibers embedded in the geopolymer matrix was able
to increase flexural strength from 30% up to 70% depending on
fibers type. Geopolymers added with PVC and carbon fibers exhib-
ited significantly post-crack improved, resulted more enhance-
ments in ductility after reaching the first crack load.
Li et al. [75] manufactured MK geopolymer composites rein-
forced with short PVA fibers using the extrusion technique. NaOH
and sodium silicate solution with a ratio of SiO2 to Na2O of 3.2
were used as reagents. Two types of silica sand (300–600 and
90–150 lm in diameter) with weight ratio of 3:2 were used as
aggregates. The total sand was 32.5%, by weight of the binder.
Short PVA fibers were used as reinforcements. They concluded that
the addition of PVA fibers into geopolymer increased extrusion
pressures. Extruded geopolymer thin sheets reinforced with
microfibers showed a good flexural strength and reasonable tough-
ness. Yunsheng et al. [76] studied the impact behaviour and
758 A.M. Rashad / Construction and Building Materials 41 (2013) 751–765
microstructural characteristics of PVA fibers reinforced MK/FA geo-
polymer boards. They used NaOH and sodium silicate solution with
molar ratio of SiO2 to Na2O = 3.2 to activate MK and FA mortars in
both cases (separate and blended). Short PVA fibers were used as
reinforcement materials. The results indicated that the 90% MK
blended with 10% FA containing 2% fibers, by volume, gave the
lowest porosity. The addition of high volume fraction PVA fibers
changed the impact failure mode of MK/FA geopolymer boards
from a brittle pattern to ductile pattern, resulting in a great in-
crease in impact toughness.
Zhang et al. [77] studied the effect of polypropylene fibers on
the mechanical properties and volume stability of geopolymer. Dif-
ferent contents of polypropylene fibers were acted in geopolymer
matrices. NaOH and water were mixed into sodium silicate to ad-
just the mole ratio of SiO2 to Na2O of 1.2. The results showed that
the 3-day compressive strength, flexural strength and impacting
energy of geopolymer containing 0.05% fibers increased by 67.8,
36.1 and 6.25%, respectively, while shrinkage and modulus of com-
pressibility decreased by 38.6% and 31.3%, respectively. Polypro-
pylene fibers offered a bridging effect over the harmful pores,
defected and changed the expanding ways of cracks, resulting in
a great improvement of strength and toughness. Zhang et al. [46]
reported that the large shrinkage problem of the MK with the addi-
tion of 10% slag geopolymer, activated with NaOH and sodium sil-
icate, could be solved by appropriate addition of polypropylene
fibers and MgO as expansion agent as well as careful curing at early
age.
10. MK blended with FA
Yunsheng et al. [78] studied the durability of alkali-activated
blended MK-FA mortars modified with PVA short fibers in which
the composites manufactured by extrusion technique (SFRGC).
The NaOH and sodium silicate were used as source of activation.
MK was partially replaced with FA at levels of 0%, 10%, 30% and
50%, by weight. The results indicated that 10% replacement level
of MK with FA gave the lower porosity and higher impact strength
before and after 20 freeze–thaw cycles. Zhang et al. [77] modified
MK-based geopolymer with FA. The MK was partially replaced
with FA at levels of 0%, 33.3%, 50% and 66.7%, by weight. NaOH
and water were mixed into sodium silicate to adjust the mole ratio
(SiO2 to Na2O) of 1.2. Curing conditions were either in steam at
80 °C or in air at 20 °C for 1, 3 and 6 days. They concluded that
proper addition of FA (33.3%) increased the fluidity of fresh paste,
prolonged its setting time and improved compressive strength of
hardened geopolymer. The compressive strength of the geopoly-
mer containing 33.3%, FA by steam curing for 6 days, was improved
by 35.5%.
Bankowski et al. [79] activated MK blended with different per-
centages of FA with solution of sodium silicate and NaOH. The
solution had 0.76 M and the sodium silicate concentration was
4.25 M. This geopolymer was used to encapsulate brown coal FA
containing high concentrations of heavy metals. The results indi-
cated that leaching of calcium and potassium has been reduced
by this geopolymer. Significant reductions in leaching were found
for calcium, arsenic, strontium, selenium and barium. The geopoly-
mer was effective at stabilizing low percentages of FA, but effective
as the percentage of FA increased. Phair et al. [80] used sodium sil-
icate and NaOH as activator solutions to activate FA blended with
Al sources (such as metakaolinite, kaolinite and K-Feldspar) on the
solidification stabilization of heavy metals. They reported that for
increasing the efficiency of immobilization, it is suggested that
the metal waste be pre-treated with the Al source/clay before
being added to the geopolymer mixture. This would maximize
the sportive capacities of the Al source. They also reported that
all matrices were generally found to be highly efficient in retaining
Pb within the matrix with the order of effectiveness: FA > kaolin-
ite > K-feldspar > metakaoline. Xu et al. [81] studied factors affect-
ing the immobilization of heavy metals in FA-based geopolymers.
They used a solution of KOH and K2SiO3 to activate the mixture
of MK and FA. The results showed that the heavy metals can be
effectively immobilized into the geopolymeric matrices. The con-
centrations of alkali activator and different types of heavy metals
had impact on the immobilization behaviour to one metal in the
same system. Yunsheng et al. [82] studied the immobilization
behaviour of MK/FA (100/0, 90/10, 70/30, 50/50 and 30/70), mor-
tars, activated with NaOH and sodium silicate solution with the
molar ratio of, SiO2/Na2O, of 3.2. There were different curing con-
ditions. They concluded that geopolymer containing 70% MK and
30% FA that was synthesized at steam curing (80 °C for 8 h), exhib-
ited higher mechanical strength. The compressive and flexural
strengths were 32.2 and 7.15 MPa, respectively. The synthesized
geopolymer can effectively immobilise Cu and Pb heavy metals.
Aguilar et al. [83] produced lightweight concretes based on
binders composed of MK with 0 and 25% FA activated with 15.2%
of Na2O using sodium silicate of modulus SiO2/Na2O = 1.2. Con-
cretes with densities of 1200, 900 and 600 kg/m3 were obtained
by aeration by adding aluminum powder, in some formulations
lightweight aggregate of blast furnace slag was added at a ratio
binder: aggregate 1:1; curing was carried out at 20 and 75 °C.
The compressive strength development was monitored for
180 days. They concluded that it is possible to produce concrete
based on geopolymers of MK of different densities. The substitu-
tion of MK with 25% FA was viable to form reactive cementitious
pastes. The increment in the curing temperature from 20 to 75 °C
accelerated the development to the compression strength during
the first day; in the long term curing at 20 °C results in similar
results.
11. MK blended with slag
Buchwald et al. [84] studied the activation of MK blended with
slag using NaOH as alkali activator. The activator concentration for
the pure MK was higher than that for the pure slag, in order to
reach the same Na/Al value of 0.4. The water content was adjusted
to give the same workability. They concluded that both type of
reaction products – CSH from slag and aluminosilicate network
from MK – were able to coexist. The alkaline activation of MK–slag
mixtures yields a binder blend containing CSH system and geo-
polymer system and a mixture of both phases due to interaction
at their contact surface. In another investigation, Buchwald et al.
[85] studied blended slag with MK activated with two different
concentrations of NaOH solution. One with low NaOH concentra-
tion (9–16 wt.%) and the other with high NaOH concentration of
25 wt.%. They measured the reaction progressed of the alkali-
activated pastes by isothermal calorimetry and ultrasonic mea-
surements. They reported that the condensation reaction was
accelerated by blending slag and MK but the influence was much
apparent at higher concentrations of activator. This explained by
a higher amount of dissolution of both slag and MK, but it is more
significant on MK dissolution.
Cheng and Chiu [68] studied slag geopolymer blended with
metakaolinite. The results indicated that the more metakaolinite
added in the system, the slower setting time. The compressive
strength increased with increasing in metakaolinite content. The
reason could be that the more metakaolinite added, the more Al
gel formed in the system, therefore, giving a higher degree of geo-
polymer reaction. The density results showed a decrease with the
increase in metakaolinite content. Shen et al. [86] partially
replaced slag with zeolites or MK in alkali activation. The
 A.M. Rashad / Construction and Building Materials 41 (2013) 751–765
replacement slag with zeolites or MK increased the porosity of the
hardened pastes, but the leached fraction of Ca+ and Sr2+ were de-
creased. The decrease in leached fraction may be attributed to the
formation and adsorption properties of (Al + Na) substituted CSH
and self-generated zeolite precursor. Yip et al. [87] blended slag
with MK using MK/(MK + slag) mass ratios of 1, 0.8 and 0.6 in
alkali-activated system activated with commercial sodium silicate
solution and NaOH pearls at molar ratios of 2, 1.5 and 1.2. The com-
pressive strength results showed that at MK/(MK + slag) = 0.8 gave
the higher strength when molar ratios were 2 and 1.2. At molar
ratio of 1.5, MK/(MK + slag) = 1 gave the higher strength.
Burciaga-Diaz et al. [88] studied the strength development on alka-
line activation of MK/slag pastes. The main parameters were MK/
slag weight ratios of 100/0, 80/20, 50/50, 20/80 and 0/100, modu-
lus of the alkaline solutions of sodium silicate (M–SiO2/NaO2 at 0,
1, 1.5 and 2), % Na2O (5%, 10% and 15%) and curing time. Cubes
were cured at 20 °C for 360 days. The results indicated that the
composition of 20% slag plus 80% MK at 10% Na2O gave the highest
compressive strength. The modulus of 1–1.5 was sufficient to pro-
mote an adequate activation of binders of slag and MK and their
binary mixtures.
Yunsheng et al. [89] tested the mechanical strength of MK/slag
geopolymer mortars. NaOH and sodium silicate solution with the
molar ratio (SiO2/Na2O) of 3.2 were used as alkaline reagents.
The ratios of MK/slag were 100/0, 90/10, 70/30, 50/50 and 30/70,
by weight. The specimens were cured at 20 °C and 100% RH for
28 days. The results showed that geopolymer mortar containing
50% slag gave the highest compressive strength followed by 70%
slag and followed by 30% slag (Fig. 8). The results of flexural
strength showed a similar tendency as compressive strength. They
used 50/50 mixture cured at 80 °C for 8 h to study the immobiliza-
tion behaviours of MK/slag based geopolymer in presence of Pb
and Cu. They concluded that leaching tests showed that MK/slag
based geopolymer could effectively immobilized Cu and Pb heavy
metal and the immobilization efficiency exceeded 98.5% when
the amount of heavy metals contained in slag based geopolymeric
matrix was in the range of 0.1–0.3%, by mass of the binder. The Pb
showed better immobilization efficiency than Cu in the case of
large dosages of heavy metals. Bernal et al. [67] studied the com-
pressive strength of alkali silicate-activated blends of MK and slag
pastes. The parameters were slag/(slag + MK) ratios and SiO2/Al2O3
molar ratios. Alkaline activating solutions were prepared by blend-
ing sodium silicate solution with solid analytical-grade NaOH to
reach the desired modulus values. The results indicated that the
addition of slag to MK-based geopolymers led to an increase in
compressive strength compared with reference specimens
produced using MK as the sole precursor. This effect was more
Fig. 8. Effect of slag replacement percentages on compressive strength [89].
759
evident in geopolymers formulated with SiO2/Al2O3 ratios of 3.8
and 4.0.
Chen et al. [90] studied the compressive strength of alkali-acti-
vated MK–slag hydroceramics (AMSHC). The mixtures were made
from MK and slag with a pure alkali solution of NaOH and a simu-
lated high-alkaline waste (SAW) liquid via of hydrothermal curing
for 24 h. The affecting factors including curing temperature, con-
tent of slag and dosage of simulated highly-alkaline waste on the
properties of AMSHC. The results indicated that the compressive
strength of AMSHC matrixes improved effectively by the addition
of slag and the elevated curing temperature. Structural evolution
in pastes produced from alkali silicate-activated slag/MK blends
was assessed by Bernal et al. [91]. They reported that in the initial
period of the reaction, the addition of MK led to an increase in the
total setting time, reduced the heat release and affected the reac-
tion mechanism by introduction of a large quantity of additional
Al. This effect was more significant when an activating solution
with a higher silicate modulus was used, and led to a slight reduc-
tion in the final mechanical strength. However, the alkaline acti-
vating solutions were formulated by blending a commercial
sodium silicate solution together with 50% NaOH solution to reach
modulus (Ms = molar SiO/Na ratio) of 1.6, 2.0 or 2.4. A constant
activator concentration of 5% Na2O by mass of (slag + MK) was
used. Mortar samples were formulated with a constant water/
(slag + MK + anhydrous activator) ratio of 0.47 and a binder/sand
ratio of 1/2.75. Different amounts of MK were blended with slag,
the slag/(slag + MK) were 1.0, 0.9 and 0.8. The compressive
strengths were measured up to 180 days. The compressive
strength results showed that the increase of MK content in the
binders led to a reduction of compressive strength, this effect being
more significant when a higher Ms activator was used. The Ms 2.0
specimens were consistently stronger than the Ms 2.4 specimens
at all ages and at each level of MK substitution.
Bernal et al. [92] studied the effects of activation conditions on
some engineering properties (as compressive, flexural strength and
accelerated carbonation) of alkali-activated slag/MK blends. The
concrete mixtures were formulated with SiO2/Al2O molar ratios
of 3.6, 4 and 4.4, slag/(slag + MK) ratios of 0.8, 0.9 and 1.0 (i.e.
20%, 10% and 0% MK, respectively) and a constant Na2O/SiO2 molar
ratio of 0.25. They used sodium silicate solution with 50 wt.%
NaOH solution as alkali activators. They concluded that the higher
alkali activator content gave satisfactory early strength develop-
ment. The inclusion of MK enhanced flexural strength at later
age. Accelerated carbonation showed rather rapid carbonation
accompanied by a loss in strength, this occurred faster at high
MK content. Wang et al. [93] studied the compressive strength
Fig. 9. Effects of slag content on permeability of air curing geopolymer prepared at
L/S ratios of 0.55 and 0.60 [46].
760 A.M. Rashad / Construction and Building Materials 41 (2013) 751–765

and porosity of alkali-activated slag–FA–MK cementitious materi-

als prepared by hydrothermal method. The activator used was
waterglass with the modulus adjusted to 1.0 by dissolving NaOH.
The ratio of water to solid was about 0.35. The compressive
strength and porosity results indicated that this type of material
had higher mechanical strength and compact structure. The aver-
age compressive strength was more than 60 MPa after hydrother-
mal process. The porosity was less than 36%. Zhang et al. [46]
studied the permeability, measured by Darcy method, of MK/
slag-based geopolymers. Different L/S ratios of 0.55 and 0.6 were
employed. They reported that the inclusion of slag could reduce
permeability, particularly at L/S ratio of 0.6 (Fig. 9). The existence
of slag had only a slight effect on permeability of geopolymer at
L/S ratio of 0.55. When the slag content was P10%, geopolymer
had a relatively steady and low permeability, suggesting slag had
a packing influence on geopolymer structure [94].

12. MK blended with calcium hydroxide

The addition of a sufficient quantity of Ca to AAMK in form of Fig. 11. Flow versus NaOH concentration and calcium hydroxide content in the
calcium hydroxide could lead to formation of phase separated Al- present of 3% superplasticizer [97].

substitute CSH and N–A–S–H gels [15,94,95]. This is known to be

more prevalent at relatively low alkalinity conditions system, be-
cause if the OH concentration is high, the dissolution of calcium
hydroxide is hindered and it is also possible that very highly alka-
line conditions will lead to dissolution of any CSH type phases
which are formed. It has also been suggested that Ca2+ is capable
of acting as charge-balancing cation within the geopolymeric bind-
ing structure, but it needs to be further studied [22]. However,
Alonso and Palomo [27] partially replaced MK with calcium
hydroxide at levels of either 30% or 50%. The composites were acti-
vated with NaOH at different concentrations of 10, 12, 15 and
18 M. The specimens were cured for 24 h at different temperatures
of 35, 45 and 60 °C. After curing, the specimens were tested in flex-
ural. The results showed that the inclusion of 50% calcium hydrox-
ide gave higher flexural strength than 30% calcium hydroxide. The
strength increased as curing temperature increased and concentra-
tion of NaOH decreased (Fig. 10). Buchwald et al. [96] studied the
influence of calcium content on the compressive strength of AAMK.
MK powders have been activated with 8 mol/1 NaOH solution. The
calcium content of these model mixtures has been increased by
successive exchange of the pure alumosilicate powder against cal-
cium hydroxide up to 40% per mass. Compressive strengths were
conducted at 28 days and 111 days. The results indicated that the
optimal calcium content seemed to be about 10%.
Pacheco-Torgal et al. [97] studied the effect of activator concen-
tration, superplasticizer content and calcium hydroxide content on
the workability, compressive strength and flexural strength of
Fig. 10. Flexural strength of MK/lime specimens cured at 24 h [27].
AAMK-based mortars. The concentrations of NaOH were 10, 12,
14 and 16 M, while the contents of superplasticizer dosages were
1%, 2% and 3%. MK was partially replaced with calcium hydroxide
at levels of 0%, 5% and 10%. The results indicated that the workabil-
ity of the fresh mortars decreased with increasing NaOH concen-
tration and increased with the content of calcium hydroxide and
superplasticizer. The results also showed that the use of 3% of
superplasticizer, combined with 10% calcium hydroxide improved
mortar flow from less than 50% to over 90% (Fig. 11), while high
compressive and flexural strengths were maintained. Yip and
Deventer [94], Yip et al. [98] studied the aluminosilicates with sim-
ilar SiO2/Al2O3 and Al2O3/Na2O molar ratios. They found the exis-
tence of an optimum of 20% (about 9% of calcium oxide) slag
content in alkali-activation of MK-slag mixtures, led to increase
compressive strength, which according to them could be explained
by the fact that formed CSH within the geopolymeric binders acts
as microaggregates resulting in a dense and homogeneous binder.
13. MK blended with other materials
Zhang et al. [99] blended MK and slag in the mass ratio of 1:4.
Sodium metasilicate, Na2SiO3.9H2O was used as alkaline activator.
The MK/slag based geopolymer reinforced by organic resins (OR)
which consist of acrylic resin emulsion and polyvinyl acetate resin.
The amount of OR ranging from 0% to 15%. They concluded that the
excellent compressive and flexural performance was attributed to
the OR that prevented growing cracks and increased the fracture
toughness of the geopolymer composites. The geopolymer com-
posites modified with 1 wt.% OR displayed the highest compressive
and flexural strengths. Komnitsas et al. [100] used the frerronickel
slag-based inorganic polymers that produced by mixing slag with
sodium silicate solution (Na2O:SiO2 = 0.3, Na2O = 7.5–8.5%,
SiO2 = 25.5–28.5%), sodium or potassium hydroxide and water.
The effect of additives such as kaolin or MK and pre-curing period
on the final compressive strength was evaluated. The results indi-
cated that the presence of MK decreased the compressive strength.
This is probably due to the increased porosity of the new structure
as a result of thermal processing. Bignozzi et al. [101] studied the
possibility of using electric arc furnace slag (EAFS) blended with
MK as starting materials for geopolymers. The MK/EAFS ratios
were 40/60, 30/70 and 20/80. Sodium silicate solution with SiO2/
Na2O = 1.99 and NaOH 8 M solution were used to activate the
 A.M. Rashad / Construction and Building Materials 41 (2013) 751–765
Fig. 12. Compressive strength of alkali-activated MK-ladle slag [102].
starting materials. They concluded that the combination of 40/60
was strongly recommended where it gave better mechanical prop-
erties and compact microstructure. In another investigation, Big-
nozzi et al. [102] investigated alkali-activated materials based on
partial substation of MK with ladle slag, deriving from the refining
process of steel produced by arc electric furnace technology. The
replacement levels were 0%, 25%, 50%, 60%, 70%, 80% and 100%,
by weight, donated as G-MK100, C-MK75, G-MK50, G-MK40, G-
MK30, G-MK20 and G-LS100, respectively. Sodium silicate and
8 M NaOH were used as activating solutions. The compressive
strength results showed that G-MK100 and G-MK75 gave the low-
est values. Mixture of G-MK20 gave the highest compressive
strength followed by G-MK40 and followed by G-MK30 (Fig. 12).
They also determined the porosity percentages of the studied mix-
tures. They found that as compressive strength increased as the
porosity percentage decreased.
Bernal et al. [103] activated MK/slag blended binders with
NaOH which mixed with either SF or rice husk ash (RHA), as alter-
native silica-based activators. The results indicated that pastes
with NaOH/SF or NaOH/RHA showed similar trends in mechanical
strength development as a function of activation conditions com-
pared with pastes obtained using commercial silicate solutions as
activator. All activating solutions promoted higher compressive
strength development with increasing slag contents in the binders,
which promoted the coexistence of aluminosilicate reaction prod-
ucts along with calcium silicate hydrate gel. Yunsheng et al. [104]
used MK blended with SF activated with KOH pellet and potassium
silicate solution with molar ratio of SiO2/K2O of 3.25 and solid con-
tent of 40%. The experimental results showed that K2O/Al2O3 had a
significant impact on compressive strength. The highest compres-
sive strength when SiO2/Al2O3 = 6.5, K2O/Al2O = 0.8 and H2O/
K2O = 10.
Kouamo et al. [105] modified MK geopolymer with alumina-
oxide (Al2O3). MK was partially replaced with Al2O3 at levels of
Fig. 13. Compressive strength values of biomass FA-MK mortars [106].
761
0%, 10%, 20%, 30% and 40%, by weight. The alkaline solution used
was a mixture of aqueous of NaOH (12 M) and sodium silicate.
The mass ratio of sodium silicate/NaOH of 2.0 was employed. The
results showed that its possibly to improve the compressive
strength by replacing MK with Al2O3 up to 30%. Beyond 30%
replacement level, the compressive strength decreased, in compar-
ison to pure MK. However, 20% Al2O3 plus 80% MK gave the highest
compressive strength in which the original compressive strength
increased by 18.1%, followed by 10% Al2O3 and followed by 30%
Al2O3. Rajamma et al. [106] partially replaced biomass FA with
MK, in mortars, at levels of 0%, 20% and 40%, by weight, activated
with different molar volumes of NaOH and sodium silicate solu-
tions. The compressive strength results showed that the inclusion
of MK improved the compressive strength values. Also, the results
showed that as the MK content increased, as the improvement in
compressive strength increased (Fig. 13).
Lin et al. [49] partially replaced MK with thin-film transistor li-
quid–crystal display (TFT-LCD) waste glass, after crushing and
milling to approximately 3000 cm2/g, at replacement levels of 0%,
10%, 20%, 30% and 40%, by weight. The alkaline activator was a
NaOH solution and sodium silicate. The results showed that both
initial and final setting times increased as the replacement levels
of MK increased. The compressive strength decreased as the
replacement levels of MK increased (Fig. 14). However, the geo-
polymer based on 10% waste glass and 90% MK had a compressive
strength of 62 MPa after 60 days curing. Yip et al. [87] replaced MK
with calcite or dolomite in geopolymers. The replacement levels of
calcite were 0%, 20%, 40%, 60%, 80% and 100%. Sodium silicate solu-
tion was used as alkaline activator with different molar (SiO2/
Na2O) ratios of 2, 1.5 and 1.2 by addition of solid NaOH to the so-
dium silicate solution. The compressive strength and shrinkage
were measured at ages of 2, 7, 28, 90, 360 and 560 days. The results
indicated that the addition of a moderate amount (20% by mass) of
calcite was found to have a positive effect on the compressive
strength of MK based geopolymeric binder at all ages. More than
20% calcite had a deleterious effect on strength due to significant
disruption of the geopolymer gel network and the reduced reactive
aluminosilicate content. The inclusion of calcite did not induce
additional shrinkage during the first 90 days of aging. However,
Fig. 15 shows the compressive strength and relative shrinkage re-
sults at age of 560 days. The results of this study also showed that
partially replacing MK with 20% dolomite proceeded similar trend
of partially replacing MK with 20% calcite.
Lampris et al. [107] investigated the production of aggregates
from silt produced from aggregate washing plants using the
Fig. 14. Development of compressive strength of waste-glass MK-based geopoly-
mers [49].
762 A.M. Rashad / Construction and Building Materials 41 (2013) 751–765
Fig. 15. Compressive strength and relative shrinkage at varying calcite content at
Ms = 1.2 [87].
process of geopolymerisation. Silts have been blended with either
20% MK or 20% PFA and activated by highly alkaline sodium silicate
activating solution. The activating solution was prepared by dis-
solving NaOH in distilled water and sodium silicate solution was
added. The results indicated that the replacement of silts with
either 20% MK or 20% PFA increased the compressive strength,
but it was higher for MK than it in PFA. Chen et al. [108] used res-
ervoir sludge as a partial replacement of MK in the production of
geopolymers. 30% slag plus 70% MK were used as source materials
to produce the reference mixture of the geopolymer. MK was re-
placed with reservoir sludge at levels of 50%, 70% and 100%, by
weight. The amounts of NaOH, sodium silicate and distilled water
were used to produce the alkaline activators. The results showed
that the compressive strengths decreased with increasing replace-
ment level of MK with reservoir sludge.
Wang et al. [109] studied the compressive strength, flexural
strength and wear behaviour (sliding against AISI-1045 steel) of
metakaolinite-based geopolymer composites containing 5%, 10%,
15%, 20%, 25% and 30% (volume fraction) polyteta-fluoroethylene
(PTFE). The compound activator composed of aqueous NaOH and
sodium silicate was used. The results showed that mechanical
strength of the composites was lower than corresponding geopoly-
mer, while the wear model became mild. The wear was dramati-
cally reduced by 86–99.2%. Wang et al. [110] synthesized
metakaolinite-based geopolymer composites containing 5%, 10%,
15%, 20%, 25% and 30% (volume fraction) scalelike graphite, poly-
tetra-fluoroethylene (PTFE) and molybdenum disulfide (MOS2),
respectively, in the presence of a compound activator composed
of aqueous NaOH and sodium silicate at room temperature. The tri-
bological behaviours of the resulting composites sliding against
AISI-1045 steel were investigated on an MM-200 friction and wear
tester, and the bending strength and compressive strength of the
composites were determined. The results indicated that all the
three kinds of the tested solid lubricants reduced both bending
and compressive strengths. On the other hand, the friction, wear
of the composites and fluctuation of the friction coefficient were
reduced.
Xiangke et al. [111] employed the activated vanadium tailing
(AVT) as the main source material for geopolymerisation in combi-
nation with MK. The raw vanadium tailing was blended with solid
NaOH at a raw vanadium tailing/NaOH mass ratio of 5/1 and
heated at 450 °C for 1 h. The heated tailing was cooled naturally
to room temperature, then ground in a ball mill for 5 min. The
AVT was mixed with MK at various mass ratios of 100/0, 90/10,
80/20, 70/30 and 60/40. The compressive strength results showed
that the mixture of 70/30 gave the highest compressive strength.
Kouamo et al. [112] improved the compressive strength of the vol-
canic ash geopolymer mortars. Volcanic ash was replaced with MK
at levels of 0%, 30%, 40% and 60%, by weight. An alkali fusion
process was used. The results showed an increase in compressive
strength with the inclusion of MK content. Also the results showed
that as MK content increased, as the compressive strength of the
composition increased. The high amount of MK in fused volcanic
ash increased the amount of reactive phase content in the alumi-
nosilicate allowing the dissolution of silica and alumina that im-
proved the polycondensation phenomena and the formation of
polymeric binder. Consequently, the compressive strength
increased.
Kani et al. [113] addressed methods to reduce efflorescence in a
geopolymer binder based on a pumice-type natural pozzolanic
material. This efflorescence caused by excess sodium oxide
remaining un-reacted in the sodium aluminosilicate geopolymers
(as natural pozzolan geopolymers). The deposited alkalis can react
with atmospheric CO2 resulting in the formation of white carbon-
ate surface deposits known as efflorescence. Carbonation usually
results in binder degradation, pH reduction and the deposition of
carbonate reaction products in the bulk sample, which may or
may not be visible to the naked eye, whereas efflorescence causes
the formation of visible surface deposits and may or may not be
accompanied by further of the binder. However, they partially re-
placed the pumice with MK at levels of 2%, 4%, 6% and 8%, by
weight, aiming to reduce the efflorescence. They concluded that
the additional of MK slightly reduced the efflorescence and im-
proved compressive strength.
14. Special applications of MK based geopolymer
He et al. [114] studied the initial efforts of explore a new appli-
cation of MK-based geopolymers to structural health monitoring. A
distributed geopolymer-fiber optic sensing (G-FOS) system was
prepared, where geopolymers were used as smart adhesives to af-
fix optical fibers to existing in-service structures to form as inte-
grated G-FOS sensor. Combination of sodium hydroxide and
sodium silicate solution was used as activator. Totally 11 different
SiO2/Al2O3 ratios ranging from 2.7 to 6 were selected to synthesize
geopolymer precursors, while the NaO2/SiO2 and H2O/Na2O ratios
of 0.3 and 17.5, respectively, were maintained constant for all syn-
thesized geopolymers, except that the one with a SiO2/Al2O3 ra-
tio = 3.8 (M) had a modified H2O/Na2O ratio of 11.5. The results
indicated that the tensile cracking strain of the geopolymers could
be controlled by finely tuning the Si/Al ratios or adding appropriate
aggregate fillers such as sand, thus rendering the ‘smart’ nature of
geopolymers for deformation-based sensing. Geopolymers with
SiO2/Al2O3 ratios P3.8 were viable adhesives that could develop
strong bond to concrete, steel and glass fibers.
Vasconcelos et al. [115] carried out an experimental program
about the use of MK-based geopolymers mortars for retrofitting
purposes. They addressed two main situations, the use of geopoly-
meric mortars as a repairing layer or as a binding agent between
CFRP sheets and the repaired concrete. Several compositions of
MK geopolymer mortars were executed by varying the percentage
of sand/binder mass ratio (30%, 60% and 90%) and concentration of
sodium hydroxide (12 M, 14 M and 16 M). The results showed that
MK geopolymer gave a high mechanical resistance and a relevant
adhesion to the concrete substrate. Also, low adhesion strength be-
tween CFRP and geopolymer mortars was obtained. MK geopoly-
meric mortars with low sand/binder mass ratio presented low
adhesion to concrete substrate due to high shrinkage behaviour
deduced by the microcracks in the surface of the specimens. On
the same line with this, Hu et al. [116] studied repair materials
using MK and MK blended with steel slag activated with NaOH
and sodium silicate solution with SiO2/Na2O molar ratio and mass
concentration of 1.14% and 38%, respectively. The compressive
strengths were measured at ages of 8 h, 1, 3, 7 and 28 days.
 A.M. Rashad / Construction and Building Materials 41 (2013) 751–765
Comparing MK with MK–steel slag geopolymers, it was found that
the 8 h, 1, 3, 7 and 28 days compressive strengths increased by
43%, 28%, 17%, 6.9% and 7.6%, respectively. The addition of steel
slag accelerated the setting time and significantly improved com-
pressive strength, which could be due to its latent hydraulic
cementitious character.
Liew et al. [117] studied the possibility of MK to produce ce-
ment powder that could be an alternative to PC by applying geopo-
lymerization process. Cement paste was firstly made by alkaline
activation of calcined kaolin with alkaline activator (mixture of
6–10 M NaOH and Na2SiO3 solution), heated at 80 °C forming a
solidified product, followed by pulverization to fixed particle size
powder. Different parameters of SiO2/Al2O3, Na2O/SiO2, Na2O/
Al2O3, H2O/Na2O molar ratios, NaOH/Na2SiO3 ratio, concentration
of NaOH, MK/activator and heating conditions were studied. Ce-
ment powder was added with water and then cured to produce
cubes. They found that the key parameter influenced the properties
of the cement powder was NaOH/Na2SiO3 ratio followed by NaOH
concentration, MK/activator ratios and heating condition. The re-
sults indicated that the highest compressive strength was obtained
when the SiO2/Al2O3, Na2O/SiO2, Na2O/Al2O3 and H2O/Na2O molar
ratios were 3.10, 0.37, 1.15 and 14.23, respectively.
15. Conclusions
The use of MK as source of alkali activation system has been
widely investigated in the recent years. The conclusions of the cur-
rent literature review can be summarized as following:
1. The Alkali-activated binders seem to be the alternative of PC
system. The exact reaction mechanism of AAMK is depend-
ing on the prime source materials, alkaline activator type
and concentration of activator. The main reaction product
of MK activation with sodium silicate + NaOH solutions or
highly concentrated alkaline solutions in the presence of cal-
cium hydroxide is an amorphous hydrated sodium alumino-
silicate. When NaOH with concentration of 5 M or lower in
MK activation in calcium hydroxide presence, the main
product is N–A–S–H gel.
2. Nature of activator plays important roles in AAMK. Water-
glass-activated cements often give much higher strength
than alkali hydroxide-activated cements.
3. In most cases, as the activator concentration increases, as
the mechanical strengths increase, up to certain
concentration.
4. The SiO2/Al2O3 ratio has significant effect on compressive
strength geopolymer. The optimal ratios that give higher
strength ranging from 3.5 to 5.5, depending on activator
type and curing condition.
5. Although some researchers believed that the optimum cur-
ing temperature is around 60 °C, but this curing temperature
depends on many factors as MK fineness, activator type and
dosage, etc.
6. Although some researchers believed that S/L ratio of 0.8
gives nearly optimum strength and provides good workabil-
ity, but this ratio affected with SiO2/Na2O ratio.
7. As L/S ratio increases, as permeability increases.
8. Ultrasonication of geopolymers up to certain time, increases
the compressive strength and improves the distribution of
gel phase in the geopolymeric matrices.
9. Higher specific surface area of MK powders in alkali activa-
tion system gives quicker setting time, higher compressive
strength and more homogeneous microstructure.
10. AAMK system has better acid, seawater attack, sodium sul-
fate resistance than PC system.
763
11. AAMK system has very good heat resistant, where this system
has thermal stability up to 1200–1400 °C. When MK blended
with slag, the new composite has higher residual compressive
strength than the pure MK up to 800 °C. On the other hand,
the pure MK system shows a much higher residual strength
upon cooling from 1000 °C to room temperature.
12. Blended MK with refractory particles modified the fire resis-
tance of the composition. The inclusion of higher contents of
refractory particles and fibers reduced shrinkage of exposed
specimens.
13. 0.05% polypropylene fibers increase the geopolymer com-
pressive strength, flexural strength and impacting energy.
1% short fibers (FT-carbon, E-glass, PVA) embedded in the
geopolymer matrix can increase flexural strength from 30%
up to 70%, depending on fiber type. PVC and carbon fibers
significant improve the post-cracks in the geopolymers and
enhancement the ductility.
14. Partially replacing 10% MK with FA in alkali activation sys-
tem gives lower porosity and higher impact strength. Other
researchers believed that the inclusion of 33.3% FA in MK
based geopolymer gives the highest compressive strength,
but depends on the mole ratio and curing condition.
15. 70% MK plus 30% FA based geopolymer exhibits higher
mechanical strength and can effectively immobilise Cu and
Pb heavy metals.
16. In general, the more MK adds in alkali-activated slag system,
the slower setting time. The addition of slag to MK leads to
an increase in compressive strength. However, some
researchers believed that 80% MK plus 20% slag gave the
highest paste compressive strength which depends on molar
ratio and Na2O concentration. Other researchers believed
that 50% MK plus 50% slag gave the highest mortar compres-
sive strength followed by 30% MK plus 70% slag and followed
by 70% MK plus 30% slag at SiO2/Na2O = 3.2 cured at 20 °C
and 100% RH for 28 days.
17. Partially replacing 10% of MK with calcium hydroxide in geo-
polymer improves both workability and compressive
strength.
18. The addition of 20% calcite or dolomite has positive effect on
the strength of MK based geopolymer binder.
19. Blending 60% of electric arc furnace slag with 40% MK in geo-
polymer gives better mechanical properties and compacts
microstructure. Whilst blending 20% MK with 80% ladle slag
gives the highest compressive strength and the lowest
porosity. 40% MK plus 60% ladle slag comes in the second
place.
20. Blending 20% Al2O3 with 80% MK in geopolymer results
18.1% extra compressive strength related to pure MK.
21. Partially replacing volcanic ash with MK in geopolymer mor-
tars increases compressive strength.
22. The inclusion of MK in geopolymer binder based on a pum-
ice-type natural pozzolanic material can slightly reduce the
efflorescence and improves the compressive strength.
23. MK-based geopolymer mortars can be used as a repairing
layer or as a binding agent between CFRP sheets and the
repaired concrete. On the same line with this, MK and
blended MK with steel slag (MK/steel slag = 80/20) activated
with NaOH and sodium silicate solution at SiO2/Na2O = 1.14
can be used as repair materials.
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