Applied Coating Technologies for Portland Cement
Concrete is plastic and malleable when newly mixed, strong and durable when hardened. These qualities allow this one material to build skyscrapers, bridges, sidewalks and superhighways, houses and dams.
Portland cement, the basic ingredient of concrete, is brought into existence by a closely controlled chemical mixing of calcium, silicon, aluminum, iron, and small amounts of other ingredients. Gypsum is added in the final grinding process to regulate the setting time of the concrete. Lime and silica make up close to 85% of the mass. Common among the materials used in concrete’s manufacture are limestone, shells, and chalk or marl combined with shale, clay, slate, silica sand, and iron ore.
Portland cement was invented in 1824 by British mason Joseph Aspdin. It stands in contrast to “Roman” cement, which is a crude formulation of lime and volcanic ash used for 1900 years prior to Aspdin’s creation. Aspdin named his new product after a highly valued building stone quarried on the Isle of Portland which sits off the British coast.
Portland cement’s chemistry becomes dynamic and complete in the presence of water. Cement and water together form a paste that coats each particle of stone and sand. Through the chemical reaction of hydration, the cement paste hardens and gains strength, and coats the surface of the fine and coarse aggregates. The character of the concrete is determined by the quality of the paste. The strength of the paste, in turn, depends on the ratio of water to cement. The water-cement ratio is the weight of the mixing water divided by the weight of the cement. High-quality concrete is produced by lowering the water-cement ratio as much as possible without sacrificing the workability of fresh concrete. Generally, using less water produces a higher quality concrete, provided the concrete is properly placed, consolidated, and cured.
Making Portland cement requires a tremendous amount of energy. Because of this fact, modern concrete structures require a permanent sealant for strength, durability, and protection from the ravages of the elements.
When the Oil Shocks of the mid 1970s hit, they caused a tremendous increase in fuel costs. To lower the cost of production for portland cement, from 1975 on the cement firms reduced the kiln heating temperature to about 2600 degrees F, down from the traditional 2900 degrees F. This drop in temperature caused the material taken from the kiln to have unconverted alkalies in it. Unconverted alkalies (which are mostly calcium) cause the portland cement to deteriorate when it comes in contact with most environmental elements.
It is for the purpose of meeting this need that Applied Coating Technologies, centered in Green Bay, Wisconsin, was created.
Applied Coating Technologies is manufacturer, wholesale wharehouse outlet, and drop-ship distributor of PBS 160 Hot Sealer and DPD7 Concentrate technology.
PBS 160 HSC is a highly reactive water-born polymer solution. When PBS 160 is applied to existing Portland cement concrete, it penetrates beneath the surface to enter into the pores and micropores of the substance’s matrix, acting as an exfoliator and purifyer. PBS 160 also interacts with calcium deposits, seeking out the free alkali and metamorphosing it into calcium silica hydrate gel, thus filling the tiny voids within the Portland cement concrete. After a 90 day cure, it hardens and crystallizes to strengthen, densify, and permanently seal the substance.
Calcium Silica Hydrate is the “paste” phase of cement (green concrete) that holds the sand & aggregate together. Green concrete is calcium silica hydrate gel.
It’s like pouring concrete into concrete.
Adding PBS 160 HSC forms a breathable, watertight barrier, greatly improving surface impact resistance and fluxure strength. This stops acid and salt erosion, freeze-thaw cracking and fissuring, and carbon disintegration. Used as a primer for paints and other surface coatings, PBS 160 greatly improves their longevity by preventing potentially delaminating substances from affecting the coated surface.
The company’s DPD7 Concentrate forms a stable high ratio, low viscosity solution that penetrates even more deeply than PBS 160 and adds even more density to concrete. Like PBS 160, this concentrate yields zero efflorescence. DPD7 actually consumes carbon dioxide.
John Harrison, a geochemist and economist who founded TecEco to research sustainable technologies, has recently invented Eco-Cement. This is a type of cement which incorporates magnesium oxide (magnesia) and wastes to make it environmentally sustainable. Eco-Cement uses a relatively low heating temperature during the manufacturing process in order to use less fossil fuels. Wastes such as fly and bottom ash and slag can be included without incurring problems such as delayed reactions. Eco-Cement, like Applied Coating Technologies’ DPD7 concentrate, absorbs C02 from the atmosphere to set and harden and can be recycled.
Nevertheless, this new product still needs to be coupled with a sealant for sustainable, durable, lasting construction.
Building contractors, masons, and any other professionals working with concrete construction should get in touch with Applied Coating Technologies, which can ship its product anywhere.
