THE PORE SIZE-DEPENDENT FRACTALITY OF POROUS STRUCTURE IN CEMENT PASTE: ANALYSIS, MODELING AND APPLICATIONS

Abstract

The fractal characteristic of cement paste has been investigated for decades. In this paper, a systematic study referring to analysis, modeling as well as application is presented with respect to the pore size-dependent fractality of the porous structure in cement paste. In particular, the multiscale fractal dimensions other than the traditional single fractal dimension are analyzed for a measure of incomplete fractality. Then, the multiscale solid mass fractal model is introduced and implemented. It is demonstrated that the modeled pore size distribution agrees well with that obtained from the experimental measurement. Moreover, in combination with other analytical (the effective medium theory) and/or numerical (the finite element method) tools, such a pore size-dependent fractality could provide a fast assessment of some basic mechanical and physical properties.