SIMPLIFIED ESTIMATION METHOD FOR THICKNESS AND PORE VOLUME RATIO OF INTERFACIAL TRANSITION ZONE BETWEEN AGGREGATE AND CEMENT PASTE

Abstract

The interfacial transition zone（ITZ）between aggregate and cement paste has a relatively high pore volume and connectivity compared to the cement matrix. There is no estimation method available for evaluating the characteristics of the ITZ, although it is believed to be a weak area in the concrete composite. In this research, a simplified method is proposed for estimating the average characteristic values of the ITZ, specifically the thickness and pore volume ratio, based on mixture proportion. The proposed method can estimate the experimental results with reasonable accuracy；however, the estimated values are slighter higher than the experimental results.