4. Conclusion
For PII 52.5 Portland cement used in this paper, the main findings obtained in this study are summarized below:
(1) The crystallisation corrosion occurred during hydration of C3A is the main cause of invalidation of cement, and the degree of invalidation of Portland cement can be quantitatively assessed by BSE/EDS analysis.
(2) While the acicular microscopic crystal structures whose length over 3.0 lm appear around the cement particles in the BSE images, the cement can be quantitatively judged as complete invalidation.
(3) If the content of oxide containing Al in the area of ettringite formation is less than 5.0%, the cement can be judged to be not invalided; if the content of oxide containing Al in the area of ettringite formation exceeds 5%, the cement begin to invalid; if the content of oxide containing Al in the area of ettringite formation exceeds 10%, the cement can be quantitatively judged as complete invalidation.