THE RHEOLOGY OF FRESH CEMENT PASTE CONTAINING POLYSACCHARIDE GUMS

The addition of polysaccharide gums to cement pastes has a considerabl e effect on their rheological properties. These admixtures are current ly used in several practical applications such as anti-bleeding agents , anti wash out admixtures, and pump and sag resistance additives. The success of these applications depends on the rheological properties o f the grout. Experimental results reported here show that the addition of polysaccharide gums in cement paste systems has a significantly hi gher effect on the viscosity at low shear rates than at higher shear r ates. Additionally, a considerably high thixotropic behavior has been found in the form of an apparent viscosity recovery, this effect being higher for combinations of polysaccharide gum and high range water re ducers.