General study of the performance of a commercial repair material - Comparison with standard mortars made with Portland cement and calcium aluminate cement

A commercial material for repairing structural concrete was tested and its behaviour compared with that of mortars prepared with ordinary Portland cem ent (OPC) and calcium aluminate cement (CAC). The role of this repair mater ial (RM) as a physical barrier to the ingress of aggressive agents was inve stigated and compared with the behaviour of OPC and CAC mortars. Other prop erties investigated and compared were: compressive and flexural strengths, strength of adhesion to the base material, and porosity. Some variations fr om the manufacturer's recommendations on the preparation of the RM mortars were also tested, such as the need for a bonding material treatment on the base concrete surface, and alterations to the specified water content of th e RM mises.