Our Research – Core projects – Ongoing

There is an urgent need to optimise clinker formulations to minimise the environmental
impact of their production while maintaining or increasing their hydraulic reactivity.
Unfortunately, the thermodynamic databases/tools currently available do not focus on the
high-temperature cement clinker system and thus predictive modelling of clinkerization (and
its optimization) remains out of reach. As outlined in the call document, there is a long
history of thermophysical measurements and crystallographic observations available in the
cement literature. This has led to several important tabulations of the Gibbs free energy for
the C-A-S system; however, our own experience has shown that many of these sources
contain errors, both typographical and within their source data (e.g., the calorimetry results).
Some results are also historical and thus elemental/reference free-energy data and
techniques have improved dramatically in the intervening time. Minor elements and solid
solutions are also generally not included aside from the species which have metallurgical
applications. Nevertheless, we have successfully developed a stoichiometric thermodynamic
database for C$A production which demonstrates the utility of thermodynamics in
advancing clinkering technology. The availability of such a tool immediately enables powerful
studies, such as carbon-accounting clinker production, and the advancement of thermal
models for the kiln pyroprocessing, thus establishing a full clinker thermodynamic model
including minor elements is a critical step in advancing cement manufacturing as a whole.