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To study the effect of surface crosslinked layer on the crosslinked poly(sodium acrylate) (cPSA) absorbent, we synthesized several surface crosslinked cPSAs with 5, 10 and 20 g of ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA) by an inverse emulsion polymerization method to delay the absorption of excess water in concrete. We measured the compressive and flexural strength of mortars having 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5 wt% cPSA-EGDMA. We observed the increase of compressive and flexural strength of the cPSA-EGDMA added cement mortars except for the 0.5 wt% cPSA-EGDMA (20 g) added cement mortar. 1.0 wt% cPSA-EGDMA (5 g) added cement mortar showed about 16% and 10% increased compressive and flexural strength than those of plain cement mortar. To study the effect of porosity on compressive and flexural strength, we used FE-SEM and porosimeter. FE-SEM analysis showed swollen cPSMA-EGDMA (5 g) filled between calcium silicate hydrate (C-S-H) crystals. We observed the decreased porosity of the cPSA-EGDMA added cement mortars than that of plain cement mortar. 1.0 wt% cPSA-EGDMA (5 g) cement mortar showed the lowest porosity of 16.5%.

In this study, with the aim of improving the performance of shale to allow for its use as coarse aggregate for concrete, we coated shale aggregates with water repellents and polymers and evaluated their physical properties such as density, water absorption rate, wear rate, and stability depending on the coating method. In addition, the effects of the performance improvement were evaluated by assessing the properties of fresh concrete produced by varying the shale substitution ratio, as well as the compressive strength, flexural strength, and freeze-thaw resistance according to curing ages. The test results revealed that the absolute dry densities of all coated aggregates satisfied the standard density for coarse aggregates for concrete(>2.50g/cm 3 ),and the absorption rate of the shale aggregate coated with water repellent decreased by about 50% compared with that of uncoated shale. The wear rate of the polymer-coated shale decreased by up to 13.0% compared with that of uncoated shale. All coated aggregates satisfied the stability standard for coarse aggregates for concrete(≤12). The water repellent-induced performance improvement decreased the shale aggregates' slump by about 20∼30mm compared with that of the uncoated shale aggregates, and the air content of the repellent-coated shale aggregate increased by up to 0.9% compared with that of the uncoated shale aggregate. The compressive strength of the polymer-coated shale aggregates at a curing age of 28 days was RS(F) 95.7% and BS(F) 90.0%, and the flexural strength was RS(F) 98.0 % and BS(F) 92.0% of the corresponding values of concretes produced using plain aggregates. Furthermore, the concrete using polymer-coated shale aggregates showed a dynamic modulus of elasticity of RS(F) 91% and BS(F) 88% after 300 freeze-thaw cycles, thus demonstrating improved freeze-thaw durability.

In summer and winter, the difference between the temperature during the day and that during the night is high, which leads to various problems during concrete placement, such as cracks and defects in the concrete as well as low durability and strength. Although nuclear power plant concrete is widely used for placement in all seasons, particular attention must be paid to its quality during the summer. Therefore, we evaluated the effects of a cooling method for mixing water, which is a commonly used hot weather precooling method, and the use of a retarder, on the characteristics of Nuclear Power Plant concrete. In the cooling method for mixing water, cold water at 5 was used, with 50% of the water content consisting of ice flakes. The effects of using a retarder were evaluated by reviewing the characteristics of the cement at the unset stage and after hardening. To evaluate the characteristics of the unset cement, we measured the slump, air volumes, setting times, and pressure strengths after hardening. Furthermore, we measured the heat of hydration at different temperatures; the loss of heat was minimized using insulation. Both the slump time and the complete ageing time of the air volume were found to be 120 min at 20℃ and 40 min at 40℃. In the case when the cooling method for mixing water was used and in the case when a retarder was used, the initial and final sets by penetration resistance were delayed, and the delay decreased with increasing air temperature. For the heat of hydration, the cooling method for mixing water not only lowered the maximum temperature but also delayed its attainment. However, the use of a retarder had no effect on the maximum temperature. Moreover, in the early ages (e.g., 3 and 7 days), the pressure strength of the concrete was lower than that of plain cement. However, the strength of 28-day concrete met the standard construction specifications.