Chemical Characterization of Nine Locally Made Cement Products for Quality Assurance in Nigeria Cement Industry

Abstract

Chemical characterization of Portland limestone cement products collected across the nine existing cement manufacturing plants in Nigeria was conducted using Energy Dispersive X-ray Fluorescence Spectrometer (EDXRF) with the aim of determining conformity with global and local standards and investigating likely variation in quality resulting from differences in the sources of major raw materials, especially limestone used in production. The cement samples are composed essentially of CaO, SiO2, Al2O3, Fe2O3, MgO, Na2O, K2O and SO3 while P2O5, MnO and TiO2 were present in trace amount. In addition to oxide compositions, the mineralogical components: Alite (C3S), Belite (C2S), Celite (C3A), and Ferrite (C4AF), and other cement quality control variables such as Lime Saturation Factor, Silica Modulus and Alumina Modulus of all the nine cement samples analyzed in this study are in agreement with the specifications for Portland limestone cement published by the Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON), the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), and the British Standards Institution (BSI). The nine cement products also have their compositions in close proportion indicating none of the products is superior in quality irrespective of manufacturer or production site, a common misconception in the Nigerian cement market.