Synergy Pigments Australia



 

 

    

Head Office (WA): Ph:  1300 655 853
Vic/SA:  Ph: 0408 829 301
Qld:        Ph: 0408 172 935
NSW:     Ph: 0419 439 528
 
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 email: km@oxide.com.au
     
Silica Fume.    
 

Synergy Pigments is pleased to announce that we are now able to offer two distinct types of Silica Fume to the concrete industry.

The first type is a white, undensified silica fume, produced as a by-product of ceramic manufacture in Australia.

The second now available from Synergy Pigments is an imported densified, grey silica fume;  the well respected and tested product from Restec.   Restec silica fume has been approved by ATIC (formerly known as CCURG) for main roads construction projects in Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland.

Silica Fume is a by-product of producing certain metals and ceramics, Silica Fume is a highly reactive material which is used in relatively small amounts to enhance the properties of both fresh and hardened concrete.

  
 
Chemical Properties.
  • Silica Dioxide (SiO2) is the reactive material in Silica Fume.
  • Both the undensified and densified products are amorphous, which means they are not crystalline materials.  There is of course material of a similar nature present in the concrete mix, ie. sand; which is essentially also silica dioxide.  However the crystalline nature of that material prohibits the desired reaction with the cement.
  • Silica Fume may contain some trace elements which reflect the manufacturing process from which it is derived.  Under normal circumstances these have no effect on the performance of the silica fume in the concrete mix.
   Physical Properties.
  • The particle size is extremely small, with 95% of particles being less than 1um (one micrometer). 
  • The bulk density of the as-produced fume is dependant upon the process from which the silica fume was derived.  The primary advantage of densified silica fume is that the increased bulk density of between 400 and 700 kg/m3 allows for more economical transport.  The process is usually accomplished by tumbling the silica fume particles in a silo, causing surface charges to build up.  This draws the particles togther to form weak agglomerates.
  • Silica Fume has a specific gravity of around 2.2 compared with the heavier portland cement figure of 3.15

 

Bear in mind that Silica Fume is a property enhancing material, not a replacement for Portland cement in the way that fly ash or ground blast furnace slag is sometimes used.

The benefits of Silica Fume in fresh concrete include:

  • Increased Cohesion

  • Reduced Bleeding

The benefits of Silica Fume in hardened concrete include:

  • Enhanced mechanical properties

  • Reduced permeability

Some further benefits achieved in design/constructability areas include:

    
     
 
 

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