In-situ neutron radiography of pore-water movement in portland cement mortar under subzero temperature exposure: Insights from D2O-H2O systems

Md Hasibul Hasan Rahat; James R. Torres; Yuxuan Zhang; Sepehr Akhtarshenas; Dip Banik; Sherif L. Abdelaziz; Stefan Jacobsen; Alexander S. Brand

doi:10.1016/j.jobe.2025.114156

In-situ neutron radiography of pore-water movement in portland cement mortar under subzero temperature exposure: Insights from D₂O-H₂O systems

Md Hasibul Hasan Rahat, James R. Torres, Yuxuan Zhang, Sepehr Akhtarshenas, Dip Banik, Sherif L. Abdelaziz, Stefan Jacobsen, Alexander S. Brand

Materials Engineering

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

Neutron radiography was employed in this study to monitor real-time pore water movement in portland cement mortar exposed to subzero temperatures, providing novel insights into freeze-thaw (F-T) damage mechanisms. Deuterated water (D₂O) was used to hydrate the cement in the mortar specimens, and the pore structure was saturated with water (H₂O), allowing for a contrast that enabled detailed tracking of water movement predominantly in the pore structure. The mortar sample was placed on a chiller plate set to subzero temperatures, thereby providing a one-dimensional temperature gradient vertically in the sample. Neutron radiography revealed that unfrozen water migrated upward as the freezing front advanced, which can create hydraulic pressure within the mortar microstructure and may contribute to the initiation and propagation of microcracks during F-T cycles. Additional characterization of the concrete made with D₂O showed a marked contrast to the samples made with H₂O, including delayed hydration, diminished compressive strength, and greater porosity. Therefore, while mortar made with D₂O allowed for greater neutron contrast to the pores filled with H₂O, further study is required to produce mortars with similar properties to those made with H₂O. In addition, further refinement is needed to the radiography experiment to allow for greater control of temperatures and potential quantification of the water concentration.

Original language	English
Article number	114156
Journal	Journal of Building Engineering
Volume	113
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jobe.2025.114156
State	Published - Nov 1 2025

Funding

This material is based upon work supported by the Broad Agency Announcement Program and the Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (ERDC- CRREL ) under Contract No. W913E522C0001. This manuscript has been authored in part by UT-Battelle, LLC, under contract DE-AC05-00OR22725 with the US Department of Energy (DOE). The publisher acknowledges the US government license to provide public access under the DOE Public Access Plan ( https://energy.gov/doe-public-access-plan ). This material is based upon work supported by the Broad Agency Announcement Program and the Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (ERDC-CRREL) under Contract No. W913E522C0001. A portion of this research used resources at the High Flux Isotope Reactor, a DOE Office of Science User Facility operated by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The beam time was allocated to MARS on proposal number IPTS-32819.1. The authors thank Dr. Thomas Staley from the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Virginia Tech for his invaluable guidance in conducting TGA and LT-DSC experiments and thank Sung-Won Cho for assisting with the isothermal calorimetry experiments.

Keywords

Air-void system
Freeze-thaw resistance
Hydration kinetics
Macropores
Neutron radiography

Access to Document

10.1016/j.jobe.2025.114156

Cite this

@article{d08768887fe145628728a32747f2a2ed,

title = "In-situ neutron radiography of pore-water movement in portland cement mortar under subzero temperature exposure: Insights from D2O-H2O systems",

abstract = "Neutron radiography was employed in this study to monitor real-time pore water movement in portland cement mortar exposed to subzero temperatures, providing novel insights into freeze-thaw (F-T) damage mechanisms. Deuterated water (D2O) was used to hydrate the cement in the mortar specimens, and the pore structure was saturated with water (H2O), allowing for a contrast that enabled detailed tracking of water movement predominantly in the pore structure. The mortar sample was placed on a chiller plate set to subzero temperatures, thereby providing a one-dimensional temperature gradient vertically in the sample. Neutron radiography revealed that unfrozen water migrated upward as the freezing front advanced, which can create hydraulic pressure within the mortar microstructure and may contribute to the initiation and propagation of microcracks during F-T cycles. Additional characterization of the concrete made with D2O showed a marked contrast to the samples made with H2O, including delayed hydration, diminished compressive strength, and greater porosity. Therefore, while mortar made with D2O allowed for greater neutron contrast to the pores filled with H2O, further study is required to produce mortars with similar properties to those made with H2O. In addition, further refinement is needed to the radiography experiment to allow for greater control of temperatures and potential quantification of the water concentration.",

keywords = "Air-void system, Freeze-thaw resistance, Hydration kinetics, Macropores, Neutron radiography",

author = "Rahat, \{Md Hasibul Hasan\} and Torres, \{James R.\} and Yuxuan Zhang and Sepehr Akhtarshenas and Dip Banik and Abdelaziz, \{Sherif L.\} and Stefan Jacobsen and Brand, \{Alexander S.\}",

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doi = "10.1016/j.jobe.2025.114156",

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T2 - Insights from D2O-H2O systems

AU - Rahat, Md Hasibul Hasan

AU - Torres, James R.

AU - Zhang, Yuxuan

AU - Akhtarshenas, Sepehr

AU - Banik, Dip

AU - Abdelaziz, Sherif L.

AU - Jacobsen, Stefan

AU - Brand, Alexander S.

PY - 2025/11/1

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AB - Neutron radiography was employed in this study to monitor real-time pore water movement in portland cement mortar exposed to subzero temperatures, providing novel insights into freeze-thaw (F-T) damage mechanisms. Deuterated water (D2O) was used to hydrate the cement in the mortar specimens, and the pore structure was saturated with water (H2O), allowing for a contrast that enabled detailed tracking of water movement predominantly in the pore structure. The mortar sample was placed on a chiller plate set to subzero temperatures, thereby providing a one-dimensional temperature gradient vertically in the sample. Neutron radiography revealed that unfrozen water migrated upward as the freezing front advanced, which can create hydraulic pressure within the mortar microstructure and may contribute to the initiation and propagation of microcracks during F-T cycles. Additional characterization of the concrete made with D2O showed a marked contrast to the samples made with H2O, including delayed hydration, diminished compressive strength, and greater porosity. Therefore, while mortar made with D2O allowed for greater neutron contrast to the pores filled with H2O, further study is required to produce mortars with similar properties to those made with H2O. In addition, further refinement is needed to the radiography experiment to allow for greater control of temperatures and potential quantification of the water concentration.

KW - Air-void system

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