ABSTRACT
Mineral additives or the supplementary cementitious materials are the by-products of other industries that you can use in concrete for the improvement of quality and also for environmental protection against waste materials. This chapter described about the reaction of the supplementary cementitious materials beside cement and water in concrete and their effect on the mechanical properties of concrete. Different supplementary cementitious materials were separately introduced. The first one is the silica fume. The silica fume specification and the effect of that on the properties of fresh and hardened concrete are mentioned. The second one is the fly ash. The fly ash properties and the effect of the fly ash on the properties of fresh and hardened concrete are described. The third one is the ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS). The effect of this material on the properties of fresh and hardened concrete is also mentioned. The last ones are natural pozzolans. The effect of the most important natural pozzolans on the properties of fresh and hardened concrete is the next subject of this chapter. At the end of this chapter, a comparison of the effects and properties of different types of supplementary cementitious materials with each other is accomplished. Finally, use of supplementary cementitious materials in the industrial production of concrete is discussed.
