1.College of Civil Aviation, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Nanjing 210016, China
2.College of Water Resource & Hydropower, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
3.State Key Laboratory of Intelligent Construction and Healthy Operation and Maintenance of Deep Underground Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
4.School of Logistics, Chengdu University of Information Technology, Chengdu 610225, China
Objective Deep underground engineering projects, such as transportation tunnels and mine roadways, increasingly encounter high ground temperature conditions, under which the rheological properties of cement grout and the mechanical strength of hardened grout deteriorate significantly, weakening the surrounding rock reinforcement effect. This study develops a novel modified graphene oxide (MGO) using free-radical copolymerization and investigates the effects of MGO on the strength evolution of cement grout and its underlying mechanisms to overcome the challenges of reduced grout fluidity caused by traditional nano-material incorporation and strength reduction resulting from water reducer addition. Methods MGO was synthesized via free-radical copolymerization using industrial-grade graphene oxide (GO), silane coupling agent (VTMS), Methallyl Polyoxyethylene Ether (MAPE), acrylic acid (AA), ammonium persulfate (APS), and mercaptopropionic acid (MPA) as raw materials. The synthesis ratio of the reactants was strictly controlled, where GO and VTMS were reacted at a mass ratio of 4:1, followed by copolymerization with SGO, MAPE, MPA, APS, and AA at a ratio of 1.0:2.5:0.1:0.2:1.0. The chemical structure and interplanar spacing of MGO were analyzed using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) was employed to visualize the morphology of MGO and the hardened grout. The dispersibility of MGO in alkaline cement paste was evaluated by ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV‒Vis), using a saturated CaOH₂ solution as the simulated medium. The cement grouts were prepared using P·O 42.5 Portland cement as the base material and were supplemented with triethanolamine (TEA) and sodium chloride (NaCl). Three water-to-cement (W/C) ratios of 0.50, 0.60, and 0.75 were designed, and MGO, GO, or polycarboxylate superplasticizer (PCE) was added at a fixed dosage of 0.05% for performance comparison, while a blank group without any additives served as the control. At 25 °C, 35 °C, and 45 °C, the flowability of the fresh grout was measured using a Marsh funnel viscometer and a truncated cone, and the flow spread was determined by averaging two perpendicular diameters. The bleeding rate was quantified using a graduated cylinder method by calculating the percentage ratio of bleeding height to the total grout height after 2 hours of static placement. Unconfined compressive strength tests were conducted on standard cylindrical samples (ϕ50 mm × h100 mm) that were cured at 25 °C, 35 °C, or 45 °C under 95% relative humidity for 7, 14, and 28 days. The microstructure of the hardened grout was observed by SEM, and porosity was quantified using gray-level threshold analysis of the obtained images. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) was employed to quantify the bound-water content and calcium hydroxide (CH) content in the hydration products. The CH crystallite size was calculated from the XRD data of the hardened cement grout using the Scherrer equation. Results and Discussions FTIR analysis showed the appearance of new CH₂/CH₃ and Si—OH peaks in MGO, while the original C=O peak was intensified, which confirmed successful polymer grafting on GO. XRD results showed that the characteristic MGO peak shifted by 2.7° toward a lower 2θ value, indicating an increase in interlayer spacing after polymer grafting. SEM-EDS analysis indicated that polymer grafting increased the carbon content and blunted the wrinkle edges of MGO. UV‒Vis analysis revealed that MGO exhibited a higher initial absorbance and a smaller decrease within 5 min compared to GO, indicating improved dispersion stability. Regarding fluidity, the incorporation of MGO reduced the Marsh funnel time of the grout with a W∶C ratio of 0.6 from 44.3 s to 40.2 s and increased the flow spread range from 218 mm to 221 mm at 25 ℃. Similar trends were observed at 35 ℃ and 45 ℃. The addition of MGO slightly increased the bleeding rate of the grout; however, the initial fluidity exhibited only a weak correlation with bleeding behavior. In terms of compressive strength, the 28 d strength of the hardened grout with a W/C ratio of 0.6 and containing MGO increased to 34.33 MPa at 25 ℃, 33.53 MPa at 35 ℃, and 28.73 MPa at 45 ℃, which exceeded the corresponding strengths of the grouts without MGO by 11.4%, 27%, and 26.7%, respectively. SEM-based porosity analysis revealed that the incorporation of MGO resulted in a denser hardened grout structure, with a porosity of approximately 1.03%. SEM observations showed increased amounts of C‒S‒H and CH in the samples containing MGO, which was attributed to the additional nucleation sites induced by MGO during early hydration. TGA results indicated that, compared to the control sample, the grout containing MGO exhibited 1.39% more bound water and 1.98% more CH, demonstrating that the incorporation of MGO enhanced the cement hydration rate. The CH crystallite sizes calculated using the Scherrer method were 37.74 nm for the {001} plane and 35.73 nm for the {101} plane in the grout containing MGO, which were 21.6% and 28.5% smaller than those of the control group, respectively. These results indicated that MGO effectively reduced the CH crystallite size, refining the microstructure of the grout. The formation of finer CH crystallites enhanced the gel bonding within the grout containing MGO and contributed to the observed strength improvement. Conclusions The results demonstrate that within the temperature range of 25 ℃ to 45 ℃, the incorporation of MGO not only significantly improves the 28 d strength of hardened cement grout by approximately 11% to 27%, but also enhances the fluidity of fresh cement grout, improving both grout fluidity and mechanical performance. Compared to graphene oxide, the developed MGO exhibits a more pronounced effect on enhancing the strength of hardened cement grout while avoiding an obvious reduction in fluidity. Uniformly dispersed MGO in cement grout provides additional nucleation sites for the formation of C‒S‒H gels and CH crystals during cement hydration, and plays a critical role in refining the size of CH crystals, resulting in a denser microstructure of the hardened grout. A denser microstructure leads to higher strength. These findings provide in-depth insights into the improvement of grouting quality in rock masses, particularly for deep formations with high ground temperatures.
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