Understanding the Influence of Thermal Treatment on Phase Changes and Reactivity of Smectite for Use in Limestone Calcined Clay Cement.

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Title: Understanding the Influence of Thermal Treatment on Phase Changes and Reactivity of Smectite for Use in Limestone Calcined Clay Cement.
Authors: Dhar, Mehnaz1 (AUTHOR) dharmehnaz08@gmail.com, Bishnoi, Shashank2 (AUTHOR)
Source: Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering. Mar2026, Vol. 38 Issue 3, p1-18. 18p.
Subjects: Smectite, Clay minerals, Clay, Pozzolanic reaction, Heat treatment, Compressive strength, Sustainable construction
Abstract: The partial replacement of cement by calcined clays is seen as one of the most important avenues for producing low-carbon cements. However, the limited availability of kaolinite may become a major barrier for the industrial adoption of this technology. This paper demonstrates the potential use of iron-rich smectite clays, which are more easily available in many regions, as supplementary cementitious materials by comparing the physical and chemical changes that occur in smectite with those in kaolinite upon thermal treatment. The clays were calcined between 400°C and 1,000°C and were characterized using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Fourier transformation infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) techniques. The physical and chemical properties of calcined clays like specific surface area, density, morphology, and cation exchange capacity were also examined. The dehydroxylation process of the clays was found to be distinct: smectite undergoes a two-step dehydroxylation, transforming into a highly amorphous phase only after the removal of hydroxyl groups in the second step unlike kaolinites. The effect of clay mineral type and calcination temperature on the pozzolanic reactivity and mortar compressive strength was also assessed. It was observed that properly calcined smectite clay exhibits pozzolanic reactivity similar to or even higher than that of kaolinite. The type of clay mineral influences the rate of strength development because smectite showed slower but longer hydration and ultimately matched the compressive strength of kaolinite by 28 days. These findings present the potential of producing sustainable calcined clay cements more widely around the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering is the property of American Society of Civil Engineers and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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  Label: Title
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  Data: Understanding the Influence of Thermal Treatment on Phase Changes and Reactivity of Smectite for Use in Limestone Calcined Clay Cement.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Dhar%2C+Mehnaz%22">Dhar, Mehnaz</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> dharmehnaz08@gmail.com</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Bishnoi%2C+Shashank%22">Bishnoi, Shashank</searchLink><relatesTo>2</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Journal+of+Materials+in+Civil+Engineering%22">Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering</searchLink>. Mar2026, Vol. 38 Issue 3, p1-18. 18p.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Smectite%22">Smectite</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Clay+minerals%22">Clay minerals</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Clay%22">Clay</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Pozzolanic+reaction%22">Pozzolanic reaction</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Heat+treatment%22">Heat treatment</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Compressive+strength%22">Compressive strength</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Sustainable+construction%22">Sustainable construction</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: The partial replacement of cement by calcined clays is seen as one of the most important avenues for producing low-carbon cements. However, the limited availability of kaolinite may become a major barrier for the industrial adoption of this technology. This paper demonstrates the potential use of iron-rich smectite clays, which are more easily available in many regions, as supplementary cementitious materials by comparing the physical and chemical changes that occur in smectite with those in kaolinite upon thermal treatment. The clays were calcined between 400°C and 1,000°C and were characterized using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Fourier transformation infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) techniques. The physical and chemical properties of calcined clays like specific surface area, density, morphology, and cation exchange capacity were also examined. The dehydroxylation process of the clays was found to be distinct: smectite undergoes a two-step dehydroxylation, transforming into a highly amorphous phase only after the removal of hydroxyl groups in the second step unlike kaolinites. The effect of clay mineral type and calcination temperature on the pozzolanic reactivity and mortar compressive strength was also assessed. It was observed that properly calcined smectite clay exhibits pozzolanic reactivity similar to or even higher than that of kaolinite. The type of clay mineral influences the rate of strength development because smectite showed slower but longer hydration and ultimately matched the compressive strength of kaolinite by 28 days. These findings present the potential of producing sustainable calcined clay cements more widely around the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
  Label:
  Group: Ab
  Data: <i>Copyright of Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering is the property of American Society of Civil Engineers and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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RecordInfo BibRecord:
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    Identifiers:
      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1061/JMCEE7.MTENG-20978
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      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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        PageCount: 18
        StartPage: 1
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Smectite
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Clay minerals
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Clay
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Pozzolanic reaction
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Heat treatment
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Compressive strength
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Sustainable construction
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: Understanding the Influence of Thermal Treatment on Phase Changes and Reactivity of Smectite for Use in Limestone Calcined Clay Cement.
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            NameFull: Dhar, Mehnaz
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            NameFull: Bishnoi, Shashank
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            – D: 01
              M: 03
              Text: Mar2026
              Type: published
              Y: 2026
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