Researchers at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind., aim to move testing of a cellulose nanocrystal admixture from campus laboratories to a California concrete construction site this year. Derived from the world’s most common polymer, the nanocrystals strengthen concrete through a chemical reaction increasing cement particle hydration. They provide what Civil Engineering Professor Pablo Zavattieri characterizes as a rail or avenue for water to go where it is needed in the concrete matrix, especially unhydrated particles.
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