What Is a Foam Concrete Blowing Agent?

Cement foaming agent, also known as foam concrete foaming agent, the cement foaming agent will be an admixture that may decrease the surface strain of the liquid and create a great deal of even and steady foam for the manufacturing of foam concrete. The foaming agent can be a group of compounds which can make its aqueous solution in the case of mechanical force introduced into the atmosphere to generate a large amount of foam; this class of compounds will be a surfactant or surface-active material. The essence of the blowing agent can be its area active role. Without the role of surface action, it can not be foamed; it can not be a foaming agent; surface action is the core of foaming.

The Working Principle of Foam Concrete Foaming Agent

Foam cement blowing agent can make its aqueous solution in case of mechanical maneuver, the introduction of atmosphere, but in addition produces numerous foam and so on substances; this variety of material can be an emulsifier or surface-active materials. We can additionally generate many even or steady foam now on the industry. Very much foaming agents, whether it is the type of ranking, etc., are dazzling; we get from many media statistics, is required with concrete additive production experience persons will be challenging to differentiate whether it is great or bad for a while.

Classification of Foam Concrete Blowing Agent

The foaming agent is in fact divided into negatively charged or neutral, amphoteric, and so on according to the ionization nature of the aqueous solution, this classification; then there are synthetic foaming substances, rosin resin-based foaming substances, protein-activated foaming agents, and so on.
Foaming substances because they are surfactants or surface-active materials; therefore, according to their ionization properties of, the aqueous solution can be divided into anionic, cationic, non-ionic, and amphoteric four categories. But this classification is too academic and abstract. We can divide the types of foaming substances according to the composition of the components, which are broadly divided into rosin resin type, synthetic emulsifier type, protein type, compound type, other type, a total of five types.

Two Main Methods of Foam Concrete Production

There are two main ways to create foam concrete: one is physical foaming, and the other is chemical foaming.

Physical Foaming Process

Physical foaming refers to the mechanical method of introducing atmosphere, nitrogen, hydrogen, carbon dioxide, or oxygen into the slurry formed by cement, cementitious materials, foam stabilizer, and water to make it form a greater stable liquid slurry system. The stabilization time of the slurry system should be greater than the initial setting time of the cement. For foam concrete, physical foaming is commonly used with cement expanding substances through the cement foaming machine to introduce air into the foam to join the paddle body and mix to make foam cement.

Physical foaming technology is used more in the field of floor heating, flooring, roof slope, prefabricated panels, and so on. Its key technology, in addition to the need for a good foam stabilizer, is the structure design of the foam generator. In the formulation design of the stabilizer, the interaction with the foaming agent need not be considered, and thus the freedom of choice is greater. In terms of equipment, the chemical foaming process also uses an additional air compressor and foam generator.

Chemical Foaming Process

Chemical foaming is a material that can chemically react and generate gas (expanding substance) with cementitious materials, foam stabilizer, and water, etc., together with mixing and then pouring and molding, control the temperature so that the reaction of the foaming agent to create bubbles, the best reaction state is almost no reaction during the mixing and molding, and after the molding and before the initial setting of cement gradually reaction is completed. The principle of chemical foaming of foam concrete is the same as the principle of steamed buns. Now the more common foaming agent on the market is aluminum powder and hydrogen peroxide.

The machinery used in the chemical foaming process is relatively simple. As the cement slurry in the pouring, before the initial set of the foaming agent continues to create bubbles, and therefore has an expansion effect, the chemical foaming process is mostly used for filling, plugging, reinforcement, and other occasions. It can also be used in the field of prefabricated panels.

Application Areas of Cement Foaming Agent

In industrial production and daily civil use, the use of blowing agents is very different; different applications have different technical requirements for the concrete foaming agent. For example, the fire extinguisher foaming agent only requires its instantaneous frothing volume and oxygen barrier capacity, but not its high stability and fineness. Such as the mining industry with flotation blowing agents only requires it for the purpose of strong adsorption and good foaming power; the foaming multiplier and foam stability requirements are not high. And so on, not to list. The expanding substance is used in almost all industrial fields; the use is very wide. The performance requirements of each industry on the expanding agent are obviously different; one industry can use the blowing agent, another industry can not be used, or the effect is not good. Similarly, foam concrete expanding substance is used for concrete frothing to put forward the technical requirements. It is in addition to the ability to generate large foam, pay special attention to the stability of foam, foam fineness, foam and cement and other cementitious materials such as adaptability. Can meet this requirement of narrowly defined expanding agent is also Liao, few and far between; most of the blowing agent is not used in the actual production of foam concrete.

Therefore, foam concrete foaming agents must be a few surfactants or surface-active substances that meet the above technical requirements.

1. Insulation layer of radiant floor heating and roof thermal insulation;
2. Filling wall blocks inside and outside buildings, sound insulation walls;
3. municipal pipelines such as water supply, heating, oil pipelines and other insulation, moisture-proof, anti-corrosion;
4. construction of plant cultivation greenhouse and storage cold storage;
5. filling of internal voids in tunnels and gaps in buildings;
6. Pavement, sports fields, courts of grassroots paving, and so on, specific areas.

Addressing the Global Cement and Concrete Association in Zurich on Tuesday, UN Secretary-General António Guterres laid out his vision for change in the industry, which he said was “fundamental to building a better world.”

Guterres issued a “call to action” to executives in attendance, asking for firm commitments from the concrete industry, and then laid out his triple aim: to ban the use of coal-fired power generation in cement production, to urge governments and industry to speed up decarbonization efforts and to further develop higher emissions reduction targets and other programs in line with UN policy guidelines.

Thomas Guillot, Chief Executive Officer of the Global Cement and Concrete Association, added: “We applaud all the actions our members have taken to implement carbon reduction measures, and the latest figures show that emissions are falling. However, there are still many challenges that we must overcome if we are to achieve net zero emissions, including favorable policies and regulations from governments around the world that often do not yet exist.”

Earlier report: The association has developed a strategic plan to achieve net-zero concrete by 2050.

The organization previously announced its own commitment to reduce CO2 emissions by a quarter by 2030. The “roadmap” plan presented at the time called for a total of 10 large carbon capture plants to be built by association members by 2030. Globally, a significant portion of emissions can be attributed to cement and various types of concrete (a point highlighted by Guterres) and, along with coal, is seen as a crucial element in keeping global temperature rise below the 1.5°C threshold by 2030.

“The transparency and rigor inherent in the standard is critical. In short: We need concrete commitments from the concrete industry. These will provide clarity and predictability for your shareholders, supply chain, and customers. Shady offsets or betting it all on undiscovered technologies won’t get us there. Real, deep emissions reductions are what matter,” Guterres concluded.

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