Concrete doesn’t always come in grey, it can come in a range of different colours, sometimes these are dictated by the types of materials used e.g. the colour and shade of sand, aggregate etc but it can also be coloured using special dyes. According to their dispersing functionality and action mode, one distinguishes two classes of superplasticizers:

Below you will find a selection of the most commonly used admixtures or additives and how they work to enhance a concrete, cement or mortar mixture. Plasticizers, Superplasticizers and Air-Entraining Admixtures Ultimately how much you add will depend on the type of additive you are using and the desired effects you are trying to achieve.Although not technically an admixture e.g. it doesn’t get mixed in with concrete to become part of the mix, dustproofer (often called hardener and dustproofer) is applied to existing or newly laid concrete surfaces so it’s worth a mention. Plasticizers or high range water reducers, or simply water reducers, as the name suggests, serve the basic purpose of reducing the water requirement of concrete. Thus, the purpose is to improve workability without compensation or even an increase of strength. The concrete strength is inversely proportional to the w/c (water-cement ratio). But a certain amount of water has to be provided to ensure the complete hydration of cement and proper workability of concrete. What plasticizers do, us that they reduce this certain required amount. Hence, strength increases. On the contrary, if you don’t reduce water, with the addition of plasticizers, you get bonus workability! The one downside to air-entraining a concrete mix is that it does reduce its compressive strength slightly so be aware of this fact. If you are working on a project that requires great compressive strength then you will need to confer any concrete mix plans with a structural engineer to ensure it is the right mix for the job. ALPHALITH Hyperflow 2000® FM is a superplasticizer of the new generation of PCE polymers with a performance exceeding the well-known melamine- and naphtalene-based superplasticizers by far. Plasticizers are commonly added to polymers such as plastics and rubber, either to facilitate the handling of the raw material during fabrication, or to meet the demands of the end product's application. For example, plasticizers are commonly added to polyvinyl chloride (PVC), which otherwise is hard and brittle, to make it soft and pliable; which makes it suitable for products such as shower curtains, vinyl flooring, clothing, bags, flexible plastic tubing, and electric wire insulation/coating.

Deflocculation: With the establishment of zeta potential, the cement particles are deflocculated and dispersed. With the deflocculation of the cement particles, the water trapped in them is released and available for hydration. 2. Retarding Effect Plasticizers do their job by acting as a kind of lubricant between segments of polymer chains. Without the plasticizer, those chains of molecules would sit on top of each other as rigidly as uncooked spaghetti in a box. … Many different materials use plasticizers PVC, rubber, plastics and so on. Can you use washing up liquid as plasticiser? Plasticizers for polymers are either liquids with low volatility or solids. According to 2017 data, the total global market for plasticizers was 7.5 million metric tonnes. In North America the 2017 volume was ~1.01 million metric tonnes and in Europe the figure was 1.35 million metric tonnes, split between various end-use applications with a chemical type trend moving to higher molecular weight (HMW) orthophthalates and alternative types following regulatory issues concerning lower molecular weight (LMW) orthophthalates.Concrete is one of the most commonly used materials in the building trade and depending on how it’s being used there are a number of different admixtures or additives as they are also known that can be used to enhance, assist, colour etc. your cement mixtures as required. Terephthalates are isomeric with ortho phthalates but have proven to have cleaner toxicological results due to their inability to form stable monoesters during hydrolysis and metabolic breakdown.