The mechanical properties of cement paste modified by nano-TiO2 (nT) and nano-SiO2 (nS) were experimentally studied. The compressive strength increased first and then decreased with the increase of nanoparticle content. When nanoparticles were added into the cement paste as a filler to improve the microstructure, the two kinds of particles both could form a tighter mesh structure, which would enhance the density and strength of the structure. The elastic modulus increased rapidly with the increase of the nT content and reached a peak when the nanoparticle content is about 3%, which was about twice the elastic modulus of ordinary cement paste. The Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observation results showed that the microstructure of cement was network connection and fiber tube. The hydration progress of ordinary cement slurry was insufficient, and many unreacted cement particles remained. With the addition of nanoparticles, the internal structure of the cement became denser, with fewer pore cracks, smaller pore diameters, more complex fiber tube arrangements, and significant anisotropy, thereby improving strength and mechanical properties.
Silicate coatings have been considered as an alternative to toxic and carcinogenic other chemical treatments. In this paper, a strengthened silicate coating was formed on the surface of low carbon steel by dip immersion method. The modification and strengthening was done by loading colloidal nano-SiO2 into the film. The characterizations of nano-SiO2 were investigated by FESEM, TEM and FT-IR. The effects of nano contents (weight ratio) and drying temperatures on corrosion properties of silicate film were studied. Potentiodynamic polarization, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and immersion tests have been used to study corrosion behavior of nano-loaded silicate films. Surface morphology, microstructure and its chemical composition were analyzed by means of FESEM, EDS, AFM, XRD, GIXRD, ATR-FTIR and Raman techniques. Results indicated that colloidal nano-SiO2 properly modified the silicate coatings and significantly improved the corrosion resistance and barrier property. Also drying temperature showed a considerable effect in silicate coating and higher corrosion resistance was obtained with 150°C curing.