Help with Hydraulic and Portland Cement specifications:
Cement, Concrete, or Raw Material
Back to Top
![]() |
![]() | ||
Cement / Monolithic Type | |||
Your choices are... | |||
Grout / Filler | Grout and caulk are types of sealants used to fill in gaps between tiles, bricks, or other components. | ||
Cement / Binder | Cement refers to a mixture of binder and aggregate to form concretes or mortars such as Portland cement (calcium silicate), potassium silicate, or polymer cement. Sometimes, the term "cement" is used to describe mortars and other cement products. | ||
Coating / Thinset | Cement-based coating products are thin-set materials applied in thinner layers than liner products, mortar or concretes. The terms thinset cement, thinset mortar, dryset mortar ,and drybond mortar are synonymous. | ||
Concrete | Concrete consists of specialty cement or Portland cement and water mixed with coarse aggregate (e.g., gravel or crushed stone), fine aggregate or sand. | ||
Liner / Lining System | Cement-based liners or lining systems are much heavier, or are applied in thicker layers than cement coatings or thinsets. Liners can be prefabricated or applied on site by pouring or pumping into forms or through gunning techniques. | ||
Mortar | Mortars consist of a mixture of a binder or clinker and a fine aggregate. They are used to bond together brick or other components in structural applications. | ||
Powder / Aggregate | Stock products are available in a particulate form such as a powder, grog, grain, or fused and crushed aggregate. | ||
Search Logic: | All products with ANY of the selected attributes will be returned as matches. Leaving all boxes unchecked will not limit the search criteria for this question; products with all attribute options will be returned as matches. | ||
![]() |
Setting / Cure Technology
Back to Top
![]() |
![]() | ||
Setting / Cure Technology: | |||
Your choices are... | |||
Hydraulic Setting | Hydraulically-set bonds use the hydration reaction of a salt to form a bond. Portland cement and plaster of Paris are hydraulically-setting materials. | ||
Air Setting | Air setting or film drying materials form a bond or "harden" through evaporation of water or an organic solvent. Inorganic binders or cements are sometimes air setting. Refractory or high-temperature air set types may develop strong bonds after firing. | ||
Chemical Setting | Binders or adhesives are set through a chemical reaction process. Silicates (sodium, potassium, ethyl, etc.) are commonly used as binders in foundry, refractory, and grinding wheel applications. | ||
Heat Setting / Thermoset | Heat setting or thermoset bond use an elevated temperature and/or pressures to set the binder. Thermoset resin binders are cross-linked polymeric resins that are cured using heat or heat and pressure. Cured thermoset resins do not melt and flow when heated, but they may soften. Phenolic, melamine and urea formaldehyde resins are thermosetting adhesives that offer strong bonds and good resistance to high temperatures. | ||
Hot Melt | Hot melt bonds can be repeatedly softened by heat and hardened or set by cooling, which allows parts to be removed or repositioned during assembly. Sulfur bond is an example of hot melt cement. | ||
Two / Multiple Component | Two or multi-component bond or binder systems consist of two or more resins or a resin and a hardener or catalyst, that when combined, react and cure into a polymerized compound or bond. | ||
Other | Other specialized, proprietary or unlisted technology types. | ||
Search Logic: | All products with ANY of the selected attributes will be returned as matches. Leaving all boxes unchecked will not limit the search criteria for this question; products with all attribute options will be returned as matches. | ||
![]() |
Processing Specifications (Cement, Concrete or Mortar)
Back to Top
![]() |
![]() | ||
Set / Cure Time | The time required for fully curing or setting a bond system. In thermosetting, hydraulic, or other chemically setting system, the time will vary depending on the actual curing temperature. Longer cure times will be required for lower curing temperatures. In addition, the time required for fully drying an air setting product. | ||
Search Logic: | User may specify either, both, or neither of the "At Least" and "No More Than" values. Products returned as matches will meet all specified criteria. | ||
![]() | |||
Set / Cure Temperature | The time required for curing a thermosetting system. The temperature will vary depending on the actual curing time allowable. Higher curing temperatures will be required for lower cure times. | ||
Search Logic: | User may specify either, both, or neither of the "At Least" and "No More Than" values. Products returned as matches will meet all specified criteria. | ||
![]() | |||
Shrinkage | The maximum percent of linear shrinkage occurring after drying, setting and/or curing. | ||
Search Logic: | User may specify either, both, or neither of the "At Least" and "No More Than" values. Products returned as matches will meet all specified criteria. | ||
![]() |
Thermal & Mechanical
Back to Top
![]() |
![]() | ||
Max Use Temperature | This is the maximum temperature that the refractory or ceramic material can be exposed to momentarily, without the degradation of structural or other required end-use properties. The maximum use temperature is usually equal to the melt temperature of the metal, glass, or other material contained by the refractory body in the furnace, boiler or process unit. The Curie point is the temperature above which a material loses its unique magnetic, dielectric or piezoelectric property. Ferrites or other magnetic materials lose their unique magnetic properties above the Curie temperature. The relative permeability drops to a value below 0.1 above the Curie temperature. Magnetic susceptibility is inversely proportional to temperature. | ||
Search Logic: | User may specify either, both, or neither of the "At Least" and "No More Than" values. Products returned as matches will meet all specified criteria. | ||
![]() | |||
MOR / Flexural Strength | Modulus of rupture (MOR), cross-break strength or flexural strength (3-point or 4-point) is the maximum flexural stress a bar can withstand before failure or fracture occurs. The bar is supported by two points beneath the bar and the load is applied by one or two points above the bar. Cross break strength is used to evaluate the strength of ceramics or other materials that do not provide sufficient plastic deformation to test tensile strength reliably. | ||
Search Logic: | User may specify either, both, or neither of the "At Least" and "No More Than" values. Products returned as matches will meet all specified criteria. | ||
![]() | |||
Compressive / Crushing Strength | The crushing or compressive strength is the maximum compressive load per unit cross section that a ceramic body can withstand before mechanical failure or breakage occurs. | ||
Search Logic: | User may specify either, both, or neither of the "At Least" and "No More Than" values. Products returned as matches will meet all specified criteria. | ||
![]() |
Applications
Back to Top
![]() |
![]() | ||
Applications: | |||
Your choices are... | |||
Ceramics / Glass Manufacturing | Materials provide resistance to molten glass, or are compatible with ceramics and glasses during firing, calcining or fusing in a kiln or furnace. | ||
Chemical / Materials Processing | Materials provide high temperature and/or corrosion resistance, making them suitable for chemical-processing applications. Examples include ceramics or refractories with resistance to molten glass, ceramics, metals, plastics or other materials during milling, firing, calcination, fusion or other processes. | ||
Construction & Building / Architectural | Materials are designed or suitable for use in architectural, building, and construction applications. Examples include bricks, fire bricks, or tiles. | ||
Flooring | Materials are suitable for flooring or floor-tiling applications. | ||
Walls | Materials are suitable for use on walls. | ||
Foundry / Metal Processing | Materials are designed for foundry and metal-processing applications. Examples include ceramic and refractory crucibles, tubes, stoppers, liners, spouts, permanent molds, thermocouple protection tubes, combustion gas heater tubes, submersible heater tubes, die casting stalks/sleeves, and other furnace components are used in foundries for melting and casting aluminum, steel, copper alloys or other metals. | ||
Structural | Structural applications require ceramic components with a suitable strength, elastic modulus, toughness, and other mechanical properties. Ceramics can have much higher compressive strengths and elastic moduli compared to metals. | ||
Other | Other unlisted, specialized or proprietary applications. | ||
Search Logic: | All products with ANY of the selected attributes will be returned as matches. Leaving all boxes unchecked will not limit the search criteria for this question; products with all attribute options will be returned as matches. | ||
![]() |
Features
Back to Top
![]() |
![]() | ||
Features: | |||
Your choices are... | |||
Fiberboard / Fiber Reinforced | Fiberboards, fiber-based, or fiber-reinforced products include ceramic boards, cylinders or shapes that contain ceramic or mineral wool fibers to improve structural integrity or insulating characteristics. | ||
Porous / Foam | Porous ceramics have a large degree of open or closed internal pores that provide a thermal barrier. Certain ceramics have intrinsically low thermal conductivity, even in dense forms. Reticulated foam refractories are useful in filtering molten metals and providing an extremely low density structure for insulation or other applications. | ||
Castable | Products can be poured into a form or cavity to fabricate a refractory liner or component. Some castables may not be pumpable. | ||
Gunning / Shotcrete (e.g., Gunnite) | Gunning mixes are cements or powdered products that are loaded with a gun into a form or onto a wall to fashion a cement wall or layer. Dry or wet gunning mixes are available. | ||
Ramming | Both dry rams (vibratables) and wet mix rams are available. Wet rams are cement based products with enough plasticity to allow the wet mix to be rammed or formed into place in a furnace or in a form. Ramming material has a clay-to-putty like consistency. Rams generally have lower water content and less plasticity than moldables. Dry rams are supplied as a dry powder that is applied and fired in place. Silicate, phosphate or other binders are activated upon firing. The dry refractory powders or aggregates are tamped or rammed into the floor or vibrated into place between the furnace wall and a removable furnace "former." On smaller furnaces, a former less method is used where a unit is filled with dry refractory powder, fired and then the excess unfired refractory is removed for reuse. Some dry refractories are also called dry rams or dry ramming cements. | ||
Troweling / Patching | Troweling cements have good plastering or palming characteristics to allow the refractory to be applied by hand or rammed into place. Moldable cements usually have more water and a higher degree of plasticity than rams. Moldables or plastic cements are used to patch or form precast shapes. Patching, repair or finishing cements consist of mixtures designed for repairing crack or filling holes in refractory linings. Some patching or repair cements may be pumpable for caulking of cracks. Other patching cements have good troweling, plastering or palming characteristics to allow cracks to be applied by hand. Finishing cements are used to make a harder finishing refractory layer on the surface of an existing refractory. | ||
Waterproof / Underwater Setting | Waterproof mortars, concretes or cements are not affected by exposure to water or submersion under water. | ||
Specialty / Other | Other unlisted, specialized, or proprietary material features. | ||
Search Logic: | All products with ANY of the selected attributes will be returned as matches. Leaving all boxes unchecked will not limit the search criteria for this question; products with all attribute options will be returned as matches. | ||
![]() | |||
Bond / Processing Features: | |||
Your choices are... | |||
Polymer Modified | Portland cement is modified with polymer additions to improve plasticity, water resistance, or allow use during cold or freezing weather conditions. | ||
Acrylate | Acrylic binders are known for excellent environmental resistance and fast-setting time compared to other resin systems. Polymerizing acrylic or methylacrylic acids through a reaction with a suitable catalyst makes acrylic binders. They cure through a free radical mechanism. While they are usually supplied in two-component form, they do not typically require mixing. The catalyst, accelerator, or hardener can be applied to one surface and the acrylic resin to the other surface. These adhesives or sealants are called two-step systems. Sufficient diffusion will occur when the surfaces are adjoined to complete curing of the adhesive. Acrylic binders are available in both of emulsion and solvent based versions. | ||
Epoxy | Epoxy resins or binders exhibit high strength and low shrinkage during curing. Epoxies are known for their toughness and resistance to chemical and environmental damage. Most epoxies are two-part systems cured at room temperature. Some thermally cured or thermoset one-part epoxies are also available. Depending on the formulation, epoxy resins are used as potting agents, resin binders or laminating resins in fiberglass or composite construction, electrical conductors in microelectronic packaging, and various structural bonding applications. | ||
Polyurethane | Polyurethane resins or binders provide excellent flexibility, impact resistance and durability. They are available in one or two-part adhesive systems. Polyurethanes are formed through the reaction of an isocyanate component with polyols or other active hydroxyl group compounds. Polyurethanes bond well to plastic surfaces and make an excellent flexible potting compound. Polyurethanes require a catalyst, heat, or air evaporation to initiate and complete curing. Some disadvantages of polyurethanes are their short shelf life due to hydroscopic (water absorption) tendencies, and their generally slower cure combined with more complicated handling and curing procedures. | ||
Vinyl Ester / Polyester | Resin binders are based on the vinyl ester or polyester system. | ||
Other | Other unlisted, specialized, or proprietary bond types. | ||
Search Logic: | All products with ANY of the selected attributes will be returned as matches. Leaving all boxes unchecked will not limit the search criteria for this question; products with all attribute options will be returned as matches. | ||
![]() |