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Cementitious pastes are multiphase suspensions that are rheologically characterized by viscosity and yield stress. They tend to flocculate during rest due to attractive interparticle forces, and desagglomerate when shear is induced. The shear history, e.g., mixing energy and time, determines the apparent state of flocculation and accordingly the particle size distribution of the cement in the suspension, which itself affects suspension's plastic viscosity and yield stress. Thus, it is crucial to understand the effect of the mixing procedure of cementitious suspensions before starting rheological measurements. However, the measurement of the in-situ particle agglomeration status is difficult, due to rapidly changing particle network structuration. The focused beam reflectance measurement (FBRM) technique offers an opportunity for the in-situ investigation of the chord length distribution. This enables to detect the state of flocculation of the particles during shear. Cementitious pastes differing in their solid fraction and superplasticizer content were analyzed after various pre-shear histories, i.e., mixing times. Yield stress and viscosity were measured in a parallel-plate-rheometer and related to in-situ measurements of the chord length distribution with the FBRM-probe to characterize the agglomeration status. With increasing mixing time agglomerates were increasingly broken up in dependence of pre-shear: After 300 s of pre-shear the agglomerate sizes decreased by 10 µm to 15 µm compared to a 30 s pre-shear. At the same time dynamic yield stress and viscosity decreased up to 30% until a state of equilibrium was almost reached. The investigations show a correlation between mean chord length and the corresponding rheological parameters affected by the duration of pre-shear.

Rheological properties of cementitious pastes and mortar affect the casting, placement, and setting properties of fresh concrete. Fundamental rheological knowledge thus helps in predicting concrete flowability and workability. Empirical equations correlate actual rheological parameters based on physical material characteristics to workability tests. Still, these equations generally only take the dynamic yield stress of the material into account. This is not sufficient for thixotropic cementitious pastes or mortars, which possess structural buildup at rest. Workability predictions regarding the flow of concrete are thus more complicated with thixotropic materials. During form-filling in L-shaped formworks, the flow velocity of concrete slows down, wherefore rheological parameters change with time. At initial fast flow, high shear rates without structural buildup can be assumed. Dynamic yield stress and a steady state viscosity thus are proper parameters for empirical equations describing concrete flowability. During low shear rates, partial structural buildup takes place. Viscosity and yield stress increase due to agglomeration and affect the flowability of concrete tremendously. Rheological parameters of various cementitious pastes and mortars varying in their solid volume fraction and flowability were investigated in a vane-in-cup rheometer. The workability of the same mixtures was investigated by measuring the flow length in an L-shaped formwork. The effect of yield stress, viscosity, and thixotropic structural buildup on flow length was investigated. Subsequently correlations and discrepancies between flowability parameters and workability equations were analyzed.