Evaluation of Changes in Structure of Modified Cement Composite Using Fractal Analysis

The need for research using modern methods of physical and chemical analysis in combination with methods for processing the graphical results arises with an increase of developments aimed at changing the structure and properties of hydration-hardening materials. Currently, the method of scanning electron microscopy is widely used for the qualitative and quantitative analysis of materials. Additional information, including fractal analysis of the image, determines the information-entropy levels and the state of the information system in the form of the microstructure based on the generalized structural entropy that increases the volume and quality of analytical information extracted from the obtained images. Images with a magnification of 20,000 times were used to analyze the microstructure of a control cement composite and a carbon black modified composite. The fractal analysis of the images revealed a change in the relative organization of the system, which justifiedthe nature of the change in the physical and technical properties of the modified cement composite relative to the additive-free cement composite from the perspective of self-organization.