Yogarajah Elakneswaran

Geopolymers are a class of alkaline-activated materials that have been considered as promising materials for radioactive waste disposal. Currently, metakaolin-based geopolymers (MK-GPs) are attracting interest for the immobilisation of radionuclides in contaminated water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station. However, the associated chemical interaction mechanisms and the theoretical prediction of the adsorption behaviour of MK-GP in response to cationic radionuclides have not been th

The cement industry is an energy-intensive industry, and improving the energy efficiency of cement has become necessary to reduce its carbon footprint and to compete in the global market. Clinker production consumes more than 90% of the total energy used in the cement industry. Therefore, a reduction in the burning temperature of the cement clinker can reduce the energy consumption; however, it alters the mineralogy of the clinker composition. Ferrite-rich Portland cement can be produced by lowe

In Civil Engineering field, the compressive strength of concrete is a key parameter to design concrete structures and evaluate existing structures. Conventionally the measurement of the strength requires a considerable amount of time (~28 days) and cost. Thus, this paper comprehensively reviews the literature on strength prediction models focusing on the prediction mechanism and its prediction precision. The literature demonstrates that various techniques including mathematics and statistics, an

The mechanical properties such as compressive strength, Young's modulus and Poisson's ratio are the most important parameters for design and structural analysis in the field of Civil Engineering. In hydrated cement paste, these properties are significantly determined by its microstructure. In this research work, a two-stage model is proposed to systematically predict the mechanical properties of the cement paste from the microstructure. In Stage-1, relative humidity, thermodynamic, cement hydrat

The escalating release of CO2 into the atmosphere has turned the matter of global warming into a pressing issue. Therefore, direct air capture (DAC - capturing CO2 from the environment) using buildings and infrastructure made of cement-based materials as “synthetic trees” could be an effective approach, given the growing urbanization trend. This study proposed a new technique to use N-methyldiethanolamine (MDEA) in cement-based materials to sequestrate CO2 from the environment. It has significan

In this study, a multi-scale model called DuCOM (Durability COncrete Model), which is developed by the Concrete Laboratory at the University of Tokyo, is extended by coupling the geochemical code PHREEQC. The coupled numeri-cal framework can address physicochemical and geochemical processes such as the hydration of cement particles, pore structure formation, multispecies transport, activity effect, thermodynamic reaction between aqueous solution and solids, etc. in cementitious materials, and th

Understanding crude oil/brine interface chemistry is essential to elucidating the effect of low-salinity waterflooding (LSWF) on enhanced oil recovery (EOR). The acid and base functional groups in crude oil result in an electrostatic interaction with the rock’s surface, thereby affecting wettability conditions. Moreover, the content of carboxyl acid components is a key factor influencing electrostatic interaction during LSWF. In this study, the number of carboxyl groups in four different crude o