Quantitative Analysis of Portland Cement Clinker with Rietveld Refinement: Implications of the Amorphous Matter

Six ordinary Portland cement (OPC) clinkers and one white cement clinker were analyzed with the Rietveld method, using ZnO internal standard (IC), to determine the presence of amorphous matter (AM). All clinkers contain abundant AM and have lower silicate phase contents when compared with the same clinkers analyzed without IC, whereas the abundances of the aluminate and ferrate phases were not affected by AM. The white cement clinker had the highest AM content. Determination of AM is important for complete characterization of the OPC clinker and might contribute to a better understanding of the mechanical properties of the clinker.