Influence of nanosized magnesia on the hydration of borehole-sealing cements prepared using different methods

Abstract Gas drainage is an effective technology for gas control in coal mines. A high borehole-sealing quality is the fundamental precondition for efficient gas drainage. The expansibilities of cement pastes used in borehole-sealing processes are critical for the borehole-sealing effect. Nanosized magnesia expansive agents are used to improve the expansibilities of cement pastes and improve the borehole-sealing effect. Nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometry and scanning electron microscopy were adopted to study the effects of nanosized magnesia on the hydration of borehole-sealing cements used with different preparation methods. The results showed that an increase in the mass fraction of the nanosized magnesia promoted cement hydration, and the mass fraction was positively correlated with the promotion effect. The use of different preparation methods did not change the water-phase distribution in the cement. When using the wet-mixing preparation method, nanosized magnesia promoted the induction, acceleration, and deceleration periods of hydration; when using the dry-mixing preparation method, the nanosized magnesia promoted the induction period of cement hydration, and the promotion effect was less obvious than that seen when using the wet-mixing method. When using the wet-mixing preparation method, the nanosized magnesia was uniformly dispersed, thus enlarging the surface area of the reaction, which provided more nucleation sites for the hydration products of the cement and therefore accelerated the hydration reaction. When using the dry-mixing preparation method, the nanosized magnesia powders were dispersed nonuniformly and aggregated. Under these conditions, only a few nanosized magnesia particles on the surfaces of the aggregated clusters took part in hydration, so only a small number of nucleation sites were provided for the hydration products of cement. This led to inconsistent hydration of cement pastes prepared using the dry-mixing method. The surface porosity of the cement prepared with the wet-mixing preparation method first decreased and then increased with increases in the mass fraction of the nanosized magnesia. The cement surface exhibited compact hydration products and few pores, and the surface was relatively smooth. In comparison, the surface porosity of the cement prepared using the dry-mixing method fluctuated with increasing mass fraction of the nanosized magnesia, resulting in a rough cement surface and microfractures on some surfaces. The two preparation methods both reduced the surface porosity of the cement. The wet-mixing preparation was more effective and consistent in improving the compactness of the cement than the dry-mixing preparation. These results provide important guidance on the addition of nanosized magnesia in borehole-sealing engineering and the selection of cement preparation methods, and they also lay a solid foundation for realizing safe and efficient gas drainage.