For improving the contribution of the cement industry to mitigate global warming, many strategies have been put into practice, such as the use of eco-friendly cements with the incorporation of additions substituting clinker. Nevertheless, the use of ternary binders for the production of commercial cements is still reduced, particularly in Spain. The purpose of this research is to characterize the long-term influence produced by the exposure to a real in situ inland Mediterranean climate condition in the pore network, parameters related to durability and mechanical performance of mortars made with ternary binders, which incorporated limestone, fly ash, and ground granulated blast-furnace slag, in comparison with mortars without additions and binary blended mortars. The site verified the specifications of exposure class XC4 of Eurocode 2. The ternary and binary binders accomplished the prescriptions of cement type CEM II/B. The pore network was studied with mercury intrusion porosimetry and electrical resistivity. Water absorption, diffusion coefficient, carbonation depth, ultrasonic pulse velocity, compressive and flexural strengths have been determined. The exposure to the environment produced after 250 days an increase in porosity, a loss of pore refinement, a rise of the carbonation depths, and a reduction in the mechanical strengths, highlighting the better overall performance of ternary mortar with both fly ash and slag.
Keywords: Mediterranean climate environment; class XC4; durability; fly ash; ground granulated blast-furnace slag; limestone; mechanical properties; microstructure; real condition exposure; ternary binders.