DIN-Fachbericht CEN/TR 15697:2008-10

This CEN/TR is a state of the art review of the international research literature dealing with testing/assessing the sulfate resistance performance of cements and related binders. It outlines the difficulties faced by CEN/TC 51 in applying a prescriptive approach to the specification of sulfate resistant cements and identifies the different mechanisms and forms of deterioration that occur during sulfate attack. This report compares the advantages and disadvantages of different test specimen types (paste, mortar or concrete), different exposure conditions and different techniques used to assess specimen deterioration. The importance of test method reproducibility is reviewed with reference to the experimental work carried out by CEN/TC 51 during the 1990s. The report lists the key parameters that must be controlled in any robust standardised method and makes suggestions for the main features of a pan-European performance test.