Process for manufacturing a cement/porous-rock composite and product resulting therefrom

Abstract

A process for binding porous-rock particles with cement, wherein the rock is saturated in water prior to mixing with the cement. The saturation step causes water to fill the voids in the porous structure of the rock such that, during mixing of the wet rock with cement, cement particles adhere to the surface of the rock but are mostly precluded from reaching void spaces in the rock. As a result of this procedure, the interstitial water is available from within the rock for the cement hydration process, thereby providing a more uniform curing step than otherwise available, and a greater proportion of the cement is appropriately placed on the outer surface of the particles for bonding. The resulting aggregate is stronger than obtained by conventional mixing processes. In addition, because of the voids left in the composite after the cement has cured and the interstitial water has been either used by the hydration process or has evaporated, the material also exhibits improved insulating properties.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.