The treatment of cementitious surface by selected silicate sealers

Over the past decades, efficiency of silicate-based surface treatment agents, in other words, sealers, concrete systems has been widely investigated. The technology protects cementitious against penetration undesirable substances. Nevertheless, understanding several aspects concerning sealers is not entirely clear. This paper studies action mechanism selected silicates such as potassium, sodium, lithium water glasses, and colloidal silica. effectiveness used terms absorption reduction, ability to heal pores, influence on microstructure cement substrate were studied. Instrumental methods rheology, mercury intrusion porosimetry, or scanning electron microscopy achieve satisfactory results. Nuances between unique film-forming found. Colloidal silica showed a low sealing effect compared alkali silicates.