Preparation and application of micronized expanded hydrophobic perlite in Portland cement mortars

In this work micronized expanded perlite was converted to hydrophobic form by surface modification and used in the Portland cement mortars which properties were tested. In surface modification, two different silane agents, methacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane (MPS) and vinyltrimethoxysilane (VMS) were applied for micronized perlite surface treatment, at room temperature. After determination of some hydrophobic perlite properties it was used for cement mortars production. Physical properties of mortars were examined and it was establish that surface modification is an effective method to prevent water absorption of micronized expanded perlites which are compatible with cement mortars. Results indicated that silanized expanded perlites can be attractive as heat insulator material to produce light-weight mortar or concrete.