Investigation of thermal properties of cement Sorel by photothermal deflection technique

Photothermal deflection PTD is a non destructive Technique. PTD is based on the photothermal phenomenon, in which a modulated incident light on the specimen is transformed into heat and detected as a tension by using a position photodetecor linked to a lock in amplifier. The signal depends directly on the thermal properties (Thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity) of the specimen [1]. In this work we investigated the thermal property of cement Sorel (CS). Nowadays, the development of composite construction materials with low thermal properties will be an interesting alternative that would solve energy concerns. In this context, we investigate the effect of replacing Sorel cement with polymer PVAc [2]. The thermal properties are measured using the Photothermal Deflection Technique (PTD) by comparing the experimental curves of normalized amplitude and phase of photothermal signal versus square root modulation frequency to the corresponding theoretical ones. The experimental investigation revealed that the addition of the PVAc reduces the Thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity of the cement and yield a lightweight. The thermal insulating effect of PVAc is attractive and indicates a high and promising potential for development.