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      <doi>10.14455/ISEC.2026.13(1).CTE-06</doi>
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        <article-title>CEMENT MORTARS WITH RICE HUSK ASH TREATED WITH WATER AND ACETIC ACID</article-title>
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      <author>CRISTIAN BALCÁZAR-ARCINIEGA, VALERIA ERAZO-AGUIRRE, SANTIAGO JIMÉNEZ-HERRERA, EDUARDO AGUIRRE-MALDONADO</author>
      <aff>Dept of Architecture and Urban Planning, Private Technical Univ of Loja, Loja, Ecuador<br /></aff>
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      <title>ABSTRACT</title>
      <p>Agricultural waste ashes represent a promising source of supplementary cementitious material (SCM); however, they must be washed (with water or acids) or co-processed with calcium-rich slags to mitigate deleterious reactions.  Knowledge gaps remain regarding their fire performance and the evolution of pore-solution pH—both critical parameters for long-term durability.  This study evaluated mortars incorporating 10 wt% rice husk ash (RHA), considering three treatment conditions: untreated (U), water-washed (W), and acetic-acid-washed (AA).  After 28 days of curing, physical–mechanical properties and pore solution pH were determined.  Additionally, selected specimens were subjected to a thermal shock at 500 °C for 1 h to assess residual strength.  The ANOVA analysis revealed statistically significant differences in the mechanical behavior of the mortars depending on the applied treatment.  Under fire-unexposed conditions, the incorporation of water-washed RHA significantly increased compressive strength and reduced strain, an effect associated with lower water absorption by immersion, reduced open porosity, and higher bulk density.  However, after exposure to 500 °C, all mortars experienced mechanical degradation, which was more pronounced in those with pretreated RHA (−52.4% strength and +132.9% strain in W).  Mortars with untreated RHA exhibited greater thermal stability, attributed to their coarser porosity that facilitated vapor release.  Moreover, all RHA-containing variants substantially reduced system alkalinity (pH ≈ 8), a condition favorable for use with vegetal reinforcements, although limiting for reinforced concrete exposed to chlorides.</p>
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        <italic>Keywords: </italic>Supplementary cementitious materials (SCM), Fire performance, Pore-solution pH, Acid washing, Water washing</p>
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      <hpdf>CTE-06</hpdf>
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