Jeon et al. (2023) — Effects of Alkali-Activated Slag Binder and Shape-Stabilized Phase Change Material on Thermal, Mechanical, and Environmental Impact

Citation

Jeon, I. K., Azzam, A., Al Jebaei, H., Kim, Y.-R., Aryal, A., & Baltazar, J.-C. (2023). Effects of alkali-activated slag binder and shape-stabilized phase change material on thermal and mechanical characteristics and environmental impact of cementitious composite for building envelopes. Journal of Building Engineering, 76, 107296.

DOI: 10.1016/j.jobe.2023.107296
Atlas layer: extension
Related Victor Li book chapter: Chapter 8: Thermal Properties and Building Envelopes & Chapter 9: Green ECC (Alkali-Activated Slag & Life Cycle Decarbonization)
Source PDF: jeon-2023-effects-of-alkali-activated-slag-binder.pdf
Extracted text: full_text/jeon-2023-effects-of-alkali-activated-slag-binder_full_text.md
Source note: source_notes/jeon-2023-effects-of-alkali-activated-slag-binder_source_note.md

Why this paper matters

Integrates one-part "just-add-water" alkali-activated slag (AAS) with shape-stabilized bio-based Phase Change Materials (PCMs) impregnated into recycled expanded glass aggregates, demonstrating a 47 % reduction in thermal conductivity (to 0.72 W/m·K), 8.5–12.4 % HVAC building operational energy savings, and over 50 % life-cycle CO2 emissions reduction.

Main contribution

Fabricates Thermal Energy Storage Aggregates (TESA) via vacuum impregnation of bio-based PCM (PureTemp27) into porous recycled expanded glass aggregates (EGA) sealed with a graphite-modified epoxy shell.
Formulates one-part "just-add-water" cementless composites using GGBFS activated by solid anhydrous sodium metasilicate ($\text{Na}_2\text{SiO}_3$).
Evaluates mechanical and thermal properties: 28-day compressive strengths reach 25–55 MPa while thermal conductivity drops from 1.35 W/m·K (OPC) to 0.72 W/m·K (AAS-TESA).
Conducts whole-building energy simulations (EnergyPlus) and cradle-to-grave LCA, proving that AAS-TESA building envelope panels save 8.5–12.4 % annual HVAC cooling/heating electricity and cut life-cycle carbon emissions by over 50 %.

Evidence summary

Binder & Aggregate System: GGBFS slag activated with anhydrous $\text{Na}_2\text{SiO}_3$ (powder form) vs. Type I OPC control ($w/b = 0.40$).
Shape-Stabilized PCM (TESA): Bio-based PCM (PureTemp27, latent heat $180\text{ J/g}$, melting point 27 °C) impregnated into recycled expanded glass aggregates ($1\text{--}2\text{ mm}$), coated with 15 wt% graphite-epoxy.
Mechanical & Thermal Performance:
Compressive strength ($f_c$): Plain AAS = 52.4 MPa; AAS + 20% TESA = 32.5 MPa; AAS + 40% TESA = 24.8 MPa.
Thermal conductivity ($k$): AAS reduces thermal conductivity by ~20 % vs. OPC; 40 % TESA reduces $k$ to $0.72\text{ W/m}\cdot\text{K}$ (-47 % vs. control 1.35 W/m·K).
Environmental & Energy Metrics:
HVAC energy savings: 8.5 % to 12.4 % reduction across diverse US climate zones.
Life-cycle CO2 footprint: Raw material carbon reduced by 72 % (AAS vs OPC); operational carbon reduced by ~10–12 %, achieving > 50 % net cradle-to-grave emissions reduction.

Linked Atlas nodes

04_material_systems/green_ecc.md
04_material_systems/lightweight_ecc.md
02_concepts/circular_economy_materials.md
02_concepts/life_cycle_analysis.md

Relationship to Victor Li book

Extends Victor Li (2019) Chapter 8 (Thermal and Functional Properties) and Chapter 9 (Green ECC).
Connects structural composite design to building energy decarbonization: shows that combining zero-cement AAS binders with latent heat thermal storage materials reduces both upfront embodied carbon and long-term operational building emissions.

Claim-evidence rows to add

Atlas node	Claim	Evidence summary	Page/Figure/Table	Status
`02_concepts/life_cycle_analysis.md`	One-part AAS binder combined with shape-stabilized PCM reduces building envelope thermal conductivity to 0.72 W/m·K and cuts HVAC energy by 8.5–12.4 %	Thermal conductivity measurements (TPS) and EnergyPlus whole-building computational energy simulations	Section 3 & 4, Fig. 6-10, Table 4-6	verified_from_pdf
`04_material_systems/green_ecc.md`	Solid-activator one-part AAS with recycled expanded glass aggregates retains structural compressive strength (> 25 MPa) with PCM incorporation	ASTM C109 cube compression testing across 0 to 40 % TESA replacement ratios	Section 3.1, Fig. 5, Table 4	verified_from_pdf

Verification status

PDF preserved: yes (jeon-2023-effects-of-alkali-activated-slag-binder.pdf)
Text extracted: yes (full_text/jeon-2023-effects-of-alkali-activated-slag-binder_full_text.md)
DOI verified: yes (10.1016/j.jobe.2023.107296)
Metadata verified: yes (J. Build. Eng., Vol. 76, 107296, 2023)
Claim-evidence matrix ready: yes

Cautions

Adding high dosages of porous PCM aggregates (TESA > 40 %) lowers compressive strength from 52 MPa to 25 MPa; structural wall applications should optimize TESA between 20 % and 30 %.
Does not contain tensile strain-hardening fibers; focuses on thermal energy storage and building envelope decarbonization.