Webinar Description
Hosted by: ACerS Cements Division
Tuesday, December 16, 2025; 1:00–2:00 p.m. Eastern US time
Sponsored by the ACerS Cements Division, the December webinar will feature one speaker: Accelerating & Automating Testing of Cement-Based Materials: From Days to Minutes
Description
Accelerating & Automating Testing of Cement-Based Materials: From Days to Minutes
Traditional testing for cement-based materials has been historically time-intensive, ranging from days to weeks to sometimes even several months. Recent advances in instrumentation, sensors, and AI can accelerate some of these traditional tests. In this talk, I will outline our recent efforts to speed up testing from the timescale of days to minutes. Specifically, I will talk about three areas. The first area is SCM reactivity testing, where we’ve introduced a new UR2 test that can predict the 7d R3 test results in a matter of 5 minutes. The second area is that of durability testing, where we’ve introduced a droplet test that can predict sorptivity in a matter of few seconds. Finally, the third area is that of low-cost and rapid imaging for shape analysis of fine aggregates, where we can pinpoint the influence of particle shape parameters on mortar strength and workability. Overall, with these approaches, we aim to strive towards a future where rapid testing can lead to rapid deployment of new materials.
Biography
Nishant Garg, Associate Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Nishant Garg is an Associate Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Prior to joining Illinois in 2018, he completed his postdoctoral research at Princeton University from 2016 to 2018 and earned his Ph.D. in Nanoscience from Aarhus University, Denmark, in 2015.
At Illinois, his research group focuses on the chemistry of construction materials using advanced characterization techniques. He has pioneered novel methods that accelerate and automate testing of cement-based materials, reducing test durations from several days to a few minutes.
His research efforts have been recognized by numerous awards, including the 2021 ‘Stephen Brunauer Award’ and 2025 ‘Early Career Award’ from the American Ceramic Society, and the 2025 ‘Dean’s Award for Excellence in Research’ at Illinois.
Registration
- ACerS member: no cost
- ACerS GGRN and Material Advantage student member: no cost
- Non-member: no cost
- Non-member student: no cost
If you have any questions, please contact Vicki Evans.
This webinar is brought to you by the ACerS Cements Division. To view past ACerS webinars, click here.
