White cement concrete gets its color from raw materials and manufacturing processes that reduce coloring oxides like iron that make normal cement gray. It is produced worldwide and used for architectural applications where a bright white aesthetic is desired. While its mechanical properties are generally similar to gray concrete, white concrete mix designs are richer in cement and finer aggregates to enhance whiteness, and construction requires extra precautions to avoid staining. A case study of the Jubilee Cathedral in Italy illustrated how white cement provided an ethereal aesthetic with its light-filled interior.

1. White Cement Concrete
Mary Gillette 30 March 2004

2. Questions one might ask:
• What makes white cement white?
• Where is white cement being produced
and how is it being used?
• Does it perform differently from gray
Portland cement?

3. Questions one might ask:
• How does this cement choice affect mix
design, aggregate choice, and admixture
usage?
• How is construction influenced?
• Are there different mechanical properties
with white cement concrete?

4. What makes white cement white?
• Coloring Oxides make normal Portland cement
gray or slightly brown
• White cement has raw materials that reduce
these
Table 1. Coloring Oxides
Compound Recommended Color influence on clinker
limit
Fe2O3 < 0.4 % gray
Mn2O3 < 0.02% grayish-violet,
reddish-violet
Cr2O3 < 0.01 % greenish
MgO < 3% greenish-brown

5. What makes white cement white?
• Such raw materials could be white chalk or
limestone and china clay (kaolinite).
– Remove fine particles, because they contain
more coloring oxides
• Manufacturing process also controlled so
that coloring oxides don’t enter clinker
– Grinding media, mill lining materials, fuels
used in burning

6. What makes white cement white?
• Regulations specifically for whiteness do
not exist in USA.
• They do follow same regulations as
normal Portland cement, ASTM C150
• White Portland cements are made in
Types I, II, III, and V, where I and III are
most common

7. What makes white cement white?
• The resulting white cement has the following
chemical composition:
Table YYY: Cement compositions
Composition Percent by weight, for various cements
Gray White Aalborg White Middle East
(type I) (textbook) (types I, II, III, V) White
C 3S 45 – 55 59.4 62 48.5
C 2S 20 – 30 23.5 25 30.5
C 3A 8 – 12 12.9 4 13.4
C4AF 6 – 10 0.6 1 0.8

8. How white is white enough?
• Whiteness is measured by comparing
reflectance with a reference standard.
Table 2. Whiteness Levels
Whiteness Classification
Less than 80 % Not white enough
80 – 84% Ordinary commercial grades
84 – 88% World market quality
More than 88% Obtained only with special raw
materials

9. Where is white P.C. produced?
• White Portland cement is produced all
around the world:
• North America
• Europe
• Middle East
• Aalborg White (Denmark) is the largest
world-wide producer
• 1.5 million metric tons / year

10. How is it being used?
• It’s still a novelty or luxury product
– Can make any shape
– Imitates more expensive, flawed stone

11. How is it being used?
• Can be practical, too
– Draws attention,
which is good for
safety reasons
– Reflects area lighting
which can save on
energy costs over
time

12. Does it perform differently?
• Mostly, the mechanical properties are
assumed to be the same for white and
gray Portland cement.
• However, there are differences in strength
gain

13. Does it perform differently?
Figure 1: Strength gain of white and gray cement concretes

14. Does it perform differently?
• Reasons for this:
– High C3A and C3S
– More silicates more C-S-H, less CH
– Ground finer
This isn’t a significant difference in
strength, though

15. How does it affect mix design?
• The mix design:
– Is richer in cement
• This makes it appear whiter
– Has more fine sand
• Finer looks lighter
– May have a higher water cement ratio
• Higher w/c looks lighter
– Has very careful aggregate choice
• Sands act like pigments
• Chosen for color and possible staining of paste

16. How does it affect mix design?
• Admixtures Usage
– Use ones as close to white as possible.
– For very white concrete, use:
• Silica fume
• Metakaolin
• Slag
– Superplasticizers more effective
• More even adsorption of superplasticizer because
less C3A + C4AF.
• This makes cement more fluid at same dosage

17. How is construction influenced?
• “VIGILANCE, constant vigilance” with uniformity
• Use clean, non-staining equipment
• Keep batches uniform
– Different w/c will show!

18. How is construction influenced?
• Set time is usually faster: 129 or 100 min versus
166 min
• Use formwork that doesn’t stain and that doesn’t
leak
– No untreated wood
– avoid ones with coloring oxides
• Use experienced finishers
– Avoid metal trowels and over-trowelling

19. Case Study: Jubilee Cathedral
• Near Rome in Tor Tre Triste
• Many cathedrals nearby for comparison—this one is very
different!
It “upholds … the city’s rich architectural tradition…(but)
was always intended to be a work of contemporary
architecture, meaningful for our time and one that is
marked with openness. Transparency and light cascade
down from the skylit roof, literally invading the interior of
the church…People in the atrium are enveloped with
mystical light.”
-- Richard Meier, architect

22. Case Study: Jubilee Cathedral
• Concrete was precast, post-tensioned by
Italcementi Gruppo
• Designed for “aesthetic durability” in what
they call “Bianco TX Millenium”
– Added titanium dioxide that “oxidizes the
organic and inorganic air pollutants in the
presence of air and light”

23. References
[1] James A. Farny. White Cement Concrete, EB217. Portland Cement Association, Skokie, Illinois,
U.S.A, 2001.
[2] Enterprise Solutions Group website, http://www.esg-inc.com/cu-5.htm Access on 18 March 2004.
[3] D. Kupper and K.-H. Wiemer. “Modern technology of white cement manufacture,” ZKG
International, No. 10 (1986) p 531 – 541, translated to English for issue No 12 (1986) p 355 – 360.
[4] D. Kupper and W. Schmid-Miel. “Process engineering and raw material factors affecting the
lightness and hue of ‘white’ clinker and cement,” ZKG International, No. 12 (1987) p 589 – 597,
translated to English for issue No 2 (1988) p 30 – 32.
[5] G. C. Bye. Portland cement: Composition, production and properties. Thomas Telford Publishing,
London, 1999, p 5, 164-165.
[6] “Decorative Concrete: Mixing and Handling White Cement Concrete,” Portland Cement
Association, Skokie, Illinois. Accessed via internet (www.portcement.org) on 17 March 2004,
9:30pm.
[7] Annual Book of ASTM Standards, vol 04.02. ASTM, West Conshohocken, Pennsylvania, p150 –
153.
[8] “White Concrete Technology – a world of possibilities”. Aalborg White product information
(downloaded from www.aalborgwhite.com on 16 March 2004, 8:48pm).
[9] S. Chandra and J. Bjornstrom. “Influence of cement and superplasticizers type and dosage on the
fluidity of cement mortars—Part I”, Cement and Concrete Research 32 (2002) p1605 – 1611.
available online at www.sciencedirect.com.
[10] Bilal S. Hamad. “Investigations of Chemical and Physical Properties of White Cement Concrete,”
Advanced Cement Based Materials, issue 2 (1995) p 161 – 167. available online at
www.sciencedirect.com.
[11] ArchNewsNow, photos by Andrea Jemolo. “Iconic Arcs: Jubilee Church by Richard Meier &
Partners.” Access via internet (http://www.archnewsnow.com/features/Feature123.htm) on 6
March 2004.
[12] Italcementi Press Releases, dated 24 October 2003. accessed via the internet
(http://www.italcementigroup.com/newsite/Chiesa_2000.htm) on 6 March 2004.