Ultrasonic evaluation of strength properties of cemented paste backfill: Effects of mineral admixture and curing temperature.

This paper presents the findings of a research study designed and conducted to investigate the effects of mineral admixture and curing temperature on uniaxial compressive strength (UCS) and ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) behavior of laboratory-prepared cemented paste backfill (CPB) samples. A total of 290 CPB samples were prepared at different replacement rates (10-80%), cured at various temperatures (10-50 °C), and respectively subjected to both UPV and UCS testing after curing times of 3, 7, 14, 28, 56 and 90 days. The obtained experimental results show that the addition of fly ash (FA) can lead to an increase or decrease trend in UCS and UPV behavior of CPB samples, depending on the replacement level of admixtures.