The most important modern uses of grout are to fill the joints in concrete dams and to seal and stabilize the foundations of all types of dams. Other uses of grout include the filling of small spaces between the base plate of heavy machinery and its concrete foundation, filling cavities behind tunnel linings, and filling voids in preplaced particles of coarse aggregate.
The term "grout" also includes chemical formulations that do not contain portland cement. A chemical grout, which is used for the same purposes as neat cement grout, can fill voids that are too small to permit the entrance of portland cement particles.
Grout came into use as a normal development following the discovery of portland cement in 1824. When the aggregate particles of portland cement concrete were left out of a concrete mixture, the result was grout; it was used to fill joints of masonry or to fill uneven surfaces and corners before placing concrete.
The resulting cement, produced from the formerly discarded grappiers, was of much higher quality than that obtained from the unsintered material. This fact was firmly established by the English cement manufacturer L. C. Johnson in 1845, and the term "portland cement" has since been applied solely to the cement made from the sintered material. This period marks the real beginning of the portland cement industry.
The most important modern uses of grout are to fill the joints in concrete dams and to seal and stabilize the foundations of all types of dams. Other uses of grout include the filling of small spaces between the base plate of heavy machinery and its concrete foundation, filling cavities behind tunnel linings, and filling voids in preplaced particles of coarse aggregate.
The term "grout" also includes chemical formulations that do not contain portland cement. A chemical grout, which is used for the same purposes as neat cement grout, can fill voids that are too small to permit the entrance of portland cement particles.