2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Civil Engineering
Materials
Department of Civil, Structural and
Environmental Engineering
Trinity College Dublin
Dr. Roger P. West (TCD)
And Mr. Peter Flynn (Arup)

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Schedule
Lectures:
Weeks 1-3(Wed 3-5): Timber, aluminium, glass and precast
Weeks 4-9(Mon 10-11, Fri 3-4): Concrete, reinforced
concrete and pre-stressed concrete

Tutorials:
Alternate weeks, weeks 4-9, Thursday 5-6pm, commencing
Groups 1-20 in week 4 of term, in Joly Theatre

Concrete Laboratory:
Each laboratory group on either Monday or Thursday, for
one week only, as per timetable

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A: Concrete
A1

Basic Materials:

A2

Fresh Concrete Properties:

A3

Hardened Concrete Properties:

A4

Concrete Mix Design:

A5

Reinforced Concrete:

A6

Pre-stressed Concrete:

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

What is Concrete?
Concrete is the most widely used construction
material in the world
Concrete is a construction material composed of
crushed rock or gravel and sand bound together with
a hardened paste of cement and water.

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Concrete History

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Concrete History
Aquaducts

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Concrete History
Colleseum

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Concrete History
Pantheon

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Concrete History
Eddystone Lighthouse John Smeaton (1756)

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Concrete History
Joseph Aspdin Patent (1824)

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Concrete History
Reinforced Concrete Flower Pot (Joseph Monier
1867)

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Concrete History
Weavers Mill Swansea (1898)

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Concrete History
Freysinnet

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Concrete History
Hoover Dam

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Concrete History
Astrodome

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Concrete History
Toronto Tower

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

1. Cement
2. Water
3. Aggregates
4. Admixtures

Basic Materials

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

1. Cement
Ordinary Portland Cement

(OPC)

Rapid Hardening Portland Cement

(RHPC)

Sulphate Resistant Portland Cement (SRPC)

White Portland Cement

Specialised Portland Cements:

Masonry Portland Cement
Low Heat Portland Cement
Hydrophobic Portland Cement

Oil-well Portland Cement

(WPC)

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Alternative Cement Replacement Materials

Blastfurnace Slag Cement

Pulverised-fuel Ash Cement
Metakaolin
Rice Husk Ash
Silica Fume

(GGBS)
(PFA)

Cements in Europe are classed as CEM1 (OPC or RHPC),

CEM2-4 (OPC with limestone, PFA or GGBS) in varying
proportions pre-blended

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

1. Cement
Chemistry of OPC

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1
1. Cement
Manufacture

Basic Materials

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

1. Cement Manufacture

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

1. Cement
Sulphate Resistant Portland Cement
Low triacalcium aluminate content (C3A)
Achieved by adding Iron oxide to decrease aluminate proportions
Resistant to sulphates but not resistant to strong acids
Reduced early heat

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

1. Cement
Pulverised-fuel ash cements (latent hydraulic binder)
From burning pulverised coal in power station furnaces
Reacts with calcium hydroxide (lime) to from cementitious material
Resistant to sulphates but not resistant to strong acids
Reduced early heat of hydration
Reduced early age strength

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

1. Cement
Blastfurnace Slag Cements (latent hydraulic binder)
By-product of iron smelting, quenched slag forms granuels
Generally blended with OPC up to 35%
Reduced early age strength
Reduced early heat of hydration

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

1. Cement
Delivery & Storage
Usually packaged in 25kg bags or transported in bulk tankers
Retail price 5
Warehouse set

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

2. Water
Should be free from impurities
Unsuitable if it contains

- sugars
- sulphates
- chlorides

Sea water must not be used for reinforced concrete

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

Hydration
Setting and hardening results from a chemical reaction between
the cement and the water, not from a drying process.
The reaction is exothermic and is irreversible. The heat produced
is known as the Heat of Hydration C3A and C3S are the
compounds primarily responsible.
The paste is usually workable up to two hours before it begins to
harden
Strength gain is initially rapid becoming progressively less rapid
Strength gain continues indefinitely provided moisture is present.
Curing

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.2

Fresh Concrete Properties

2. Cement hydration
Cement + H2O = Calcium Silicate Hydrate (C-S-H) +Ca (OH)2
+H2O

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.2

Fresh Concrete Properties

2. Cement hydration and heat generation

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

2. Cement paste strength gain

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

3. Aggregates
Gravels, crushed rock and sands that are mixed with cement and
water to produce concrete.
Coarse aggregates are those that do not pass through a 5mm
sieve.
Fine aggregates are those that pass through a 5mm sieve.
Generally make from 50% to 80% of the concrete mix.
Used to reduce cost and modify and imporve properties like
strength and drying shrinkage.

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

3. Aggregates
Quality Requirements
Durability

Hard
Adequate Strength
No deletrious material

Cleanliness

free from chemical impurities

free from organic material
free from dust
excessive washing is not the answer
avoid silica acid aggregates.

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

3. Aggregates
Aggregate Types
Normal density -

Most gravels and crushed rock

Divided into coarse and fine

Lightweight

Weak porous solids

Good thermal properties

High Density

radioactive screening

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1
3. Aggregates
Sieve Analysis

Basic Materials

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

4. Admixtures
Additives to the concrete mix to improve certain properties

Must be used with care as excessive amounts can have adverse

effects on the concrete

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

4. Admixtures
Accelerators
Increases the rate of strength gain at an early age
Most common is calcium chloride (CaCl) but may corrode steel
Most common is calcium chloride (CaCl) but may corrode steel
Does not increase final strength

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

4. Admixtures
Water Reducing Admixtures (Plasticisers)
Reduces the amount of water required for a given workability
Most common is calcium ligno-sulphate
Reduces the risk of evaporation cracks
Air Entraining Admixtures
Generates evenly dispersed air bubbles in the mix
Improves durability against frost and marine environments
Volume or air entrainment should not exceed 13% of cement
paste

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1

Basic Materials

4. Admixtures
Retarding Agents
Reduces the rate of evolution of heat
Necessary for very large concrete pours
Water-repelling admixtures
Can improve impermeability of concrete in basements and
water retaining structures
No substitute for sound concrete

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1
4. Admixtures

Basic Materials

2E8 Materials (Civil Engineering Component)

Section A.1
4.

Basic Materials

Admixtures

Foaming Agents
Produces highly flowing light concrete

Superplasticiser
Produces flowing normal concrete with high
strength

Self-compacting
Allows highly flowing cohesive mix with no
need
for vibration. It can also be selflevelling.