Ambuja Cement AMBUJA TECHNICAL LITERATURE SERIES (¥) _aX Ambuj Cement Comprehensive list of booklets published by Technical Services Economic Usage of High Quality Cement Aug. 1994 2. Ordinary Portland Cement - Physical & Chemical Properties Jan. 1996 Equipments for Transporting & Placing Concrete Feb. 1996 4. Brick Masonry & Plaster omer « muavua Feb. 1996 8. Aggregates for Mortar & Concrete May 1996 6. Batching & Mixing of Mortar and Concrete Ingredients enna) Jun. 1996 7. Concrete Transportation & Placement Jul. 1996 8. Concrete Compaction Aug. 1996 9. Quality Control of Concrete Works Sep. 1996 10. Reaching for the Sky Oct. 1996 11. Curing Nov. 1996 Mechanisation of Concreting 12. Part | - Batching, Mixing and Transporting Dec. 1996 13. Part Il - Concrete Placing by Pumping Jan, 1997 14. Part Ill - Concrete Materials & Quality Control Feb. 1997 15. Flooring and Tiling omer « wcaias) Mar. 1997 16. Reinforcement Steel Apr. 1997 17. Ordinary Portland Cement omer, mxacat < wenc, May 1997 18. Concrete Test Cubes Jun. 1997 19. Concrete Mix Design Jul, 1997 Slump Test ‘Aug. 1997 21. Curing omer, mania « smeesa) Sep. 199October 1997 PLASTIC CRACKING OF CONCRETE 1.0 INTRODUCTION Concrete by virtue of its physical and chemical properties is prone to cracking. Most of the concrete structures develop cracks. Cracks cannot be eliminated totally but can be restricted or reduced to a great extent. Fortunately most of the cracking is on a microscopic scale and does not appear visibly as a fault. The cracking can also be macroscopic and can result in loss of strength, stability and durability It can also cause decrease in sound insulation and overall efficiency besides affects aesthetics to a great extent. The main causes of cracking can be attributable to the following: Occocoaodg oo ooo Poor workmanship and negligence. Defects and errors in construction practices. Poor quality of concrete materials and improper concrete mix. Movement of concrete arising from physical properties. Over trowelling and impermeable formwork Reduced continuity of the structural member. Deficiencies in design. Ageing - Carbonation. Weathering action. Foundation Problems. Improper or modified use of the structure. Progressive loading.Poor maintenance. Improper structural repairs or modification. Chemical attacks by Chlorides and Sulphates ooodado Differential thermal stress - Heat of Hydration of cement. Q Alkali aggregate reaction. It is always preferable to prevent cracking to the extent possible then to think of repairs at a later stage due to various reasons. One of the frequent occurrance of cracking of concrete is due to plastic shrinkage or plastic settlement. This booklet deals with various aspects of these types of cracking explaining the causes and preventive measures necessary. 2.0 OCCURANCE OF PLASTIC CRACKING Both plastic shrinkage and plastic settlement cracks occur within a few minutes or hours of concrete placing and finishing. They occur when concrete is still in plastic state and has not fully hardened. Their appearance is sometimes as early as 10 minutes from the time of placing and finishing to as late as 3 hrs after placing. The plastic cracks are of two types : a) Plastic Settlement Cracks b) Plastic Shrinkage Cracks 2.1 PLASTIC SETTLEMENT CRACKS: Fresh concrete when placed in deep formwork such as that of column or wall has a tendency to settle or subside. If this settlement is restrained due to obstructions like steel bars or large aggregates it causes short horizontal cracks and the subsidence due to reduction in volume is termed as plastic settlement cracks. If the settlement of the solids in concrete can occur freely and without restraint, there will be a reduction in the volume or depth of the actual concrete cast, but no settlement cracking will occur. Some typical plastic settlement cracks are illustrated in the figures given on page 3. 2Figure No. 1 @) oD Figure No. 2 Figure No. 3 hs Reinforcement near the top of a concrete section can cause plastic settlement cracking. If the formwork is relatively narrow, concrete may arch. or wedge itself across the top of the narrow space and develop cracks (See A). Plastic settlement cracking are those caused by pronounced changes of section such as the cracking below flared column heads (See B). The changes in section of trough and waffle floor slabs, causes more settle- ment in the webs than in the comparatively thin flanges and results in cracking (See C).Figure No. 4 If the sub-base or other material against which concrete is being placed is very absorbent like, for example, dry soil or absor- bent formwork, an exag- gerated type of plastic settlement cracking is likely to occur. In such cases the cracks will usually follow the reinforcement pattern and run parallel to each other (See D in Figure 3) 2.2 PLASTIC SHRINKAGE CRACKS In slabs rapid drying of fresh concrete at the exposed surface causes plastic shrinkage when the rate of loss of water from the surface is more than the rate at which the bleed water is available. Due to this rapid drying, the surface concrete becomes too stiff to flow but is not having the strength to withstand the tensil stresses caused by restrained shrinkage. This causes concrete to develop cracks on surfaces. Figure No. 5 Plastic shrinkage cracks are generally parallel to each other and are spaced between 0.3m to 2m apart, upto 25 to 50mm in depth or even pass through the entire depth of the slab with thickness varying between 1mm to 2mm.The cracks also form a random pattern or a ‘map’ pattern (See E in Figure 3). However, the most notable feature of plastic shrinkage cracks is that they do not normally extend to the edge of the slab because this is free to shrink without restraint. Plastic shrinkage cracking should not be confused with ordinary drying shrinkage cracks which occur only after a considerable time. Plastic shrinkage cracks form within the first 3 hours of casting although they are often not noticed until the following day. They are not directly affected by the reinforcement in the concrete. Plastic shrinkage cracking is essentially a physical action, similar to the shrinkage of clayey soils under drying conditions. It is probably caused by surface tension forces or the effects of flocculation of the ultrafine solid particles in the mix. The most common pattern of plastic shrinkage cracking is also diagonal to the edges on roads and slabs which are generally unreinforced. 3.0 SEGREGATION AND BLEEDING OF CONCRETE Before examining the causes of plastic shrinkage and settlement cracking a clear understanding of segregation and bleeding of concrete is necessary. SEGREGATION Segregation is separation of the various ingredients of fresh concrete, so that they are no longer uniformly distributed. Segregation can take 53.2 place if the proportions of fine aggregates and cement are inadequate to give concrete good cohesiveness or if the concrete is carelessly transported, placed and compacted. Generally fine materials separate out from the coarser materials or vise versa causing non-uniformity in fresh concrete. There are two kinds of segregation. The first is the one described above occuring in mainly dry non-sticky concrete mixes and the second is bleeding which occurs in wet concrete mixes. BLEEDING Bleeding is said to occur when water (considered to be blood in concrete) from the freshly placed and compacted concrete appears on the surface before it has set. After the concrete sets bleeding stops and can no longer take place. Water being the lightest ingredient in fresh concrete rises to the surface and the heavier ingredients like aggregates tend to settle under the force of gravity. However well concrete may have been compacted, the force of gravity tends to pull the heavy solid particles downward, the lighter water being displaced upward. This upward migration of water is known as bleeding. Bleeding ceases either when the solid particles touch each other and cannot settle any more, or when the concrete stiffens due to cement hydration and prevents further movement. Bleeding is affected by many factors, but the most important in practice are the grading of all ingredients and the consistency of the mix. Mixes which bleed excessively are those which are harsh and not sufficiently cohesive. Basically this is caused by the lack of very fine materials in the mix. Obviously it is generally due to the use of coarse sands or when the sand content has been kept low. However, even while using fine sand adequate precautions are necessary to prevent segregation, usually when the fine aggregate content is less than 30 percent of the total aggregate content. If mixes exhibit any serious bleeding, the sand content should be increased to a value closer to the optimum voids content of the coarse aggregate, typically about 35 percent for crushed rock aggregate. Bleeding will then be significantly reduced. Cement also, being a fine material, contributes towards cohesiveness of concrete mix. Experience has shown that the use of air-entrainment 640 441 leads to reduction in bleeding as tiny stable air bubbles formed, act as fine aggregates and, impart cohesiveness to the concrete mix. Whenever gap graded materials are used bleeding is more excessive as due to gaps in grading of aggregates and cement there will be passages available for bleed water to rise. Uniformly graded aggregates and cement reduce bleeding. There is also a tendency that all bleed water may not rise to the surface but may get entrapped below the reinforcement steel or aggregates. Revibration of concrete is therefore helpful to remove the bleed water trapped below. However, if vacuum dewatering or water extraction is done before revibrating the concrete, the concrete will have a lower water to cement ratio and therefore superior strength and durability. Generally more bleed water gets trapped in the upper portion of the concrete than in the lower portion. This results in the weaker top concrete layer which is more prone to cracking when fresh. CAUSES The main causes of plastic settlement cracks can be summarised briefly as below: Q Reduction in the volume of the cement-water system due to bleeding and segregation. Q Internal restrainment due to reinforcement steel or large size aggregate. External restrainment due to relatively narrow formwork. Pronounced change of concrete cross section. Absorbent sub base or formwork surface. Flared column heads, troughs and waffles in floor slabs. oocdodod Bulging or settlement of formwork and supporting system.4.2 5.0 5.1 The main causes of plastic shrinkage cracks can be summarised briefly below: Q Rapid water loss due to high ambient temperature, wind and low humidity. Q Water loss due to absorption by subgrade, formwork or aggregates. Q Bleeding and sedimentation. The above factors can singly or collectively cause cracking of concrete. PREVENTIVE AND PROTECTIVE MEASURES PLASTIC SETTLEMENT CRACKS The restraints which lead to plastic settlement cracking are usually an inherent part of the construction and cannot be completely avoided. The cracking can be minimised only by increasing the cohesiveness of the concrete and reducing its bleeding. The use of air-entrainment in the mix reduces bleeding and therefore will help to reduce plastic settlement cracking. The mix proportions can also be modified so as to improve the cohesiveness or water retention characteristic of the concrete mix. This is done usually by increasing the sand and/or cement content. Bleeding and subsequent settlement is aggravated by rapid drying out of the concrete. Therefore, the risk of cracking can be reduced by efficient curing immediately after placing, compacting and finishing the concrete. Alternatively, the problem of settlement cracking can be overcome by re-vibrating the concrete after the initial settlement has taken place. It the initial setting of concrete permits, after about half-an- hour to an hour of initial vibration, concrete can be revibrated. Often this is the only practical cure. Rarely do plastic settlement cracks pass through the entire section of concrete. They will usually stop at the steel causing the restraint. So, structural integrity is not normally lost but durability of concrete can get effected. It is preferable to seal such cracks on exposed concrete surfaces to prevent subsequent corrosion of reinforcement.5.2 PLASTIC SHRINKAGE CRACKS The most significant factor affecting plastic shrinkage cracking is a high rate of evaporation of water from the concrete. The rate of evaporation is a function of the ambient temperature, dryness of the air and the wind speed. Dryness or relative humidity, is indirectly affected by temperature. The influence of wind speed should not be under-estimated since, very roughly speaking, an increase in wind speed of 8km per hour has an equivalent drying effect of a temperature increase of 10 Deg.C. This shows the importance of taking precaution to avoid rapid drying of concrete in summer as well as on windy days by prompt and effective initial curing. Evaporation should be arrested within the first 30 minutes to 1 hour after the concrete has been placed. Unless it is possible to wet cure or to provide wind breaks (which are seldom practicable), the concrete should be covered with continuous white or transparent polyethylene sheets immediately after it has been placed and compacted. The importance of very early and efficient curing for the prevention of plastic shrinkage cracking cannot be over-emphasised. Although plastic shrinkage cracks usually pass right through the slab thickness, they skirt round the coarse aggregate, and aggregate interlock is maintained so long as reinforcement prevents the cracks from opening significantly due to subsequent drying shrinkage. Normally they may be neglected unless they are close to local shear force, eg., around a column heads or adjoining a load-bearing wall. Settlement cracks and plastic shrinkage cracks in flatwork can be eliminated by revibration of concrete when it is still in the plastic state. Revibration is also known to improve the bond between concrete and reinforcing steel and to improve the strength of concrete by relieving the plastic shrinkage stresses around the coarse aggregate particles. When the rate of evaporation exceeds 0.2 Ib/ft2 per hour (1kg / m?/hr.), precautionary measures are necessary to prevent the plastic shrinkage cracking. The Portland Cement Association has developed charts (See Figure 7) for determining when the precautionary measures, listed below, should be taken:Figure No. 7 : Estimation of the rate of moisture evaporation from a concrete surface. 5 Deg C 15 25 Air temperature, deg F Rate of evaporation, Ib / sq.ft/ hr 0.8 0.7 0.6 0.5 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1 4.0 kg/sq.m/hrQ Wet / Moisten the subgrade and forms. Q Wet/Moisten aggregates that are dry and porous. Q Erect temporary windbreaks to reduce wind velocity over the concrete surface. Q Erect temporary sunshades to reduce concrete surface temperature. Q Keep the fresh concrete temperature low by cooling the aggregate and mixing water. Protect concrete with temporary coverings such as polyethylene sheeting during any appreciable delay between placing, finishing, and initial wet curing. Reduce the time between placing and start of curing by eliminating delays during construction. Q To minimize evaporation, protect the concrete immediately after finishing by covering the exposed surfaces fully using polyethylene sheets, wet burlap, fog spray, or a curing compound. 6.0 CONCLUSION Plastic settlement cracks mostly occur in certain concrete sections where the presence of reinforcement or ties, or the shape of the section itself, impedes the settlement of the mix after compaction. They can be avoided only by improved mix design, or by re-vibration of the concrete after placing. Plastic shrinkage cracks are much less predictable than settlement cracks. The only way to avoid them, especially in windy warm weather, is to cover the concrete with a polyethylene sheet almost immediately after placing, compacting and finishing the concrete. Early curing of concrete is also desirable. Concrete when fresh is weak as a new born child and therefore needs all attention and protection on its exposed surface till it has gained reasonable strength. If initial protection and curing are neglected in addition to improper concrete mix, the structure will be like a weak child having inherent defects throughout its life. nSUMMARY PLASTIC SETTLEMENT CRACKS TIME OF APPEARANCE =. 10 to 180 minutes. TYPES / LOCATIONS Above the reinfocement in deep sections. Q Arching on top of columns. PRIMARY CAUSES. 4 Non cohesive concrete mix. Excess bleeding. Over vibration. SECONDARY CAUSES Q Rapid Early Drying Conditions. @ High Ambient Temperatures / Hot Sun. © Low Humidity. © High wind velocity. PREVENTIVE MEASURES ( Increase finer fines in the fine aggregates and cohesiveness of concrete mix. Avoid using gap graded materials. Q Use air entrainment. Q Do revibration. PLASTIC SHRINKAGE CRACKS TIME OF APPEARANCE Q 30 to 180 minutes. TYPES / LOCATIONS PRIMARY CAUSES Change in thickness of slabs. Diagonal cracks on roads and slabs. Random cracks on reinforced concrete slabs. Along and on top of reinforcement in reinforced concrete slabs. Q Q Q Q Q Rapid Early Drying Conditions. @ High Ambient Temperatures / Hot Sun. © Low Humidity © High wind. Reinfocement near the top surface. SECONDARY CAUSES Low rate of bleeding. PREVENTIVE MEASURES Improve early curing. Use cohesive mix. Avoid using gap graded materials. ooo;c;aAmbuja Cement Gujarat Ambuja Cements Ltd. Technical Services Division Elegant Business Park, Andheri-Kurla Road, Andheri (East), Mumbai- 400 093. Tel.:56240108-09 Fax:91-22-55040411