Unit I Part I & II Fresh Concrete

Rheology, Workability, Factors affecting

workability, Measurement of
Workability, Mixing of Concrete,
Vibration of Concrete
 Introduction

 Subject : CVL715 Advanced Concrete Technology

 Course : M. Tech.

 Lectures : 3 lectures/week

 iCloud for attendance

 Lecture Notes on iCloud/Email

 Objective and Outcome
5 Course Objective To understand the behaviour of various admixtures in mortar/concrete and
their importance in various applications. And to develop the understanding
about concrete preparing, concreting in various conditions, various methods
of evaluation of properties and special concrete for various application.

6 Course Outcome CO1: Able to prepare workable concrete with/without admixtures, and
select suitable testing approach for workability
CO2: Describe the concept of strength, workability and durability of
concrete. Able to use various testing methods on materials and/or
structures.
CO3: Able to prepare Design Mix concrete and apply quality control
measures in construction work.
CO4: Able to enhance the strength, fire resistance and thermal properties,
and low permeability etc. of concrete.
CO5: To Design self compacting concrete, light concrete and high
performance concrete etc.
CO6: Assess existing structures i.e. special concrete and Apply
quality control measures in construction work
Syllabus
 Lectures
8.01 Unit 1 Introduction 09
8.02 Unit 1 Topic 1 Fresh Properties of concrete:- Introduction, Factors affecting and test 3
8.03 Unit 1 Topic 2 Process of Concrete Manufacturing and equipment details 3
8.04 Unit 1 Topic 3 Concrete Mix Proportioning 2
8.05 Unit 2 Hardened Concrete and Non-destructive testing of concrete 09

8.06 Unit 2 Topic 1 Mechanical properties:- Introduction, factors and methods of testing 3

8.07 Unit 2 Topic 2 Durability of concrete, Fire resistance of concrete, Thermal properties of 3
concrete, Fatigue & Impact strength of concrete, Corrosion:- Electro-Chemical
Process
8.08 Unit 2 Topic 3 Rebound hammer test, Penetration resistance test, Pull-out test, Ultrasonic pulse 3
velocity test
8.09 Unit 3 Quality Control and Admixtures 08

8.10 Unit 3 Topic 1 Quality Control:- Stages, methods, factors, advantages and Management in 3
construction
8.11 Unit 3 Topic 2 Admixtures:- Introduction, Functions, Classification, their effect on concrete 3

8.12 Unit 3 Topic 3 Chemicals for construction and their application 2

8.13 Unit 4 FRC, Industrial waste in concrete, Ferro-cement 07

8.14 Unit 4 Topic 1 Fiber reinforced concrete:- effect on workability, mechanical and physical 3
properties of FRC

8.15 Unit 4 Topic 2 Mineral admixtures and their effect 3

8.16 Unit 4 Topic 3 Ferro-cement and Polymer concrete 1

8.17 Unit 5 Special concrete in terms of density, strength and performance 09

8.18 Unit 5 Topic 1 Light weight concrete and Heavy weight concrete:- properties and application 3

8.19 Unit 5 Topic 2 High strength concrete and Ultra High strength concrete:- methods and 2
applications
8.20 Unit 5 Topic 3 HPC and SCC:- Mix, Tests, Properties and application 4
 Study Material
9.1 Text book* 1. Shetty .M.S., " Concrete Technology,
Theory and Practice", Revised Edition, S.
Chand & company Ltd., New Delhi,2006
2. Neville. A.M. , " Properties of Concrete",
4th Edition Longman
9.2 Other references 1. Metha P.K and Monteiro. P.J.M, "
CONCRETE", Microstructure, Properties
and Materials, Third Edition, Tata
McGraw- Hill Publishing company
Limited, New Delhi, 2006
2. Mindass and Young, " Concrete", Prentice
Hall.
 Grading Criteria
 End Semester Exam: 50 marks.
 Mid-Semester Exam: 20 marks.
 Continuous Assessment : 30 marks.
 Quiz – 15 marks
 Project – 10
 Class Participation – 5

 Attendance – 75% required.

 Session Plan
Lect.No proposed Date Points to cover

1 2021-03-16 Course introduction and overview

2 2021-03-17 Rheological properties
3 2021-03-19 Workability of concrete and factors
4 2021-03-23 Workability Test
Process of Concrete Manufacturing and equipment
5
2021-03-24 details
6 2021-03-26 Concreting in hot weather condition
7 2021-03-30 Basic considerations and Factors affecting Design mix
8 2021-03-31 Concrete Mix Proportioning: IS method
9 2021-04-06 Quiz 1
Mechanical properties: Factors influencing the
10
2021-04-07 strength of concrete
Compressive strength and Tensile strength test and
11
2021-04-09 procedure
12 2021-04-13 Shrinkage and creep of concrete, Curing of concrete
13 2021-04-16 Permeability and durability of concrete
14 2021-04-20 Durability of concrete: Corrosion and measure of protection
15 2021-04-23 Rebound hammer test and Penetration resistance test
16 2021-04-27 Ultrasonic pulse velocity test
Pull-out test, Fire resistance of concrete and Thermal
17
2021-04-28 properties of concrete
18 2021-04-30 Quiz 2
19 2021-05-18 Quality Control: Stages
20 2021-05-19 Methods, factors and advantages
21 2021-05-21 Quality management in concrete construction
22 2021-05-25 Classification of admixtures
23 2021-05-26 Functions of admixtures
24 2021-05-28 Effects of admixtures
25 2021-06-1 Project Presentation
26 2021-06-2 Quiz 3
Fiber reinforced concrete Properties of Fiber reinforced
27
2021-06-4 concrete
Fiber reinforced concrete Properties of Fiber reinforced
28
2021-06-8 concrete
29 2021-06-9 Industrial waste materials in concrete
30 2021-06-11 Mineral admixtures and their impact

31 2021-06-15 Polymer concrete and RMC

32 2021-06-16 Project Presentation

33 2021-06-18 Quiz 4

34 2021-06-22 Light weight concrete: properties and application

35 2021-06-23 Light weight concrete: properties and application

36 2021-06-25 Heavy weight concrete

High strength and Ultra High strength concrete: methods
37 2021-06-29 and applications

38 2021-06-30 High performance concrete

39 2021-07-02 Self-compacting concrete: Workability test

40 2021-07-06 Self-compacting concrete: Workability test

41 2021-07-07 Quiz 5

42 2021-07-09 Project Presentation

 In-class Expectations
 Bring proper material for taking down
notes.
 Be in time for the class.
 Be attentive in the class.
 Maintain classroom discipline.
 Participate in classroom discussions.
 More than 75% attendance compulsory for
appearing in the tests.
 Fresh Concrete
• Fresh concrete or plastic concrete is a freshly mixed material which
can be moulded into any shape.

• Rheology of fresh concrete:- parameters that to be considered are

stability, mobility and compactability. These are the main factors
which measure the suitability of a concrete mix.
Rheology of concrete
 Stability Parameter
• Stability is the property of a concrete mix when the aggregate particles
within the mix possess a homogeneous dispersion and resemble a
sampling in a random manner. This property is shown during its
conveyance, placement as well as during compaction. Now there are two
factors that measure the stability of the mixture. They are

• Segregation

• Bleeding

• The segregation can be defined as the phenomenon of the settlement of

aggregate mixture in the homogeneous dispersion due to the weak
concrete mix. The weak concrete mix is termed to be an unstable mix.
• Now in wet mix, the segregation mainly occurs when the
water content level in the mix is such a way that
throughout the course of transportation, placing and
compaction, the paste cannot hold the aggregate in a well-
distributed manner.

• Bleeding is a phenomenon of water release when the

concrete mix has an unstable mortar. The bleeding has to
be under controlled or its chances of occurrence have to
reduced
 Mobility Parameter

• The ability of the concrete fluid mix to flow is defined as its

mobility. This mobility is happening by the action of
mechanical stresses, which is also called as moment
transfer. There are many factors that restrict the concrete
flow like:
• Cohesive forces
• Frictional forces
• Viscous forces
• The adhesive forces between the aggregates and whole matrix
result in increasing cohesiveness, which in turn restricts the flow of
concrete mix. This parameter as discussed above is a factor that
avoids the possibilities of segregation.

• The viscosity is defined as the resistance to flow. There won’t be

any flow under lower stresses with the mixing behavior like a solid.
This means it will be having a higher viscosity.

• The frictional force internally within the mix occurs when the
mixture gets displaced.
 Compactability Parameter
• The ease with which the concrete is compacted can be
represented by the parameter compactability. The
compaction process involves the expulsion of air bubbles
within the concrete mix and repositioning the aggregates
so that a dense mass is obtained. Care is taken to avoid
segregation.

• Compactability is measured by means of compacting factor

test.
Concrete
 Workability
• Workability is the ability of a fresh (plastic) concrete mix to fill the
form/mould properly with the desired work (vibration) and without
reducing the concrete's quality.

• The ease with which concrete mixes can be compacted as completely as

possible while using the lowest possible water/cement ratio.

• Lubrication required for handling concrete without segregation, for

placing without loss of homogeneity, for better compaction and to
finish it sufficiently easily – “Workability”

• Workability assumes full significance of the type of work, thickness of

section, extent of reinforcement and mode of compaction.
• A concrete which has high consistency and which is more mobile,

need not be of right workability for a particular job. Every job

requires a particular workability.

• A concrete which is considered workable for mass concrete

foundation is not workable for concrete to be used in roof

construction, or even in roof construction, concrete considered

workable when vibrator is used, is not workable when concrete is to

be compacted by hand.

• Similarly a concrete considered workable when used in thick section

is not workable when required to be used in thin sections.

 Factors affecting workability
• Water content
• Mix proportion:- higher aggregates/cement ratio(leaner concrete)—
less workability
• Size of aggregates
• Shape of aggregates
• Surface texture of aggregates
• Grading of aggregates
• Use of admixtures
 Water/cement ratio
• More than required:- capillary cavities
• Less than required:- incomplete
hydration
 Water Content
• The higher the water content per cubic meter of concrete, the
higher will be the fluidity of concrete, which is one of the
important factors affecting workability.

• It should be noted that from the desirability point of view,

increase of water content is the last recourse to be taken for
improving the workability.

• More water can be added, provided a correspondingly higher

quantity of cement is also added to keep the water/cement
ratio constant, so that the strength remains the same.
 Mix Proportions:
• Aggregate/cement ratio is an important factor influencing
workability.

• The higher the aggregate/cement ratio, the leaner is the concrete.

In lean concrete, less quantity of paste is available for providing
lubrication, per unit surface area of aggregate and hence the
mobility of aggregate is restrained.

• On the other hand, in case of rich concrete with lower

aggregate/cement ratio, more paste is available to make the mix
cohesive and fatty to give better workability.
 Size of Aggregate:
• The bigger the size of the aggregate, the less is the
surface area and hence less amount of water is
required for wetting the surface and less paste is
required for lubricating the surface to reduce internal
friction.
• For a given quantity of water and paste, bigger size of
aggregates will give higher workability.
• The above, of course will be true within certain limits.
 Shape of Aggregates
• The shape of aggregates influences workability in good measure.

• Angular, elongated or flaky aggregate makes the concrete very harsh when
compared to rounded aggregates or cubical shaped aggregates.
Contribution to better workability of rounded aggregate will come from
the fact that for the given volume or weight it will have less surface area
and less voids than angular or flaky aggregate.

• Not only that, being round in shape, the frictional resistance is also greatly
reduced. This explains the reason why river sand and gravel provide greater
workability to concrete than crushed sand and aggregate.
 Surface Texture:
• The influence of surface texture on workability is again due
to the fact that the total surface area of rough textured
aggregate is more than the surface area of smooth rounded
aggregate of same volume.
• Rough textured aggregate will show poor workability and
smooth or glassy textured aggregate will give better
workability.
• A reduction of inter particle frictional resistance offered by
smooth aggregates also contributes to higher workability.
 Grading of Aggregates:
• This is one of the factors which will have maximum influence on workability.

• A well graded aggregate is the one which has least amount of voids in a
given volume. Other factors being constant, when the total voids are less,
excess paste is available to give better lubricating effect. With excess
amount of paste, the mixture becomes cohesive and fatty which prevents
segregation of particles. Aggregate particles will slide past each other with
the least amount of compacting efforts.

• The better the grading, the less is the void content and higher the
workability.
 Measurement of Workability
IS 1199: 1959 METHODS OF SAMPLING AND ANALYSIS OF
CONCRETE
• Slump Test
• Compacting Factor Test
• Flow Test
• Vee Bee Consistometer Test.
 Slump Cone Test:
• Most commonly used method of measuring consistency of
concrete.
• Can be employed either in laboratory or at site of work.
• It is not a suitable method for very wet or very dry concrete.
• It is used conveniently as a control test and gives an
indication of the uniformity of concrete from batch to batch.
• Workability and quality of concrete can be obtained by
observing the manner in which concrete slumps.
• The apparatus for conducting the slump test
essentially consists of a metallic mould in the
form of a cone.

• Bottom diameter : 20 cm

• Top diameter : 10 cm

• Height : 30 cm
Measurement of Workability

• The thickness of the metallic sheet is1.6 mm.

• For tamping the concrete, a steel tamping rod 16 mm diameter, 0.6 meter
along with bullet end is used.

• The internal surface of the mould is thoroughly cleaned and freed from
superfluous moisture and adherence of any old set concrete.

• The mould is placed on a smooth, horizontal, rigid and non-absorbent surface.

• The mould is then filled in four layers, each approximately 1/4 of the height of
the mould.

• Each layer is tamped 25 times by the tamping rod.

• After the top layer has been rodded, the concrete is struck off level with a
trowel and tamping rod.
• The mould is removed from the concrete immediately by raising it
slowly and carefully in a vertical direction.
• This allows the concrete to subside. This subsidence is referred as
SLUMP of concrete.
• The difference in level between the height of the mould and that of the
highest point of the subsided concrete is measured.
• This difference in height in mm. is taken as Slump of Concrete.
• The pattern of slump indicates the characteristic of concrete in addition
to the slump value.
• If the concrete slumps evenly it is called true slump.
• If one half of the cone slides down, it is called shear slump.
• Shear slump also indicates that the concrete is non-
cohesive and shows the characteristic of segregation.

• It is seen that the slump test gives fairly good consistent

results.
WORKABILITY OF CONCRETE IS 456 2000
• 7.1.1:- In the ‘very low’ category of workability where
strict control is necessary, for example pavement
quality concrete, measurement of workability by
determination of compacting factor will be more
appropriate than slump (see IS 1199) and a value of
compacting factor of 0.75 to 0.80 is suggested.
• 7.1.2:- In the ‘very high’ category of workability,
measurement of workability by determination of flow
will be appropriate (see IS 9103).
 Compacting Factor Test

• The compacting factor test is designed primarily for use in the

laboratory but it can also be used in the field.

• This test works on the principle of determining the degree of

compaction achieved by a standard amount of work done by allowing
the concrete to fall through a standard height.

• The degree of compaction, called the compacting factor is measured by

the density ratio i.e., the ratio of the density actually achieved in the
test to density of same concrete fully compacted.
Compacting Factor Test
• The sample of concrete to be tested is placed in the upper hopper

• The trap-door is opened so that the concrete falls into the lower hopper.

• Then the trap-door of the lower hopper is opened and the concrete is
allowed to fall into the cylinder.

• In the case of a dry-mix, it is likely that the concrete may not fall on
opening the trap-door. In such a case, a slight push by a rod may be
required to set the concrete in motion.

• The concrete is filled up exactly up to the top level of the cylinder. This
weight is known as “Weight of partially compacted concrete”.

• The cylinder is emptied and then refilled with the concrete from the
same sample in layers approximately 5 cm deep.
• The layers are heavily rammed or preferably vibrated so as to
obtain full compaction. This weight is known as “Weight of
fully compacted concrete”.
• The Compacting Factor = Weight of partially compacted
concrete/Weight of fully compacted concrete
• The Compaction factor values ranges from 0.7 to 0.95.
• Value Of Compacting Factor Standard Of Workability
0.95 Good
0.92 Medium
0.85 Low
 Flow Test

• As the name suggests, in this test the workability of concrete is determined by

examining the flowing property of concrete.

• Flow table test of concrete also determines the Quality of Concrete concerning
its consistency, cohesiveness and the proneness to segregation.

• IS 9103 : 1999 Apparatus of Flow Table Test:

• Flow table made of metal having thickness 1.5mm and dimensions 700mm x
700mm, tamping rod made of hardwood, Scoop, Centimeter Scale, Metal
Cone or mould (Lower Dia = 20cm, upper Dia = 13 cm, Height of Cone =
20cm).

• IS 1199: 1959 Apparatus of Flow Table Test:

• Metal Cone or mould (Lower Dia = 25cm, upper Dia = 17 cm, Height of Cone
= 12cm).
 Flow Test

• The middle portion of flow table is marked with a concentric circle of dia
200mm to place a metal cone on it.
• Prepare concrete as per mix design and place the flow table on a horizontal
surface.
• Clean the dust or other gritty material on Flow table and Sprinkle a hand of
water on it.
• Now place the metal cone at the middle portion of the flow table.
• Pour the freshly mixed concrete in the mould comprising two layers; each
layer should be tamped with tamping rod for 25times. After tamping the last
layer, the overflowed concrete on the cone is struck off using a trowel.
• Slowly, lift the mould vertically up & let concrete stand on its
own without any support.

• The flow table is raised at the height of 12.5mm and dropped.

The same is repeated for 15times in 15secs.

• Measure the spread of concrete in diameter using centimeter

scale horizontally and vertically. The arithmetic mean of the two
diameters shall be the measurement of flow in millimeters.
Flow Table IS 9103 : 1999
 Vee-Bee consistometer

• Vee-bee consistometer test is named after the developer V Bahrmer of

Sweden, and it is covered by IS: 1199 – 1959
• In this test, we measure the relative effort led by concrete to change
from one definite shape to another definite shape by conducting
vibration (Conical to cylindrical).
• This effort is known as remoulding effort and it is measured in „t‟ secs.
(time) or called as Vee bee Secs.
• The time taken by the concrete to undergo complete remoulding is
determined as a measure of workability of concrete, and it is shown
as Vee bee Secs.
Vee-Bee consistometer

• This test is usually performed on dry concrete and it is not suitable for very
wet concrete. Concrete having slump value more than 50mm remoulds
quicker where measuring the time is not possible.

Apparatus of Vee bee consistometer test:

• The apparatus consists of a Vee bee test machine, tamping rod of dia 16mm
and length 600mm, Cylindrical Container, Trowels & Stopwatch.

• Vee bee Test machine:

• Vee bee test machine consists of a vibrating table which is mounted on an

elastic supports. The vibrator is operated electrically. The length and width of
a vibrating table are 380mm and 260mm.
Vee-Bee consisto-meter

• On the surface of the vibrating table, a

Cylindrical container is attached using wing
nuts.

• The slump cone of height 300 is open on both

sides and has a dia of 200mm at the bottom and
100mm at the top. The slump cone is inserted
into the cylindrical container to perform the test.
Vee-Bee consistometer
• The whole arrangement is mounted on a sturdy base as shown in the fig.
The bottom base consists of a swivel arm holder where the swivel arm is fixed
to the funnel and guide sleeve as shown in the fig.

• A graduated rod which has a scale is used to measure the workability of the
sample.

• Insert the Slump cone in the attached cylindrical container. Fill the concrete
sample in the cone in four layers; each layer should be one-quarter of the
height of slump cone and tamped with tamping rod for 25 strokes each.

• After tamping the top layer, struck off the concrete with a trowel making the
cone correctly filled.

• After filling the concrete in the slump cone, the transparent glass disc attached
to a swivel arm is moved and placed on the top surface of the concrete and
Note the reading from the graduated scale as an “initial reading”
Vee-Bee consistometer

• And then remove the cone slowly in the vertical direction and wait until the
concrete settles in the new position. Again move the swivel arm and place it
on the lowered concrete for the final reading. Note it as “final reading”
Vee-Bee consistometer
• Slump Value = Initial reading – Final reading
• Now, switch on the vibrator and start the stopwatch. The
vibrations are continued until the concrete is wholly re-
moulded i.e, the surfaces become horizontal and the whole
concrete surface adheres uniformly to the transparent disc.
The time required for complete re-moulding in seconds is
recorded.
• Note the time taken by concrete to become horizontal (re-
moulding) as Vee bee Secs.
• The consistency of concrete is measured as Vee bee Secs.
Vee-Bee consistometer