Concrete contained ingredients such as cement, sand, coarse aggregate and water.

Cement is use as a binding material in concrete due to the best Adhesive and Cohesive property while
water is the cheapest and most important ingredient of concrete.

In concrete, the single most significant influence on most or all of the properties is the amount of water
used in the mix.

In concrete mix design, the ratio of the amount of water to the amount of cement used (both by weight)
is called the water to cement ratio (w/c). A w/c ratio of 0.4 means that for every 100 lbs of cement used
in the concrete, 40 lbs of water is added.

These two ingredients, cement and water, are responsible for binding everything together. The w/c ratio
largely determines the strength and durability of the concrete when it is cured properly.

Concrete with a higher w/c ratio is also more susceptible to cracking and shrinkage. Shrinkage leads to
micro-cracks, which are zones of weakness. Once the fresh concrete is placed, excess water is squeezed
out of the paste by the weight of the aggregate and the cement paste itself. When there is a large excess
of water, that water bleeds out onto the surface. The micro channels and passages that were created
inside the concrete to allow that water to flow and become weak zones and micro-cracks.

 True Slump – True slump is the only slump that can be measured in the test. The measurement
is taken between the top of the cone and the top of the concrete after the cone has been
removed as shown in figure-1.
 Zero Slump – Zero slump is the indication of very low water-cement ratio, which results in dry
mixes. These type of concrete is generally used for road construction.
 Collapsed Slump – This is an indication that the water-cement ratio is too high, i.e. concrete mix
is too wet or it is a high workability mix, for which a slump test is not appropriate.
 Shear Slump – The shear slump indicates that the result is incomplete, and concrete to be
retested.

The compressive strength of the concrete cube test provides an idea about all the characteristics of
concrete. By this single test one judge that whether Concreting has been done properly or not. Concrete
compressive strength for general construction varies from 15 MPa (2200 psi) to 30 MPa (4400 psi) and
higher in commercial and industrial structures.

Compressive strength of concrete depends on many factors such as water-cement ratio, cement
strength, quality of concrete material, quality control during the production of concrete, etc.

Test for compressive strength is carried out either on a cube or cylinder. Various standard codes
recommend a concrete cylinder or concrete cube as the standard specimen for the test. American
Society for Testing Materials ASTM C39/C39M provides Standard Test Method for Compressive Strength
of Cylindrical Concrete Specimens.