CONCRETE

Introduction

 Concrete and Steel are the two most

commonly used Structural materials in the
construction industry.
Topics
 Definitions
 Ingredients
 Types of cement
 Types of aggregate
 Batching & mixing of concrete
 Transportation of concrete
 Testing of concrete
 Pumping of concrete
 Curing of concrete
 Joints in concrete
 Reinforcement for concrete
 Additives & Admixtures for concrete
 Useful References
 Definitions
 Shotcrete
 It is that type of mortar or concrete which is conveyed through a hose

(flexible tube) and pneumatically projected at high velocity.

 Pozzolanic cement
 It comes from the name of the village Pozzuoli, near Vesuvius, where the volcanic

ash was first found. The Pozzolanic cement is the term used to describe the
cements obtained by simple grinding of natural materials at normal temperature.
 Portland cement
 A cement consisting of Portland cement with not more than 5% of other inorganic

materials.
 Hydraulic cement
 They consists mainly of silicates and aluminates of lime and can be broadly

classified as natural cements, Portland cements and high Alumina cements.

 Blended Cement
 A cement consisting of Portland cement and two or more appropriate inorganic

materials which contribute to the strength gaining properties of the cement with or
without other constituents, processing additions and functional additions is called
blended cement. (ASTM C 1157-94a)
Civil engineers are concerned with the calcareous cements.
Ingredients

 Concrete consists of following ingredients

 Cementitious material (cement or lime)
 Coarse aggregate (Crush stone etc)
 Fine aggregate (Sand )
 Water (which is fit for drinking)
Manufacture of Portland cement

 It is made of calcareous materials, such as Lime stone or chalk

and from alumina and silica found as clay or shale. Marl, a
mixture of calcareous and argillaceous materials is also used.
 Process of manufacturing cement consists essentially of grinding
the raw materials, mixing them in certain proportion and burning
in a large rotary kiln at a temp of about 1450 oC. Material partially
fuses in to balls called clinker. Clinker is cooled and ground to a
powder form with some gypsum addition. Product obtained is
called Portland cement.
 Main compounds of portland cement are
 Tri calcium Silicate 3CaO. SiO2 C3 S
 Dicalcium silicate 2CaO. SiO2 C 2S
 Tricalcium Aluminate 3CaO. Al2O3 C 3A
 Tetracalcium Aluminoferrite 4CaO.Al2O3.Fe2O3 C4AF
 Bogue’s Equations

 The chemical composition of Portland cement is

based on the work of R.H. Bogue and others
known as Bogue composition.
C3S = 4.07 (CaO)-7.6(SiO2)-6.72(Al2O3)-1.43(Fe2O3)-2.85(SO3)
C2S = 2.87(SiO2)-0.75(3CaO.SiO2)
C3A = 2.65(Al2O3)-1.69(Fe2O3)
C4AF = 3.04(Fe2O3)
Heat of Hydration

 It is the quantity of heat in joules/gm of unhydrated cement

evolve upon complete hydration at a given temperature
 Method of determining heat of hydration is by measuring
heat of solution of unhydrated and hydrated cement in a
mixture of nitric and hydrofluoric acids.
 Method is described in (ASTM C 186-94) and (BS 4550)
section 3.8:1978
 Heat of hydration of 1 gm cement is given by
 136(C3S)+62(C2S)+200(C3A)+30(C4AF)
blended cement

 There are many ways to prepare a blended

cement.
 Grind cemetitious materials with clinker
 Mix two or three materials in their final form
 Mix Portland cement with some cementitious
materials in concrete mixer.
Types of cementitious materials
Types of Cement

 As per ASTM
C150-94 or
C 595-94a
types of cement
are given in
table.
Compound Composition of different type
of OPC
 Types of Cement
 Ordinary Portland cement (Type-I)
 Used in general concrete construction where there is no
exposure to sulphates in soil or ground water. ENV 197-
1 :1992.
 Modified Cement (Type-II)
 The rate of gain of strength is similar to OPC.
 The rate of heat development is higher than a low heat cement.
Types of Cement
 Rapid hardening Portland cement (Type-III)
 It is used where high early strength is required or where
formwork is required for reuse or where quick
construction is required.
 High early strength cause high rate of heat development.
 Higher C3S content (more than 55% up to 70%) and finer
grinding of clinker cause increase rate of strength
gaining.
 It should not be used for mass construction works (Dam)
or for large structural sections.
 Setting time of OPC and rapid hardening cement is
same i.e. not less than 45 minutes.
Types of Cement
 Low heat Portland cement (Type-IV)
 Due to low thermal conductivity of concrete the rise in
temperature in the interior of concrete mass can lead
to serious cracking.
 In this types of cement the rate of gain of temperature
is low and limited to 250 J/g (60 cal/g) at 7 days and
290 J/g (70 cal/g) at 28 days.
 Low content of C3S and C3A results in a slower
development of strength.
 ASTM C150-94 covers the detail of low heat cements.
 Types of Cement

 Sulfate resisting Cement (Type-V)

 Calcium aluminates in cement can react with sulfate salt
which will increase the volume and cause disintegration of
concrete.
 Where Sulfate attack is suspected (i.e. shore areas,
underground areas) SR cements are suitable.
 C3A content must be low 3.5% as per BS 40027 : 1991
 ASTM C150-94 covers the detail of Sulfate resisting
Cements.
Types of Cement

 White cement and Pigments

 These cements contain very low Iron Oxide (less than
0.3% by mass of clinker) and Manganese Oxide. China
clay with Chalk or limestone is generally used.
 White cement satisfy the BS 12 : 1991
 Pigments used for different colours in cement like …
 Iron oxides can produce Yellow, Red Brown and Black.
 Chromic Oxides produces green colour
 Titanium Dioxides produces White colour.
 BS 1014 : 1975 for Pigments
Types of Cement
 Port Land Blast furnace cement
 It is a mixture of OPC and ggbs (ground granulated blast
furnace)
 Slag is a waste product in the manufacturing of Pig Iron
(300 kg slag/ton of Pig Iron)

 Supersulfated Cement
 It is highly resistant to high concentration of sulfates
 80-85 % blast furnace slag10-15 calcium sulfate
5%portland cement clinker.
 Suitable for mass concrete works (170 -190 J/g 40 -45
cal/g)
Types of Cement
 Anti-bacterial Cement
 It’s a Portland cement interground with a antibacterial agent

which prevents microbiological fermentation.

 Used in food processing plants, swimming pools etc.

 Hydrophobic Cement
 It is a special type of cement and it can be stored for a long time

under unfavorable conditions.

 Hydrophobic properties are due to the formation of an water-

repellent film around each particle of cement.

 This cement is obtained if OPC is grinding with 0.1 to 0.4 % of

Oleic acid, stearic acid or Pentachlorophenol.

 Oil-well cements
 It is used for grout or slurry to be pumped to depth of thousands

meters (Temperature 150-300oF and 100Mpa pressure)

Types of Cement

 High Alumina Cement

 It gain strength at a very high rate i.e 80%
strength in 24 hours.
 Good to resist sulfate attacks
 It contains about 40% alumina and lime15% of
ferrous and ferric oxides 5% slica small amount of
magnesia
 Raw material are limestone and bauxite
Aggregate

 Aggregate is an inert material used in

concrete to gain volume stability, durability
and economy.
 Theoretically aggregate is not 100% inert, its
physical and chemical properties effects the
concrete properties.
Types of aggregate

 As per BS 882 : 1992 basic division between

corse aggregate and fine aggregate (sand) is
5 mm or 3/16 “ sieve
 As per ASTM No.4 ASTM (4.75 MM) is the
dividing line for coarse and fine aggregates.
 BS 812 : Part I : 1975 explain two types of
classification for aggregate.
 Classification of natural aggregate
 Particle shape classification
Types of
aggregates

 Classification
of natural
aggregate
Particle shape classification
Fine Aggregate

 Bulking of Fine Aggregate

 It is defined as the increase in the volume of a
given mass of sand caused by the films of water
surrounding the particles and pushing them apart.
Water
 Water containing less than 2000 ppm dissolved solids can
generally be used satisfactorily for making concrete.
 Sodium carbonate in water cause rapid setting.
 Bicarbonates may either accelerate or retard the setting time.
 Large concentration of above two salts reduces the strength.
 20,000 ppm of sodium chloride are generally tolerable.
 10,000 ppm of sodium sulfate is tolerable.
 Magnesium sulfate & magnesium chloride up to 40,000 ppm is
tolerable.
 Iron salts upto 40,000 ppm is tolerable.
 Inorganic salts like (salts of manganese, tin, zink, copper & lead)
up to 500 ppm are tolerable.
 Sea water containing salts up to 35,000 ppm are tolerable.
 Acidic water containing hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid up to
10,000 ppm have no effect.
Water
 Potassium hydroxide up to 1.2% by wt. is tolerable.
 Industrial waste having less than 4000 ppm total solids cause up
to 10% reduction in compressive strength.
 Raw Sewage contain up to 400 ppm of organic matter. Diluted
sewage contain up to 20 ppm, which has little effect on the
strength of concrete.
 Sugar in water up to 0.03%-0.15% by wt. retard the setting time
of cement.
 Sugar 0.15% - 0.2% accelerate the setting time.
 Sugar greater than 0.25% accelerate the setting time but reduce
28 days strength.
 Sugar in water, less than 500 ppm has no effect at all.
 Suspended clay or fine rock particles up to 2000 ppm can be
tolerated.
 Mineral (petroleum) oils greater than 2% by wt. reduces the
strength more than 20%.
 Algae cause large amount of air to be entrained and they also
reduce the bond between aggregate and cement paste thus
cause reduction in strength.
Water Cement ratio (W/C ratio)
 It is the ratio of the
quantity of water to the
quantity of cement.
 It can be by volume or Water cement Ratio (W/C Ratio)

by weight.
Vol ume
By

W/C ratio
eigh t
By W
Qty. of water per bag (50 kg)

W/C by Volume W/C by Weight

Batching & mixing of concrete

 Batching
 Batching means measuring of the ingredients of
concrete. It is of two types
 Batching by volume
 Batching by weight
 Mixing
 Mixing is of two type
 Hand mixing
 Machine mixing
Batching by volume (ASTM C 685-94)

 In volumetric batching, ingredients of concrete are

mixed by volume.
 Buckets are used to measure volume of each
ingredient.
 Normally volume of one cement bag is considered
as standard (its volume is 1.25 ft3)
 Sand volumes are computed by using bulking
factors.
 No additional quantity is added for coarse aggregate
due to moisture.
 Quantity of water is effected by the moisture of fine
and coarse aggregate so minimum desirable
computed net quantity of water must be added.
Bucket for measuring ingredients of
concrete

0”
2’-

6”
1’-
Batching by weight

 It is more accurate method of batching.

 Each ingredient of concrete is weighted and mixed.
 Weighting coarse aggregate is a laborious work.
 Batching plants are available now a day. They are
expansive and can be recommended for large
projects, where the quantity of concrete is
considerable.
 Batching plants are of three types.
1. Swinging hopper type.
2. Horizontal hopper type.
3. Simple weight batcher.
Mixing of concrete
Mixing Platform
 Hand mixing
 Machine mixing

 In hand mixing first aggregate is deposited on a

platform then fine aggregate (sand) is added finally
cement is spreaded on the dump of materials.
 Diagonal parts of material is mixed and processes is
repeated for 3 to 4 times until a uniform mixture is
achieved.
 Water is added preferably by shower or by making a
ditch in the material.
Machine mixing

 Concrete mixers used on building sites must

conform BS 1305 :1974
 Several types of concrete mixers are available like
1. Pan mixers or forced action mixers (P)
2. Drum mixers
1. Tilting mixers (T)
2. Non tilting type mixers (NT)
3. Reversing Drum mixers
3. Specialized mixers (Colloidal mixer)
Tilting mixers (T)
 The mixing
chamber is
called Drum.
 It consists of
a bowl
shaped drum
having vanes
inside.
 For
discharging
concrete
drum can be
tilted.
 Tilting mixers (T)

 It can be with
or without
hopper.
 Non tilting mixer (Reversing drum
mixer)
 Axis of
mixer is
always
horizontal
 Truck mixers
 They are
used when
concrete is
required to
transport to a
long distance
 They work
with a central
batching
plant.
Specialized mixers (Colloidal mixer)

 They are used for shotcreting.

 Colloidal mixers are used for mortar mixing.
 Cement and water is mixed at a speed of
2000 rev/min then sand is added.
 Pre mixing of cement and water allow better
hydration
Continuous Mixers

 ASTM C 685-94 discuss requirements for

continuous mixing and volumetric batching.
 Using a modern continuous mixer Placing,
compaction and finishing can all be achieved
in 15 minutes.
 Segregation

 Segregation can be defined as the seperation

of the constituents of a hetrogeneous mixture
so that their distribution is no longer uniform.
 Segregation is of two types
1. Separation of coarse aggregate
2. Separation of grout
 Practical rules to avoid segregation are
discussed in ACI 304R-85
Bleeding

 Bleeding or water gain is a form of

segregation.
 Water rise on the surface of freshly mixed
concrete.
 ASTM C 232-92 describe two methods for
finding bleeding.
Nominal Size of Mixer

 The nominal size of mixer is described by

volume of concrete after compaction (BS
1305 : 1974) it may be as low as one half of
the volume of the unmixed ingredients in
loose state.
 Mixer sizes vary from 0.04 m3 (1-1/2 ft3) up to
13 m3(460 ft3 or 17 yd3).
Uniformity of mixing
 If quantity of mix less than 1/3 of the nominal capacity of mixer,
the resulting mix may not be uniform.
 Uniformity of mixing represents the efficiency of mixer.
 For truck mixer ASTM C 94-94 specify a “Rigid test” taking
samples from about 1/6 to 5/6 points of a batch, difference in
properties of two samples should not exceeds the following

 Density -------------------------- 16 kg/m3 1 lb/ft3

 Air content ---------------------- 1 %
 Slump ---------------------------- 25 mm 1”
 %age of aggregate
 Retained on 3/16” sieve --- 6 %
 Density of air free mortar ---- 1.6 %
 Compressive strength ------- 7.5 %
(7 days)
Uniformity of mixing

 BS 3963 : 1974 (1980) suggest for two samples and

determination of the following.
water content as %age of solids 0.1% Fine agg.
As %age of total aggregate 0.5%
W/C ratio 0.01%
 Swedish investigators suggest that uniformity of
cement content is the best measure of uniformity of
mixing. Variation up to 6% with 20 mm slump is ok. 8
% for mixes of lower workability.
 In France a radioactive tracer has been developed to
determine the distribution of water or admixture.
 US Army corps of Engineers test method CDR-C
55-92 specifies taking samples from stationary mixers
for mass concrete works and to check their uniformity.
Time of Mixing
 Time of mixing is infect number of revolutions of
mixer !!!!!!
 Generally 20 revolution with optimum speed are
sufficient.
 Mixing time and uniformity got a relationship (Shalon
and Reinitz) shown in graph.
 Strength of concrete increases with mixing time as
shown by Abrams tests up to 2 minutes and after
this time slight decrease in strength is observed.
 Minimum time of mixing is specified by the mixer
manufacturer……… min mixing time for a 0.75m3 or
1 yd3 mixer is I minute ……. Add 15 seconds for
each additional 1yd3. it is given by ASTM C 94-94
and ACI 304R-89
Transportation of concrete

 Concrete can be transported from the

mixing place to its final placement position
by following means
1. Wheel barrows
2. Chutes
3. Trucks
4. Belt conveyers.
Testing of concrete
 Concrete testing can broadly classified in to two
major divisions.
 Green concrete Tests.
 Workability tests
1. Slump test
2. Compacting factor test
3. ASTM flow test
4. Remoulding test
5. Vebe Test
6. Flow test
7. Ball penetration test
8. Nasser’s K-test
9. Two point tests
Testing of concrete

 Hardened concrete tests.

 Strength in compression
 Cube test (BS 1881 : Part 111 :1983)
 Cylinder test (BS 1881 : Part 110 :1983) (ASTM C 192-
90a
 Flexural strength test
 Tensile test
Testing of concrete

 Workability
 Workability determines the ease of placement and
resistance to segregation.
 It is the amount of useful internal work necessary to
produce full compaction. Glanville et al)
 ASTM C 125-93 says “ it is the property determine
the effort required to manipulate a freshly mixed
quantity of concrete with minimum loss of
homogeneity”
 ACI 116R-90 says “it is that property of freshly
mixed concrete or mortar which determines the
ease and homogeneity with which it can be mixed,
placed, consolidated and finished”
Slump test
 Slump test
 ASTM C 143-90a and BS 1881 : Part 102 : 1983
 Slump test is performed by a frustum of cone
 300 mm (12”) high
 200 mm (8”) lower side diameter
 100 mm (4”) upper side diameter.
It is made of steel and open from both sides. Two handles are provided.
It is placed at a steel plate. Concrete of filled in three layers and
compacted with (5/8”) dia steel rod. 25 blows per layer. Cone is
removed and concrete settle down.
Decrement in height of concrete is called Slump measured to the nearest
½” (5 mm)
Slump is of three types
1. True slump
2. Shear slump
3. Collapse slump
Types of Slump
Slump
Recommended Slump Values for
different works
 Slab -----------------------1” to 2”
 Narrow column sections --- 4” to 7”
 Vibrating concrete ------1/2” to 1”
 General RC. Works ---- 2” to 6”
 Road work concrete ---- ¾” to 1-1/2”
Curing of concrete

 Curing means to keep the concrete moist ,

nearly saturated.
 Concrete surface is kept moist until the water
filled pores filled by hydration products up to
the desire extent.
 Powers shows that hydration is greatly
reduced when the relative humidity within the
pores drop below 80%.
 Loss from the concrete must be reduced.
Water loss
Water loss
Pumping of concrete

 ACI Guide 304R-89 is the relevant document.

 Pumps are mainly of three types
1. Piston type pumps or direct acting pumps
2. Squeeze pumps or peristaltic pumps
3. Special pumps
 A slump of 50-150 mm is recommended for
pumped concrete.
 Lubrication of pipes require 0.25 m3/100 mortar for
150 mm diameter pipe.
Pumping of concrete

 Pumping capacity of
different types of
pumps.
Type of Pump Horizontal range Vertical range
Piston type pumps 90 m 30 m
Squeeze pumps 1000 m 120 m
Special pumps 1400 m 430 m
Pumping of concrete

 OUTPUT OF
CONCRETE PUMPS

Type of Pump Out Put (m3 /hour)

Piston type 130

Squeeze type 20
Reinforcement for concrete
 Reinforcement in concrete is provided to supplement its tensile
strength deficiency.
 Reinforcement can be of bar, wires or welded wire fabric.
 Important properties of reinforcement are
 MOE
 Yield strength
 Ultimate strength
 Grade designation
 Bar size (diameter)
 Reinforcement can be of following types.
1. Round Bars
2. Deformed Bars
3. Twisted Bars
4. Mesh or fabric
5. High tensile wires
Reinforcement for concrete
 MOE is taken as 29x106 psi or 200x106 MPa.
 Grade is the yield strength like Grade 40 steel exhabits 40,000
psi yield strength.

 Round bars are available from 3/16” to 2” and in length of 40’.

 Deformed bars improves the bond strength between steel and
concrete and provided with different shapes rings, projections on
the surface.
 Twisted bars are prepared by twisting the bars. Yielding zone of
these bars are removed by twisting.
 Meshes are prepared in different weights from 4-16 lbs/yd2
ASTM approved deformed bars
Types of reinforcement (ASTM)
Additives & Admixtures for concrete

 Admixtures are chemicals added to concrete mix (not more than

5%) for achieving specific modifications to the normal properties
of concrete.
 ASTM C 494-92 classify 7 types of admixtures as follows
 Type A Water reducing.
 Type B Retarding.
 Type C Accelerating.
 Type D Water reducing and retarding.
 Type E Water reducing and accelerating.
 Type F Superplasticizing.
 Type G Superplasticizing and retarding.
Prestressed Concrete

 Definition
 Basic Principle
 Type of Prestresing
 Types of Tendons
 Casting
Movement Joints

 Definition
 Types of movement joints
 Placement of joints
 Useful Links

Concrete MIX DESIGN (PCA)

http://www.cement.org/learn/ln_mix_design.asp