Preparation and Curing of Concrete Test Proportion of Fine and Coarse Aggregates by

Specimens Mass: 1.2 - upper limit 1:1.5 - lower limit 1:2.5

Description and Classification of Concrete
Mixtures
3. Other Classification of Concrete
1. Concrete a. Lime Concrete – slaked lime
 Building material
 Hardens and solidifies due to a chemical
process known as hydration. b. Cement Concrete:
 Used to make pavements, pipes, 1) Special – environmental conditions
engineering structures, foundations, roads, 2) Reinforced – steel bars in tension
bridges, walls, and footings zones; offset tension weakness
3) Pre-stressed - high-graded
2. Classifications of Concrete steel/tendon wires
a. General Classification of Concrete
Plain Concrete – no or with less reinforcement
than the minimum amount specified for RC. Concrete:

Reinforced Concrete – no less than the minimum 1) Aerated – calcareous and siliceous
amounts of: materials
2) Heavy Weight - hw aggregates;
1. reinforcing bars compacting well by mechanical
2. pre-stressing tendons means
3. non-pre-stressed reinforcement 3) Pre-packed – injecting cement sand
mortar under pressure

b. Classification According to Proportions

c. Special Types of Concrete
Class AA – used for columns of reinforced
concrete building and construction; very strong and Concrete:
dense concrete
1) Air Entrained – billions of
Class A – reinforced concrete works of all kinds microscopic cells per ft3 produced by
and general concrete works air-entraining Portland cement
2) High-Early Strength – hes cement
Class B – used in plain concrete foundations,
3) Light weight – lw aggregates
walls, and floors; for not much strength of
impermeability
Class C – lean concrete mixture; used in heavy 4. Proportioning Ingredients for Concrete
masses a. Mix Proportioning Method
Method:
Proportion of Ingredients of Cement Concrete 1) Weight – assumed or known weight
C G W 28 per unit volume
C R S M3 NW
KG M3 L PSI 2) Absolute-volume – specific gravity
Concrete 3500-
AA 1:1.5:3 415 15 30 8
works 4000
values; calculate the absolute
Reinforced
2500-
volume; in unit volumes
A 1:2:4 325 16 32 9.5 concrete
works
3000 3) Fineness Modulus – indicates
Walls, 1500- index number; proportional to the
B 1:2.5:5 227 16.5 33 13
piers etc. 2000 average size of the particle
Mass
concrete, 500- 4) Arbitrary Standard – ratio fa and ca
C 1:3:6 174 17 34 16.5
concrete 1000 to develop a dense mix between
blocks etc.
1:1/2 & 1:2 1/2
5) Minimum Voids – fa > 10% ca
Proportions for Nominal Mix Concrete voids; cement > 15% fa
6) Maximum Density – box of fixed
Dry Aggregate by volume filled with varying proportion
Grade of Cement Water / 50 kg
Mass / 50 kg
Concrete cement of fa an ca
cement
M5 800 60 7) Water Cement Ratio – amount of
M7.5 625 45 water = strength of a given
M10 480 34
M15 350 32
proportion
M20 250 30
 Properties of Concrete  Compressive Strength depends upon the
amount & type of cement used
(a) Fresh Concrete or Plastic Stage
 Also affected by:
(b) Hardened Concrete
 Water-cement ratio
 Mixing method
a. Plastic Stage
 Placing
1) Consistency – measurement of stiffness &
 Curing
sloppiness/fluidity
 Slump Test - measure consistency
2) Durability
 Slump Loss – caused due:
 Period of existence without getting
 Hydration
adversely affected by environmental forces
 Loss of water by evaporation
 Ability to maintain satisfactory performance
 Absorption of water by dry
over extended service life
aggregates
 Life span of a building: usually 30 years; 50-
 Absorption of water by
100 years
surfaces in contact with the
 Buildings are demolished due to
concrete
obsolescence not deterioration
2) Workability – compacted fully w/o segregation
3) Impermeability – resistance to the flow of
and bleeding
water through its pores
 Consistency ≠ Workability
 Smaller stone = ↑ Workability
4) Dimensional Changes – total shrinkage ≈
 Not possible to measure but assumed
0.0003 of original dimension
through slump test, stone content,
cohesiveness, and plasticity
5) Shrinkage – volume decrease caused by
3) Segregation – separation of the coarser
drying & chemical changes
particles = homogeneity of mix
6) Creep
4) Bleeding – appearance of water on the surface
 Deformation under sustained load
of freshly laid concrete on compaction and
 Long-term pressure or stress = changes in
finishing
shape
 Deformation occurs in the direction of the
5) Settlement and Bleeding – cement &
force applied
aggregate particles have density 3x that of
 Permanent dimension change
water
7) Modulus of Elasticity
6) Setting – hardening before hydration
 Depends on concrete ingredients and mix
proportions
7) Hydration – where concrete derives its
 As per American Concrete Institute (ACI)
strength; process continuing for a long time
code, this can be calculated by the formula:
8) Air Entrainment – reduces density of concrete
= reduces strength

b. Hardened Stage Where:

Ec = modulus of elasticity of concrete
1) Strength
 Defined as the compressive strength of 150 γc = unit weight of concrete
mm size cubes after 28 days curing below
fc’ = compressive strength
which not more than 5% of the test result
are expected to fail
 Concrete Strength = Compressive Strength
 Strong in compression 8) Water Tightness
 Weak in tension and bending  Impermeability
 Tensile strength ranges from  Directly related to the durability
7% to 12% of compressive  ↓ permeability = ↑ durability
strength
 Tensile & bending strength 9) Thermal Conductivity
can be increased by adding  Concrete has moderate thermal conductivity
reinforcement ↓ than metals ↑ building materials (wood)
 in N/mm (MPa) or lb/in2 (psi)
2  Extreme temperature can cause structural
damage to the concrete
10) Unit Weight – depends on % of: Procedures in Curing Test Specimens:
 Reinforcement
Initial Curing:
 Type of aggregate
 Amount of voids 1. Cover the concrete specimens with a non-
absorptive, nonreactive plate or a sheet
2. tough durable impervious plastic to prevent
evaporation
3. Stored immediately after finishing until the
Preparation of Concrete Specimens for Testing
removal of the molds
ASTM Designation C192/ C192 – 02 4. Select procedures that will prevent moisture
loss
Procedures in preparing concrete specimen for 5. Remove the specimens from the molds 24 ±
testing: 8 hours after casting
1. Mix; room temp condition
2. Cement is thoroughly mixed; passed
through 850-μm or Sieve no. 20 For Final Curing:
3. Segregation of aggregates into individual
1. Must be started 30 minutes after removal
size fraction
from the cylinder mold; maintained at 23oC ±
4. Mix by mixer or by hand consistently
2 oC
5. Measure the slump of each batch (ASTM
2. May be done in a water tank conforming to
Designation C143/ C143 – 03)
AASHTO M 201; free moisture surfaces at
6. Determine air content (ASTM Designation
all times
C173/ C231)
3. 28 days to reach its probable compressive
7. Make specimens in cylindrical mold\
strength
8. Place concrete mixture with equal layers of
approximately equal volume
9. Rod uniformly each layer with the rounded
end
10. Remix concrete mixture to prevent
segregation during molding
11. Ensure symmetrical distribution
12. Distribute using tamping rod prior
consolidation
13. In final layer add an amount exact to fill the
mold after compaction
14. Strike off the surface of the concrete
15. Remove specimens from the mold 24 ± 8
after casting
Curing of Concrete Test Specimens
Curing – maintain a satisfactory moisture content &
temperature for a period of time immediately after
placing and finishing to develop desired properties
Apparatus in Curing Test Specimens:
1) Slump Cone Apparatus
Types of Slump:
a. True
b. Shear
c. Collapsed
d. Zero

2) Molds
Types of Mold:
a. Cylindrical
b. Cube
c. Beam
 Determination of Setting Time of Hydraulic Hardening
Cement
 acquires greater hardness (cold
Description and Classification of Cement forming or heat treatment)
 cement paste starts hardening due to
1. Description of Cement
the reaction of C3S & C2S with water
Cement and gains strength

 Binder 3) Specific Gravity Test

 Substance that sets and harders as the  specific gravity of good Portland
cement dries cement should be between 3.15 & 3.20
 Reacts with carbon dioxide  valuable for detecting adulteration
 The word traces to the Romans who used
opus caementicium 4) Soundness
 Volcanic ash and pulverized brick additives  after setting, shall not undergo any
that were added to the burnt lime to obtain a appreciable amount of volume
hydraulic binder:  testing of soundness of cement =
 Cementum determine that the cement does not
 Cementum show any appreciable subsequent
 Cäment expansion
 Hydraulic & Non-hydraulic
5) Strength of Cement
2. Classification of Cement
Mechanical Strength of Hardened Cement
a. Hydraulic Cement
 most important for structural design
 Replacing some of the cement in a concrete
mix with activated: Compressive strength test two functions are to final
 Aluminium check on the quality of cement and to classify
silcates cement according to the strength it gives after 3
 Pozzolanas (such days and 7 days of curing
as fly ash)
Compressive Strength of Hardened Cement
 To activate cement setting in wet condition
or underwater and further protects hardened  most important of all properties
concrete from chemical attack (Portland  cement is always tested for its strength at
cement) hardening because of hydration the laboratory before the cement is used in
important works
b. Non-hydraulic Cement
 will not set in wet conditions or underwater Strength of Cement
 attacked by some aggressive chemicals  indirectly found on the mixture specific
after setting proportions
 standard sand is used for finding the
Properties of Hydraulic Cement strength of cement

1) Fineness
 Strength development of concrete = 6) Heat of Hydration - chemical reaction
reaction of water with cement particles between cement and water
 larger the surface area = greater is the
rate of hydration
Testing of Setting Time of Cement
Fineness of Cement
1. Description of Setting Time of Cement
 finer = quicker it sets
 impalpable powder - active element in the Setting of Cement
cement
 process of changing mixed cement with
 measured either in terms of:
water into a liquid state to a solid state
 % of weight retained after sieving
 time cement hardens sufficiently and the
(90 micron or no. 200 sieve)
hydration of cement with water is almost
 surface area cm2 per gram
completed.
2) Setting Time
Setting - changing from a fluid state to a solid state
Initial Setting Time H = time in minutes of first penetration less than 25
mm
 Period of elapsing between the needle of 1
mm square section fails to pierce the test C = penetration reading at time E
block to a depth of about 5mm from the
D = penetration reading at time H
bottom of the mold
 30 minutes is the minimum initial setting
time for ordinary and rapid hardening
portland cements Note: Calculate the Vicat final time of setting by
 60 minutes for low heat cement determining the elapsed time between the time of
the initial contact between cement and water and
the time when the needle does not sink visibly into
the paste and rounded to the nearest 5 minutes.
Final Setting Time
 Period elapsing between the time when
water is added to cement and the time
 The needle of 1 mm square section with
5mm diameter attachment makes an
impression on the test block and 600
minutes is the maximum time specified for
the final set for all the above mentioned
portland cement
 Setting power of cement is tested by Vicat
Needle Apparatus

2. Test for Setting Time of Hydraulic

Cement (ASTM Designation C 191 – 08)
Scope: Method that determines the time of setting
of hydraulic cement by means of Vicat Needle
Apparatus.
Apparatus/Instruments and Equipment:
1) Vicat Apparatus
 With movable rod
 Rod for measuring penetration
should have a straight steel
removable needle with a
diameter of 1.00 ± 0.05 mm and
length no less than 50 mm with
flat end and right angles to the
axis of the rod; and mass 300 ±
0.5 grams
 Glass Graduated Cylinder (200
or 250 mL)
 Plane Non-absorptive Plate
 Flat Trowel
 Conical Ring
 Vicat mold
 Mixer
 Bowl Paddle
 Stop Watch
Computation:
Calculate the Vicat time of setting to the nearest 1
minute as follows:

E = time in minutes of last penetration greater than

25 mm