RESEARCH NO.

1
CONCRETE AND CONCRETE
PRODUCTS

STUDENT:
INSTRUCTOR:
DATE:

1. CONCRETE AND CONCRETE PRODUCTS

TYPES OF CEMENT
Type 1 - Normal Portland cement. Type 1 is a general use cement.
Type 2 - Is used for structures in water or soil containing moderate amounts of sulfate,
or when heat build-up is a concern.
Type 3 - High early strength. Used when high strength are desired at very early periods.
Type 4 - Low heat Portland cement. Used where the amount and rate of heat generation
must be kept to a minimum.
Type 5 - Sulfate resistant Portland cement. Used where the water or soil is high in alkali.
Types IA, IIA and IIIA are cements used to make air-entrained concrete. They have the
same properties as types I, II, and III, except that they have small quantities of airentrained materials combined with them.
TYPES OF CONCRETE MIXES
Most concrete mix designs use the same type of raw materials: cement, water and
aggregate (usually sand and stone), in different ratios. Some types of concrete have
additional materials added to give specialist qualities, such as:

Fibers - enhanced strength

Plasticizers - free flowing, better workability

Retarding agents - reduce rate of setting

Accelerating chemicals - increase rate of setting

Corrosion inhibitors - reduce corrosion of steel bars

Normal Concrete

The concrete in which common ingredients i.e. aggregate, water, cement are used
is known as normal concrete. It is also called normal weight concrete or normal strength
concrete.

It has a setting time of 30 - 90 minutes depending upon moisture in atmosphere,

fineness of cement etc.

The development of the strength starts after 7 days the common strength values is
10 MPa (1450 psi) to 40 MPa (5800 psi). At about 28 days 75 - 80% of the total strength
is attained.

Almost at 90 days 95% of the strength is achieved.

Properties of Normal Concrete

Its slump varies from 1 - 4 inches.

Density ranges from 140 pcf to 175 pcf.

It is strong in compression and weak in tension.

Air content 1 - 2 %.

Normal concrete is not durable against severe conditions e.g. freezing and
thawing.
High strength concrete

Compressive strength of high strength concrete mix is usually greater than 6,000
pounds per square inch.

High strength concrete is made by lowering the water cement (W/C) ratio to 0.35
or lower.

Often silica fume is added to prevent the formation of free calcium hydroxide
crystals in the cement, which might reduce the strength at the cement aggregate bond.
High Performance Concrete

This mix has the following main properties:

High strength.

High workability.

High durability.

Ease of placement.

Compaction without segregation.

Early age strength.

Long-term mechanical properties.

Permeability.

Density.

Heat of hydration.

Toughness.

Volume stability.

Long life in severe environments.

Air Entrained Concrete

One of the greatest achievements in field of concrete technology is development of

air entrained concrete. It is used where the concrete is vulnerable to freezing and
thawing action.

It is used where the concrete is vulnerable to freezing and thawing action. It is

prepared by adding the air entraining admixture.

The air entrainment in concrete does the following functions:

It lowers the surface tension of water and thus bubbles are created.

Secondly the air entraining agents prevents coalescing i.e. the combining of
bubbles. The diameter of these bubbles ranges from 10 micrometer to 1000 micrometer
and in entrapped air the diameter of bubble is greater than 1mm.

Air entraining agents OR air entrained admixtures are used for the purpose of
making entrained air in concrete.
Light Weight Concrete

The concrete which has substantially lower mass per unit volume then the
concrete made of ordinary ingredients is called lightweight concrete. The aggregates
used are lighter in weight.

Density of light weight concrete is 240 kg/m (15pcf) -1850 kg/m (115 pcf).

Strength of light weight concrete blocks varies from 7 MPa (1000 psi) - 40 MPa
(5800 psi).

Sometimes Air Entrained Admixtures are also added to it giving resistance to

freezing and thawing along with strength.
Self-Compacting Concrete

The concrete where no vibration is required. The concrete is compacted due to its
own weight. It is also called self-consolidated concrete or flowing concrete. It can be also
categorized as high performance concrete as the ingredients are the same, but in this
type of concrete workability is increased. This self-consolidating concrete is characterized
by:

Extreme fluidity as measured by flow, typically between 650-750 mm on a flow

table, rather than slump (height).

No need for vibrators to compact the concrete.

Placement being easier.

No bleed water, or aggregate segregation.

Shotcrete

Shotcrete concrete uses compressed air to shoot concrete onto (or into) a frame or
structure.

Shotcrete is mortar or (usually) concrete conveyed through a hose and

pneumatically projected at through a shotcrete nozzle with high velocity onto a surface.
Shotcrete undergoes placement and compaction at the same time due to the force with
which it is projected from the nozzle.

It can be impacted onto any type or shape of surface, including vertical or

overhead areas.

Shotcrete is frequently used against vertical soil or rock surfaces, as it eliminates

the need for formwork.

It is sometimes used for rock support, especially in tunneling.

Shotcrete is also used for applications where seepage is an issue to limit the
amount of water entering a construction site due to a high water table or other
subterranean sources.

This type of concrete is often used as a quick fix for weathering for loose soil types
in construction zones.
Pervious Concrete

Pervious concrete contains a network of holes or voids, to allow air or water to

move through the concrete. This allows water to drain naturally through it, and can both
remove the normal surface water drainage infrastructure, and allow replenishment of
groundwater when conventional concrete does not.

It is formed by leaving out some or the entire fine aggregate (fines), the remaining
large aggregate then is bound by a relatively small amount of Portland cement.

When set, typically between 15% and 25% of the concrete volumes are voids,
allowing water to drain.
Roller compacted concrete

Roller compacted concrete, sometimes called roll Crete, is a low-cement-content

stiff concrete placed using techniques borrowed from earthmoving and paving work.

The concrete is placed on the surface to be covered, and is compacted in place

using large heavy rollers typically used in earthwork.

The concrete mix achieves a high density and cures over time into a strong
monolithic block.

SLUMP TEST

Slump is a measurement of concrete's workability, or fluidity.

It's an indirect measurement of concrete consistency or stiffness.

A slump test is a method used to determine the consistency of concrete. The

consistency, or stiffness, indicates how much water has been used in the mix. The
stiffness of the concrete mix should be matched to the requirements for the finished
product quality.

Types of Concrete Slump Test Results

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.
COMPRESSIVE STENGTH TEST
Compressive strength test is a mechanical test measuring the maximum amount of
compressive load a material can bear before fracturing. The test piece, usually in the
form of a cube, prism, or cylinder, is compressed between the platens of a compressiontesting machine by a gradually applied load.

2. WHAT ARE
CONCRETE ADDITIVES
Concrete additives are used to improve the behavior of concrete under a variety of conditions
and are of two main types: Chemical and Mineral.
-Admixtures are additions to a concrete mix that can help control the set time and other
aspects of fresh concrete. Common admixtures include accelerating admixtures, retarding
admixtures, fly ash, air entraining admixtures, and water-reducing admixtures.

ACCELERATORS
--accelerators are added to concrete to reduce setting time of the concrete and to
accelerate early strength. The amount of reduction in setting time varies depending
on the amount of accelerator used. Calcium chloride is a low cost accelerator, but

specifications often call for a non-chloride accelerator to prevent corrosion of

reinforcing steel.
RETARDERS
-Are often used in hot weather conditions to delay setting time. They are also used to
delay set of more difficult jobs or for special finishing operations like exposing
aggregate. Many retarders also act as a water reducer.
AIR ENTRAINING AGENTS
-must be used whenever concrete is exposed to freezing and thawing, and to deicing
salts. Air
entraining agents entrains microscopic air bubbles in the concrete: when
the hardened concrete freezes, the frozen water inside the concrete expands into
these air bubbles instead of damaging the concrete.

Air entrainment improves concrete workability

Air entrainment improves durability

Air entrainment produces a more workable mix

DISPERSAL AGENTS
-When cement and water are mixed, the cement particles tend to gather in clumps or
to flocculate. As a result water does not reach some of the particles and some are
only partially hydrated. Sometimes only 50% of the cement is hydrated. Cement
dispersal agents causes cement particles to separate by imparting like electrostatic
charges to them.
CONCRETE HARDENERS
-Plain concrete surfaces which are subjected to rolling live loads, the impact action of
foot traffic, and other types of wear begin to dust and crumble at the surface after a
period of time. This condition worsens with time, finally resulting into destruction of
the surface. To prevent this, Chemical Hardeners and Fine Metallic aggregate are
used.
- An admixture such as calcium chloride, sodium chloride, or sodium hydroxide that
hastens or decreases the hydration rate of cementing material; the concrete takes
less time to set and has earlier higher strength.
WATER- REDUCING ADMIXTURE
-A material used to reduce the amount of water necessary to produce a concrete of
given consistency or to increase the slump for a given water content.
BONDING AGENTS
-When fresh concrete is poured against another concrete surface already set and at
least partially cured, it is often difficult to obtain a bond between the two surfaces
unless special precautions are taken. Fresh concrete sinks when setting, and unless
there is a very good bond thus shrinkage makes the new pull away from the old

surface. A cement mix paste or scratch coat is often applied from old concrete
surface. Two types of bonding agents are; Metallic Aggregate and Synthetic latex
Emulsion.
COLORINGS AGENTS
- Natural and synthetic materials are used to color concrete for aesthetic and safety
reasons. Red concrete is used around buried electrical or gas lines as a warning to
anyone near these facilities. Yellow concrete safety curbs are used in paving
applications. Generally, the amount of pigments used in concrete should not exceed
10% by weight of the cement. Pigments used in amounts less than 6% generally do
not affect concrete properties.
SET- INHIBITING AGENTS
- Inhibitors are used in concrete for parking structures, marine structures, and bridges
where chloride salts are present. The chlorides can cause corrosion of steel
reinforcement in concrete. Ferrous oxide and ferric oxide form on the surface of
reinforcing steel in concrete. Ferrous oxide, though stable in concretes alkaline
environment, reacts with chlorides to form complexes that move away from the steel
to form rust. The chloride ions continue to attack the steel until the passivating oxide
layer is destroyed. Corrosion-inhibiting admixtures chemically arrest the corrosion
reaction.
NON- SKID SURFACES
-To avoid making concrete surfaces slippery. Surfaces that are frequently wet or that
would be dangerous or inconvenient if slippery are often given special treatment to
ensure a non-slip finish. These finishes can be achieved by hand tool techniques, by
sawing, by applying an abrasive aggregate, with epoxy resin materials, and by setting
non-slip strips in the concrete.
GAS FORMING AGENTS
- a variety of cellular concrete; made by injecting a gas forming agent (usually
aluminum powder) into a mixture consisting of a binding component (such as Portland
cement or milled quicklime), a siliceous component (milled quartz sand), and water.
-Causes a slight expansion in plastic concrete or mortar and thus reduces and
eliminates voids caused by settlements.
POZZOLANIC ADMIXTURES
- Pozzolans are silicate-based materials that react with (consume) the calcium
hydroxide generated by hydrating cement to form additional cementitious materials.
Typically pozzolans are used as cement replacements rather than cement additions.
Adding pozzolans to an existing concrete mix without removing an equivalent amount
of cement increases the paste content and decreases the water/cement ratio.
-Pozzolans may be added to concrete mixes rather than substituting for part of the
cement to improve workability and resistance to chemical attack.
3. WHAT ARE THE CONCRETE PRODUCTS?

Architectural and Decorative Concrete: This section highlights design possibilities

and discusses considerations for selecting color and texture for architectural and
decorative concrete.
Autoclaved Cellular Concrete or ACC, was invented in Sweden in the early 1900s.
The lightweight, high-strength building material now used on every continent.
Concrete Countertops have gained acceptance in just about every level of residential
application, from moderately priced homes to high-end palaces.
Concrete Masonry has undergone significant change within the last decade, becoming
a more cost-effective, energy-efficient building product than ever.
Concrete Pavement: This section describes the four types of concrete pavements and
details the preparation, placement, and curing of concrete pavements.
Concrete Pipe provides water for people and farmlands or carries away sewage and
drains land.
Controlled Low-Strength Material is a cement-based product often used as a backfill.
Decorative Floors are becoming increasingly attractive for home and facility owners.
High-Strength Concrete: In the last two decades concrete has gotten stronger and
better for high-rise construction.
Insulating Concrete Forms: These builder-friendly wall systems have recently made a
mark on the housing industry of North America.
Precast Concrete became more common after World War II.
Prestressed Concrete: Patented in San Francisco in 1886, prestressed concrete made
its impact on the United States construction industry almost 75 years later.
Ready-Mixed Concrete accounts for nearly three-fourths of all concrete used annually.
Roller-Compacted Concrete: Initially developed for use by the forestry industry in
Canada, roller-compacted concrete is a durable paving and dam material that is placed
using asphalt construction equipment.
Shotcrete is a mortar or concrete that is dispensed from a hose onto a surface at a high
velocity.
Soil-Cement: Developed in 1935, this product is often used as a paving base, mixing
cement with compacted soil.
Tilt-Up Concrete: a construction method where walls are cast in a horizontal position
and then tilted into a vertical position and moved into place with a mobile crane.

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