MYTHS & FACTS ABOUT CONCRETE
BY Sri P.Suresh Babu.B.Tech
Myth
1 Very hard metal is to be used for
concrete
2 Water used for mixing must be
good. Water used for curing need
not be that much good used for
mixing
3 Flaky materials should not be used
for concrete
4 Use of more water in mixing gives
dense concrete and good finishing
durable
Fact
Aggregate of very hard nature is not essential
for concrete. Concrete with AIV less than 45 is
suitable for all grades of concrete except for
wearing surfaces viz. wearing coat of bridges,
CC pavements, etc. For wearing surfaces
aggregate having AIV less than 30 is to be used.
Gradation of aggregate is more important for
concrete to have more strength. Hence trap
metal or other reasonably hard material
satisfying the above requirements can be used
for any grade of concrete. For BT/CC roads we
must use aggregate having AIV less than 30,
which means very hard material is required for
roads rather than other structures like bridges.
Water used for mixing and curing must have
the same specification and must satisfy the
condition of PH value more than 6.
Flaky materials with FIV up to 35 can be used
for concrete. IRC: 44 permit aggregates having
FIV up to 40 for CC pavements.
Use of more water leaves more voids in
concrete after completion of hardening
process. The presence of voids reduces
concrete strength considerably. The presence
of 5% voids reduces the concrete strength by
30%.
5 Curing for shorter periods of 10 to 14
days is sufficient as high grade
cements are used.
6 Excess vibration gives dense concrete
and thus give more strength
7 Plate vibrators are more powerful
than internal (needle) vibrators
8 Needle vibrator should be placed
inclined for better compaction of
concrete
9 For better compaction in RCC
Members the needle of vibrator can
be touched with reinforcement ,by
inducing vibration in steel
Curing for 28 days considerable for any type of
cement whether OPC/PPC to attain good strength.
For high grades of cement the requirement of
water in first few hours i.e. from 12 hours to 36
hours, is very high and we must provide adequate
water during this period. High grades of cement
are more vulnerable for cracks due to excess heat
of hydration.
Excess vibration leads to segregation of concrete.
Keeping the soft laitance at the top and aggregate
at the bottom. This lead to poor compressive
strength of concrete. The vibration must be
optimum, such that it gives uniform dense
concrete. As a general rule the vibration can be
stopped once if the aggregate at top is just
disappearing due to vibration and no air bubbles
are seen at the top.
The internal vibrators must be used in all concrete
works to have better vibration. The plate vibrators
can be used for slabs up to 125mm thick. For all
other items internal vibrators are more effective.
The needle vibrator should be vertical in concrete
for better compaction and spacing of insertion of
vibrator should be 5 times the diameter of needle.
It is dangerous to keep the needle in contact with
reinforcement for compaction of concrete. This
will definitely disturb the already laid concrete in
the process of final setting and develops cracks in
concrete. Further it will damage the position of
reinforcement in concrete. This should not be
allowed.