A Scientific Approach for

Determining the Workability of

Concrete
N.Ajay
Research Scholar, Dept of Civil Engg, BMSCE.

Dr.S.Girish
Professor, Dept of Civil Engg, BMSCE.
 OUTLINE

INTRODUCTION

WORKABILITY OF CONCRETE

RHEOLOGY OF CONCRETE

RHEOMETERS

CONCLUDING REMARKS

REFERENCES
 WORKABILITY

The ease with which concrete can be

mixed, placed, consolidated, and finished
to a homogenous condition.

Unless we measure the phenomenon we

cannot understand the properties of
workability.

Abrams suggested determining a relative

consistency term calculated by
measuring the distance fresh concrete
slumped after being molded in cylinder
the slump test.
WORKABILITY (Cont..)

Empirical Tests
 WORKABILITY-DRAW BACKS
Widely used test is Slump test. Which is directly related to
workability and is an empirical test.

Difficult to compare results from one test to another.

Early days of concrete- composed of cement, Aggregate & Water.

Lower Water content Lower slump & higher quality of concrete.

Today - Advance special concrete in industry.

Concrete - Admixture ,Manufacturing Sand, Fibers, GGBS etc.
 WORKABILITY-DRAW BACKS (Cont..)
Tattersall Classifies the Workability of Concrete
Class-I , Class-II and Class-III.

Tattersall and Banfill pointed out single-point parameter in

evaluation of by empirical methods.

Tattersall, splits up the workability test as single-point and multi-

point tests based on flow curve relating shear stress and shear rate.
 WORKABILITY-DRAW BACKS (Cont..)
So single point tests are incapable for determining the parameter of fresh
concrete.

Multiple tests needed to describe different aspects of workability.

Two concrete with same Slump may flow differently & have different
workability.

Yield stress is related to the force

required breaking down structure and
initiating the flow.
Plastic viscosity describes the resistance
to flow once the concrete is flowing.
 WORKABILITY (Cont..)
Draw backs of empirical tests- needs a method based on scientific approach.

Workability of concrete is closely related to flow properties.

Also ACI Subcommittee 236-A recommends, Workability of Fresh Concrete,

based on material science- approach to provide better methods for
measuring workability for concretes.

In that approaches several methods are available, but Rheological techniques

are most commonly and widely used methods.
 CONCRETE RHEOLOGY
Rheology is the scientific study of the flow and deformation of matter.

Concrete rheology is science which deals with fresh properties of concrete and
concrete it consider as fluid.

Two parameters are namely; yield stress and plastic viscosity are needed to
describe flow properties.

By using various available models or constitutive equations.

Basic Constitute Relationships for flow

Newtonian fluid is the basic
constitute equation for flow.
 CONCRETE RHEOLOGY (Cont..)

The Bingham model is most commonly used to represent concrete flow due to it simplicity
and its ability to represent the majority of concrete mixtures.
 RHEOLOGY MEASUREMENT
To determine the Bingham parameters, there are two possibilities:

The fresh concrete is sheared at high rate before the Rheological test. Then, the
shear rate is decreased gradually and the stress is measured. The relationship
between the stress and shear rate is plotted and the intercept at zero-shear
rate is the yield stress, while the slope is the plastic viscosity.

The stress applied to the material is increased slowly and the shear rate is
measured. When the stress is high enough the concrete will start flowing. The
point at which the materials flow is the yield stress and the slope of the curve
above this stress is the plastic viscosity.
FACTORS INFLUENCING
CONCRETE RHEOLOGY
 RHEOMETERS
To measure the liquid, suspension or slurry flows in response to applied
forces is measuring by a devices called as Rheometer.

Tattersall for the first time carried out systematic investigations in this field in
1973 and he suggested the use of a 'Two-point test.

All the rheometers measure the resistance to flow of concrete at varying

shear rate conditions.

Rheometers for concrete fall into one of three configurations: coaxial

cylinders, parallel plate, and impeller-type.
 TYPES OF RHEOMETERS
Two-Point Test

BML

BTRHEOM

CEMAGREF-IMG

IBB
 THE TWO-POINT RHEOMETER

FIGURE : GENERAL ARRANGEMENT OF THE TWO-POINT TEST

Impeller imparts stirring action in a bowl of concrete, and driving

torque (T) is measured.
 THE BML RHEOMETER

FIGURE(A) SHOWS THE CONTEC BML (B) INNER AND OUTER CYLINDER

Inner cylinder measures torque as the outer cylinder rotates at

variable angular velocity.

Fully automated and is controlled by computer software called

FreshWin.
 THE BTRHEOM RHEOMETER

FIGURE : THE BTRHEOM RHEOMETER SHOWING THE BLADES AT THE TOP

AND BOTTOM OF THE BUCKET CONTAINING THE CONCRETE.

Software program, ADRHEO, operates the device, records data, and computes
the rheological parameters.
 THE IBB RHEOMETER

FIGURE : PICTURE OF IBB RHEOMETER

Fully automated and uses a data acquisition system to drive an impeller

rotating in fresh concrete.
The yield stress and plastic viscosity, are displayed on the screen.
 CONCLUDING REMARKS
Measuring workability of fresh concrete based rheological properties is a more
basic fundamental scientific approach to address an limitation of empirical test
in the back drop of development of new type of special concrete.

Mixes can be differentiate based on the values of rheological parameters.

Using rheological parameters new mathematical models and mix design

procedure can be proposed.
 REFERENCES
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2. Koehler, P. Eric and Fowler, W. David, Quality of Qualification of Concrete Workability By Means of the Vibrating Slope Apparatus,
ICAR 105-2, 2003.
3. G. Sam Wong, etal Portland-Cement Concrete Rheology and Workability: Final Report, FHWA-RD-00-025, January 2000.
4. Koehler, P. Eric and Fowler, W. David, Summary of Concrete Workability Test Methods, ICAR 105-2003.
5. P.F.G. Banfill, The rheology of fresh cement and concrete-A review 11th international Cement Chemistry Congress, Durban, 2003.
6. Tattersall.G.H. Workability and Quality Control of Concrete. London: E. & F. N. Spon; 1991.
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Standards and Technology, NISTIR 5869, Vol.104, pp 461-478, SeptemberOctober 1999.
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349, 1983.
10. V. Hackley and C.F. Ferraris, The Use of Nomenclature in Dispersion Science and Technology, (Special Report 960-3).
Gaithersburg, MD: National Institute of Standards and Technology, 2001.
11. Ferraris, Chiara. F., and Brower, Lynn E., Comparison of concrete rheometers Concrete International, pp 1-66, 2000.
12. Tattersall.G.H., Banfill, P.F.G.: The rheology of fresh concrete, First edition, Pitman, Boston, London, Melbourne, 1983.
13. P.J.M. Bartos, Workability and Rheology of Fresh Concrete: Compendium of Tests, Report of Technical CommitteeTC145 WSM,
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Concrete Shear Tests, RILEM, pp365-372.
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Thank you