cement and materials used for manufacturing of cement:
1821, artificial cement
1870, Portland cement
Lime (cao, calcaire)
silica (sa2o3, sand and clay)
iron oxide (fe2o3, rust)
alumina (al2o3, clay)
magnesium oxide (mgo, clay, dolomite)
how concrete is made
mix the materials in proper and closely controlled proportions.
heat up the resulting material at 1450c to form the clinker with particle diameter of (0.5-3 cm)
ground the clinker into fine cemenet powder w partical diameter of 0.05 mm
the finer the cement, the stronger the concrete, the faster it will set.
cement powder density of 1506 kg/m3
chemical reaction: crystallization. The lime should always be hydrated.
reaction between water and cement releases heat. the temperature of the resulting concrete
mix increases by 20c.
total time from mixing the concrete and pouring it in the formwork should not exceed 1h 30
mins.
initial setting time (45 min), final setting time (10 hours), design strength (28)
cement should be used 3-6 months after manufacturing maximum.
water evaporation changes volume of concrete
treamie concrete volume 1/10th to 3/4th more than original normal concrete
types of cement
type 1: ordinary Portland cement
type 2: moderate heat and moderate sulfate resisting Portland cement (slow reaction, slow
setting, less heat, less shrinkage, less cracks)
type 3: high early strength (rapid hardening) (3 days 70% compared to 7 days for type 1)
type 4: moderate heat of hydration (little energy generated) (slow setting)
type 5: sulfate resisting portland cement ( groundwater and soil attack the concrete)
components of concrete
water (drinkable)
fine aggregates (sand, well graded, sharp and clean, no silts, organic material nor clay)
coarse aggregates (grave,, sg=1120-1760, max size the smaller of either 2 cm or 3/4th the
distance between reinforcing steel bars
other types of cement
fly ash (ashen by product of burning coal)
ggfs granulated ground blast furnace slag (result of steel industry, has cementicious properties
because of its glassy constituents)
pozzolan (mineral admixture used as supplement for Portland cement hydrating products and
creates binders for concrete)
silica fume (the fine dust formed during the process of manufacturing silicon metal)
Lime (made from calcium oxide, and came from clay)
rice hull ash (ashen by product of rice hulls that are a good type of pozzolan)
mixing time
between 1- 3 minutes depending on type of mixer
factors affecting mixing time are type of mixer and volume of concrete
slump test
fresh concrete mix
wheelbarrow and shovel
scoop
steel tamping rod (600 cm in length)
flat steel plates (600*600*3 cm thick)
slump mold
metric ruler/measuring tape
- place steel plates on leveled surface to make sure it’s firm
- place slump mold on the plates making sure the narrow part is on top
- fill in the mold with the fresh concrete mix (making sure that it has 3 layers equal in depths)
- tamp each layer with the tamping rod 25 times while making sure the tamping rod does not
reach the layer underneath
- once tamped, step on footplates and hold handles to keep mold firm, then slowly step off
foot plates and flip the mold and place it next to the concrete.
- place the rod on top of the mold and the other end on top of the concrete
- using a metric ruler measure the distance beween the bottom of the rod and the highest
point of the concrete.
concrete testing
cubes 15*15 cm or cylinder 15 cm diam and 30 sm height provided by the lab.
use 3 cylinders to test the compressive strength of concrete
80% of test results show strength <= to design strength after 28 days
fc28=1.5fc7
modulus of rupure= 1.06fc
impurities affecting concrete
acidic water (<7) bc concrete is basic and reacts with the acid which spoils the concrete
pure water a bit acidic so it removes the lime from the concrete
wastewater
salt water removes the lime and creates white spots and powder
water containing sulfates (white powder)
excess water allows lime to be in contact with air which creates white residues too
edible oil (like vegetable oil)
curing of concrete
wetting the surface with a little bit of water
use a wet cloth, sand, straws and place them on the surface of the concrete
use special admixtures to enhance its properties during weather so it ca resist bad weathers
mixing of concrete
ready mix: concrete mixed in stationary mixer, then poured and transported in truck mixer
shrink mix (transit mix): partitially mixed in stationary mixer, then later mixed in truck mixer with
water
dry mix: everything stationary mixer, water is added on site.
construction joints
help separate concrete poured on different days
no permanent function
joints should be separated by 5m
reinforcement should not expand through the joints
expansion joints
help separate concrete poured on different days
reinforcement should not expand through the joints
exposed joints should be filled with elastic steel filler
help separates the components of the building and let them move independently to avoid
damage during natural disasters such as earthquakes.
vibrating concrete
used to help the curing of concrete to go faster
1 minute 50 cm thick firm concrete, 10 s for 20 cm thick plastic concrete
too much vibrations separates fine aggregates and water from coarse aggregates (which sink in
the bottom)
admixtures vs additives
admixture are added with the components like cement, water, fine and coarse aggregates
additives are added inside the cement
- air entraining admixtures
- water reducing admixture
- plasticizers
- coloring admixture
concrete should be workable, flowable, strong, watertight, wear resistant and durable.
coloring of concrete
gray, greenish-gray: good
blueish gray: excess lime
brownish gray: excess clay
strength of concrete
normal strength concrete: fc <= 40 mpa
high strength concrete: fc>=40 mpa and can go up to >= 150 mpa
high performance strength:
- durability factor 80%
- water cement ratio 0.35
- min compressive strength
1) 21 mps (3000 psi) for 4 hours
2) 34 mpa (5000 psi) fir 24 houts
3) 69 mpa (10000 psi) for 28 days
pre cast concrete
used in mass production of common and standardized units (columns, beams). can be
reinforced or un reinforced (pre stressed). allows better quality control.
pre stressed concrete
stresses introduced in concrete are used as conter acts for the stresses produced by service
loads. prestressing force is a result of jacks placed on the end of the beams, then concrete is
poured around it, and once it sets, jacks are released.
- pre tensioning: tendons (steel rods…) are stressed before construction. Once they are
stressed, concrete is poured around them and once it sets, the tendons are released.
- post tensioning: happens after the concrete sets. the councrete is poured and then hardens,
once it hardens, tendons are placed inside hollow tubes that have been previously pre
casted. tendons are then stressed and get anchored to each concrete section.
post tensioning is preferable to use because there are big components that should be casted
and stressed but they are too big so they should only be done on site, during construction.
reinforcing steel
reinforcing steel reinforces the concrete
compressive strength 15x more than normal concrete
tensile strength 100x more than normal concrete
once bars are deformed,they are easier to blend with the concrete
40 psi (274 mpa) and 60 psi (414 mpa) for yield strength
sg 3x more than concrete 3780 compared to 2240-2260
