The Ultimate Guide to Understanding Concrete Composition,Properties and types of it

Introduction

Plain concrete, commonly known as concrete, is an intimate mixture of binding material, fine aggregate, coarse aggregate and water. This can be easily moulded to desired shape and size before it looses plasticity and hardens.Plain concrete is strong in compression but very weak in tension. The tensile property is introduced in concrete by inducting different materials and this attempt has given rise to RCC, RBC, PSC, FRC, cellular concrete and Ferro cement. In this session proportioning, mixing, curing,properties, tests and uses of plain concrete is dealt in detail. The other improved versions of concrete are explained and their special properties and uses are pointed out.

PLAIN CONCRETE

Major ingredients of concrete are.

Binding material (like cement, lime, polymer)
Fine aggregate (sand)
Coarse aggregates (crushed stone, jelly)
Water

A small quantity of admixtures like air entraining agents, water proofing agents, workability agents etc. may also be added to impart special properties to the plain concrete mixture.

Depending upon the proportion of ingredient, strength of concrete varies. It is possible to determine the proportion of the ingredients for a particular strength by mix design procedure. In the absence of mix design the ingredients are proportioned as `1:1:2,1:1_2^1:3,1:2:4,1:3:6` and `1:4:8`, which is the ratio of weights of cement to sand to coarse aggregate.In proportioning of concrete it is kept in mind that voids in coarse aggregates are filled with sand and the voids in sand are filled with cement paste. Proportion of ingredients usually adopted for various works are shown in below Table.

S. No.	Proportion	Nature of Work
1	1:1:2	For machine foundation, footings for steel columns and concreting under water.
2	`1:1_2^1:3`	Water tanks, shells and folded plates, for other water retaining structures.
3	1:2:4	Commonly used for reinforced concrete works like beams, slabs, tunnel lining, bridges
4	1:3:6	Piers, abutments, concrete walls, sill of windows, floors
5	1:4:8	Mass concretes like dam, foundation course for walls, for making concrete blocks

Table 1

Functions of Various Ingredients

Cement is the binding material. After addition of water it hydrates and binds aggregates and the surrounding surfaces like stone and bricks.Generally richer mix (with more cement) gives more strength. Setting time starts after 30 minutes and ends after 6 hours. Hence concrete should be laid in its mould before 30 minutes of mixing of water and should not be subjected to any external forces till final setting takes place.
Coarse aggregate consists of crushed stones. It should be well graded and the stones should be of igneous origin. They should be clean, sharp,angular and hard. They give mass to the concrete and prevent shrinkage of cement. Fine aggregate consists of river sand. It prevents shrinkage of cement. When surrounded by cement it gains mobility enters the voids in coarse aggregates and binding of ingradients takes place. It adds density to concrete, since it fills the voids. Denser the concrete higher is its strength.
Water used for making concrete should be clean. It activates the hydration of cement and forms plastic mass. As it sets completely concrete becomes hard mass. Water gives workability to concrete which means water makes it possible to mix the concrete with ease and place it in final position. More the water better is the workability. However excess water reduces the strength of concrete. Figure 1 shows the variation of strength of concrete with water cement ratio. To achieve required workability and at the same time good strength a water cement ratio of 0.4 to 0.45 is used, in case of machine mixing and water cement ratio of 0.5 to 0.6 is used for hand mixing.

Figure 1:Variation of strength of concrete with w/c ratio

Preparing and Placing of Concrete

The following steps are involved in the concreting:

Batching
Mixing
Transporting and placing
Compacting

1. Batching

The measurement of materials for making concrete is known as batching. The
following two methods of batching is practiced.

Volume batching
Weight batching

Volume Batching: In this method cement, sand and concrete are batched by volume. A gauge box is made with wooden plates,its volume being equal to that of one bag of cement. One bag of cement has volume of 35 litres. The required amount of sand and coarse aggregate is added by measuring on to the gauge box. The quantity of water required for making concrete is found after deciding water cement ratio. For example, if water cement ratio is 0.5, for one bag of cement (50 kg), water required is 0.5 × 50 = 25 kg, which is equal to 25 litres. Suitable measure is used to select required quantity of water.Volume batching is not ideal method of batching. Wet sand has higher volume for the same weight of dry sand. It is called bulking of sand. Hence it upsets the calculated volume required.
Weight Batching:This is the recommended method of batching.A weighing platform is used in the field to pick up correct proportion of sand and coarse aggregates.Large weigh batching plants have automatic weighing equipments.

2. Mixing

To produce uniform and good concrete,it is necessary to mix cement,sand and coarse aggregate,first in dry condition and then in wet condition after adding water.The following methods are practiced.

Hand Mixing
Machine Mixing

Hand Mixing: Required amount of coarse aggregate for a batch is weighed and is spread on an impervious platform.Then the sand required for the batch is spread over coarse aggregate.They are mixed in dry condition by overturning the mix with shovels. Then the cement required for the batch is spread over the dry mix and mixed by shovels. After uniform texture is observed water is added gradually and mixing is continued. Full amount of water is added and mixing is completed when uniform colour and consistancy is observed. The process of mixing is completed in 6–8 minutes of adding water. This method of mixing is not very good but for small works it is commonly adopted.
Machine Mixing:In large and important works machine mixing is preferred. Figure 2 shows a typical concrete mixer. Required quantities if sand and coarse aggregates are placed in the drum of the mixer. 4 to 5 rotations are made for dry mixing and then required quantity of cement is added and dry mixing is made with another 4 to 5 rotations. Water is gradually added and drum is rotated for 2 to 3 minutes during which period it makes about 50 rotations. At this stage uniform and homogeneous mix is obtained.

Figure 2

3. Transporting and Placing of Concrete

After mixing concrete should be transported to the final position. In small works it is transported in iron pans from hand to hand of a set of workers.Wheel barrow and hand carts also may be employed. In large scale concreting chutes and belt conveyors or pipes with pumps are employed. In transporting care should be taken to see that seggregation of aggregate from matrix of cement do not take place.

Concrete is placed on form works. The form works should be cleaned and properly oiled. If concrete is to be placed for foundation, the soil bed should be compacted well and is made free from loose soil.

Concrete should be dropped on its final position as closely as possible. If it is dropped from a height, the coarse aggregates fall early and then mortar matrix. This segregation results into weaker concrete.

4. Compaction of Concrete

In the process of placing concrete, air is entrapped. The entrapped air reduces the strength of concrete up to 30%. Hence it is necessary to remove this entrapped air. This is achieved by compacting the concrete after placing it in its final position. Compaction can be carried out either by hand or with the help of vibrators.

Hand Compaction: In this method concrete is compacted by ramming,tamping, spading or by slicing with tools. In intricate portions a pointed steel rod of 16 mm diameter and about a metre long is used for poking the concrete.
Compaction by Vibrators: Concrete can be compacted by using high frequency vibrators. Vibration reduces the friction between the particles and set the motion of particles. As a result entrapped air is removed and the concrete is compacted. The use of vibrators reduces the compaction time. When vibrators are used for compaction, water cement ratio can be less, which also help in improving the strength of concrete. Vibration should be stopped as soon as cement paste is seen on the surface of concrete. Over vibration is not good for the concrete.

The following types of vibrators are commonly used in concreting:

(a) Needle or immersion vibrators

(b) Surface vibrators

(d) Vibrating tables

Needle vibrators are used in concreting beams and columns. Surface vibrators and form vibrators are useful in concreting slabs. Vibrating tables are useful in preparing precast concrete elements.

Curing of Concrete

Curing may be defined as the process of maintaining satisfactory moisture and temperature conditions for freshly placed concrete for some specified time for proper hardening of concrete. Curing in the early ages of concrete is more important. Curing for 14 days is very important. Better to continue it for 7 to 14 days more. If curing is not done properly, the strength of concrete reduces. Cracks develop due shrinkage. The durability of concrete structure reduces.

The following curing methods are employed:

(a) Spraying of water

(b) Covering the surface with wet gunny bags, straw etc.

(d) Steam curing

(e) Application of curing compounds

Spraying of water: Walls, columns, plastered surfaces are cured by sprinkling water.
Wet covering the surface: Columns and other vertical surfaces may be cured by covering the surfaces with wet gunny bags or straw.
Ponding: The horizontal surfaces like slab and floors are cured by stagnating the water to a height of 25 to 50 mm by providing temporary small hunds with mortar.
Steam curing: In the manufacture of pre-fabricated concrete units steam is passed over the units kept in closed chambers. It accelerates curing process, resulting into the reduction of curing period.
Application of curing compounds: Compounds like calcium chloride may be applied on the curing surface. The compound shows affinity to the moisture and retains it on the surface. It keeps the concrete surface wet for a long time.

Properties of Concrete

Concrete has completely different properties when it is the plastic stage and when hardened. Concrete in the plastic stage is also known as green concrete. The properties of green concrete include:

1.Workability

2.Segregation

3.Bleeding

4.Harshness

The properties of hardened concrete are:

1.Strength

2.Resistance to wear

3.Dimensional changes

4.Durability

5.Impermeability

Properties of Green Concrete

1. Workability

This is defined as the ease with which concrete can be compacted fully without segregating and bleeding. It can also be defined as the amount of internal work required to fully compact the concrete to optimum density.The workability depends upon the quantity of water, grading, shape and the percentage of the aggregates present in the concrete.

Workability is measured by,

The slump observed when the frustum of the standard cone filled with concrete is lifted and removed.
The compaction factor determined after allowing the concrete to fall through the compaction testing machine.
The time taken in seconds for the shape of the concrete to change from cone to cylinder when tested in Vee-Bee consistometer.

The suggested values of workability for different works are as shown in below Table.

Application	Slump	Compaction Factor	Time in Vee-Bee
Concreting of shallow sections with vibrations	-	0.75 – 0.80	10 – 20
Concreting of light reinforced sections with vibrators	-	0.80 – 0.85	5 – 10
Concreting of lightly reinforced sections without vibrations and heavily reinforced sections with vibrations	25 – 75 mm	0.85 – 0.92	2 – 5
Concreting of heavily reinforced sections without vibration	75 – 125 mm	More than 0.92	-

Table 2: Suggested values of workability

2. Segregation

Separation of coarse particles from the green concrete is called segregation.This may happen due to lack of sufficient quantity of finer particles in concrete or due to throwing of the concrete from greater heights at the time of placing the concrete. Because of the segregation, the cohesiveness of the concrete is lost and honey combing results. Ultimately it results in the loss of strength of hardened concrete. Hence utmost care is to be taken to avoid segregation.

3. Bleeding

This refers to the appearance of the water along with cement particles on the surface of the freshly laid concrete. This happens when there is excessive quantity of water in the mix or due to excessive compaction. Bleeding causes the formation of pores and renders the concrete weak. Bleeding can be avoided by suitably controlling the quantity of water in the concrete and by using finer grading of aggregates.

4. Harshness

Harshness is the resistance offered by concrete to its surface finish.Harshness is due to presence of lesser quantity of fine aggregates, lesser cement mortar and due to use of poorely graded aggregates. It may result due to insufficient quantity of water also. With harsh concrete it is difficult to get a smooth surface finish and concrete becomes porous.

Properties of Hardened Concrete

1. Strength

The characteristic strength of concrete is defined as the compressive strength of 150 mm size cubes after 28 days of curing below which not more than 5 percent of the test results are expected to fail. The unit of stress used is N/`mm^2`. IS 456 grades the concrete based on its characteristic strength as shown in the below Table.

Grade	`M_{10}`	`M_{15}`	`M_{20}`	`M_{25}`	`M_{30}`	`M_{35}`	`M_{40}`
Characteristic strength in M N/`mm^2`	10	15	20	25	30	35	40

Table 3: Grades of concrete

Till year 2000, `M_{15}` concrete was permitted to be used for reinforced concrete works. But IS 456–2000 specifies minimum grade of `M_{20}` to be used for reinforced concrete works.

Strength of concrete depends upon the amount of cement content, quality and grading of aggregates, water cement ratio, compaction and curing. Strength of concrete is gained in the initial stages. In 7 days the strength gained is as much as 60 to 65 per cent of 28 days strength. It is customary to assume the 28 days strength as the full strength of concrete. However concrete gains strength after 28 days also. The characteristic strength may be increased by the as factor given in the below Table.

Minimum age of member when design load is expected.	1 month	3 month	6 month	12 month
Age factor	1.0	1.10	1.15	1.20

Table 4: Effect of age factor on strength of concrete

The tensile strength may be estimated from the
formula `f_t=0.7sqrt{f_{ck}} `
N/`mm^2` where `f_{ck}` is the characteristic compressive
stress. The modulus of elasticity may be estimated from the formula;

E = 50 `sqrt{f_{ck}}` N/`mm^2`

2. Dimensional Change

Concrete shrinks with age. The total shrinkage depends upon the constituents of concrete, size of the member and the environmental conditions. Total shrinkage is approximately 0.0003 of original dimension.

The permanent dimension change due to loading over a long period is termed as creep. Its value depends upon the stress in concrete, the age of the concrete at the time of loading and the duration of the loading. The ultimate creep strain may be estimated from the values of creep coefficient. The creep coefficient is defined as ultimate creep strain divided by the elastic strain at the age of loading. These values are listed in the below Table.

Age of Loading	7 days	28 days	1 year
Creep Coefficient	2.2	1.6	1.1

Table 5: Creep coefficient based on the age of loading

The size of concrete may change due to thermal expansion also. The coefficient of thermal expansion depends upon the nature of cement, the type of aggregates, cement content, relative humidity and the size of the sections of the structural elements.Below Table shows the coefficient of thermal expansion of concrete with different types of aggregates.

Type of Aggregate	Coefficient of Thermal Expansion/C°
Quartzite	(1.2 to 1.3) × `10^{-5}`
Sand stone	(0.9 to 1.2) × `10^{-5}`
Granite	(0.7 to 0.95) × `10^{-5}`
Basalt	(0.8 to 0.95) × `10^{-5}`

Table 6: Coefficient of thermal expansion

3. Durability

Environmental forces such as weathering, chemical attack, heat, freezing and thawing try to destroy concrete. The period of existance of concrete without getting adversely affected by these forces is known as durability. Generally dense and strong concretes have better durability. The cube crushing strength alone is not a reliable guide to the durability. Concrete should have an adequate cement content and should have low water cement ratio.

4. Impermeability

This is the resistance of concrete to the flow of water through its pores.Excess water during concreting leaves a large number of continuous pores leading to the permeability.Since the permeability reduces the durability of concrete, it should be kept very low by using low water cement ratio, dense and well graded aggregates, good compaction and continuous curing at low temperature conditions. The cement content used should be sufficient to provide adequate workability with low water cement ratio and the available compaction method.

Tests on Concrete

The following are some of the important tests conducted on concrete.

Slump test
Compaction factor test
Crushing strength test

1. Slump Test

This test is conducted to determine the workability of concrete. It needs a slump cone for test (Fig. 3). Slump cone is a vessel in the shape of a frustum of a cone with diameter at bottom 200 mm and 50 mm at top and 300 mm high. This cone is kept over a impervious platform and is filled with concrete in four layers. Each layer is tamped with a 16 mm pointed rod for 25 times. After filling completely the cone is gently pulled up. The decrease in the height of the concrete is called slump. Higher the slump, more workable is the concrete. The desired values of slumps for various works have been shown in Table 2.

Figure 3

2. Compaction Factor Test

This is another test to identify the workability of concrete. This test is conducted in the laboratory. The test equipment consists of two hoppers and a cylinder fixed to a stand, the dimensions and the distances between the three vessels being standardized. Vessel A and B are having hinged bottoms whereas cylinder C is having fixed bottom.

Top vessel A is filled with the concrete to be tested. As soon as it is filled, the hinged door is opened. Concrete is collected in vessel B. Then the hinged door of B is opened to collect concrete in cylinder C. The concrete in cylinder C is weighted. Let it be `W_1`.

Now cylinder is again filled with the sample of concrete in 50 mm layers, which is compacted by ramming and vibrating. Then the weight of compacted concrete is determined. Let this weight be `W_2`.

The ratio `frac{W_1}{W_2}` is termed as compaction factor. The specified values of compaction factor for different works are already listed in Table 2.

Figure 4: Compaction factor test

3. Crushing Strength Test

Metallic moulds of size 150 mm × 150 mm × 150 mm are used for casting concrete cubes. Before filling mould, it is properly oiled on its inner surfaces, so that cubes can be easily separated. Fresh cube is filled with concrete to be tested in 3 layers and kept in the room. After 24 hours, cube is removed from the mould and kept under water for curing. After 28 days of curing cubes are tested in the compression testing machine. In this test cubes are placed over the smooth surface which is in contact with side plates of mould. The crushing load is noted and crushing strength is found as load divided by surface area (150 × 150 `mm^2`).

Code specify the desirable strength of concrete for 3 days and 7 days for quick assessment of strength of concrete.

Desirable Properties of Concrete

Appropriate quality and quantity of cement, fine aggregate, coarse aggregate and water should be used
so that the green concrete has the following properties:

(a) Desired workability

(b) No seggregation in transporting and placing

(d) No harshness

Hardened concrete should have

(a) required characteristic strength

(b) minimum dimensional changes

(d) impermeable

(e) good resistance to wear and tear

Uses of Concrete

As bed concrete below column footings, wall footings, on wall at supports to beams
As sill concrete
Over the parapet walls as coping concrete
For flagging the area around buildings
For pavements
For making building blocks

However major use of concrete is as a major ingradient of reinforced and prestressed concrete.Many structural elements like footings, columns, beams, chejjas, lintels, roofs are made with R.C.C.Cement concrete is used for making storage structures like water tanks, bins, silos, bunkers etc. Bridges,dams, retaining walls are R.C.C. structures in which concrete is the major ingradient.

Conclusion

In conclusion, concrete stands as a testament to human ingenuity and innovation in the realm of construction. Its composition, properties, and versatility make it an indispensable building material, shaping the skylines of cities and the landscapes of communities around the globe. As we continue to push the boundaries of technology and sustainability, concrete remains a cornerstone of modern engineering, paving the way for a resilient and enduring built environment.