Prediction of the plastic viscosity of self-compacting steel fibre reinforced concrete

Micromechanical constitutive models are used to predict the plastic viscosity of self-compacting steel fibre reinforced concrete (SCFRC) from the measured plastic viscosity of the paste. The concrete is regarded as a two-phase composite in which the solid phase is suspended in a viscous liquid phase. The liquid matrix phase consists of cement, water and any viscosity modifying agent (VMA) to which the solids (fine and coarse aggregates and fibres) are added in succession. The predictions are shown to correlate very well with available experimental data. Comments are made on the practical usefulness of the predicted plastic viscosity in simulating the flow of SCFRC.     

Durable fiber reinforced self-compacting concrete

In order to produce thin precast elements, a self-compacting concrete was prepared. When manufacturing these elements, homogenously dispersed steel fibers instead of ordinary steel-reinforcing mesh were added to the concrete mixture at a dosage of 10% by mass of cement. An adequate concrete strength class was achieved with a water to cement ratio of 0.40. Compression and flexure tests were carried out to assess the safety of these thin concrete elements. Moreover, serviceability aspects were taken into consideration. Firstly, drying shrinkage tests were carried out in order to evaluate the contribution of steel fibers in counteracting the high concrete strains due to a low aggregate-cement ratio. Secondly, the resistance to freezing and thawing cycles was investigated on concrete specimens in some cases superficially treated with a hydrophobic agent. Lastly, both carbonation and chloride penetration tests were carried out to assess durability behavior of this concrete mixture.     

Index of Aggregate Particle Shape and Texture of coarse aggregate as a parameter for concrete mix proportioning

Aggregates occupy bulk of the volume of concrete. Their size, grading, shape and surface texture have significant influence on the properties of concrete, both in fresh and hardened state. Specifications in various codes, on concrete mix proportioning, regarding size and grading of the aggregate are much clear than their counterparts regarding shape and surface texture, which is broadly classified into angular/crushed and rounded/uncrushed. The lack of quantitative definition of aggregate particle shape and surface texture often leads to inconsistent results, and requirement of number of trials for achieving desirable properties of concrete. Index of Aggregate Particle Shape and Texture (IAPST) as per ASTM D-3398-97, provides a quantitative measure of shape and surface texture of aggregate. The present investigation covers coarse aggregate with different IAPST. The data of 45 concrete mixes has been presented and the potential of IAPST of coarse aggregate as a parameter for concrete mix proportioning is discussed in the paper.     

A method for mix-design of fiber-reinforced self-compacting concrete

The addition of fibers to self-compacting concrete (SCC) may take advantage of its superior performance in the fresh state to achieve a more uniform dispersion of fibers, which is critical for a wider structural use of fiber-reinforced concrete. Some useful, mainly empirical, guidelines are available for mix design of fiber-reinforced SCC. In this work a “rheology of paste model” is applied to the mix design of Steel Fiber Reinforced SCC (SFRSCC). Fibers are included in the particle size distribution of the solid skeleton through the concept of an equivalent diameter, defined on the basis of the specific surface. The influence of fibers (type and quantity) on the grading of solid skeleton, minimum content and rheological properties of the paste required to achieve the required self-compactability and rheological stability were studied. Tests were conducted on both plain and fiber-reinforced concrete made with a variety of mix compositions. In addition, rheological tests were made with corresponding cement pastes.     

Influence of amount of recycled coarse aggregates and production process on properties of recycled aggregate concrete

In this study recycled coarse aggregates obtained by crushed concrete were used for concrete production. Four different recycled aggregate concretes were produced; made with 0%, 25%, 50% and 100% of recycled coarse aggregates, respectively. The mix proportions of the four concretes were designed in order to achieve the same compressive strengths. Recycled aggregates were used in wet condition, but not saturated, to control their fresh concrete properties, effective w/c ratio and lower strength variability. The necessity to produce recycled aggregate concrete with low-medium compressive strength was verified due to the requirement of the volume of cement. The influence of the order of materials used in concrete production (made with recycled aggregates) with respect to improving its splitting tensile strength was analysed. The lower modulus of elasticity of recycled coarse aggregate concretes with respect to conventional concretes was measured verifying the numeral models proposed by several researchers.     

Permeation properties of self-compacting concrete

Permeation properties, which include permeability, absorption, diffusivity etc., have been widely used to quantify durability characteristics of concrete. This paper presents an experimental study on permeation properties of a range of different self-compacting concrete (SCC) mixes in comparison with those of selected traditional vibrated reference (REF) concretes of the same strength grade. The SCC mixes with characteristic cube strength of 40 and 60 MPa were designed containing either additional powder as filler or containing no filler but using a viscosity agent. The results indicated that the SCC mixes had significantly lower oxygen permeability and sorptivity than the vibrated normal reference concretes of the same strength grades. The chloride diffusivity, however, appeared to be much dependent on the type of filler used; the SCC mixes containing no additional powder but using a viscosity agent were found to have considerably higher diffusivity than the reference mixes and the other SCCs.     

Optimum mix parameters of high-strength self-compacting concrete with ultrapulverized fly ash

This paper presents the preparation technology of high-strength self-compacting concrete (SCC) containing ultrapulverized fly ash (UPFA) and superplasticizer (SP). After selecting the parameters of mix proportions, a SCC with good workability, high mechanical properties, and high durability is developed. The experimental results indicate that the fresh mixture has low slump loss. The compressive strength of concrete reaches 80 MPa, and the concrete presents low permeability, good freeze-thaw resistance, and low drying shrinkage.     

Effect of the length and the volume fraction of wavy steel fibers on the behavior of self-compacting concrete

Self-compacting concrete (SCC) is a highly workable concrete that fills formwork under its own weight (without any vibration or impact). It also passes easily through small spaces between reinforcement bars. The inclusion of fibers in such concrete limits the concrete shrinkage cracks at early age and enhances some of its properties. However, fibers may affect the flow characteristics of SCC. In this paper, three wavy steel fibers (SF) of different lengths, 35, 40, and 50 ± 2 mm with six different volume fractions (V_f) of 0.3, 0.5, 0.8, 1, 1.2, and 1.4% were used in SCC. The experimental results showed that the addition of SF with higher V_f content and longer length decreases the workability of SCC, reduces its passing ability and increases the possibility of blockage. Mechanical performances of concrete in terms of flexural strength and elasticity modulus were improved, where the slightly compressive strength decreased with an increase in V_f content of SF.     

Effects of nanosilica and steel fibers on the impact resistance of slag based self-compacting alkali-activated concrete

In this research, the effects of nanosilica and steel fibers on the impact resistance of ground granulated blast furnace slag based self-compacting alkali-activated concrete were investigated. Nanosilica volume fraction was kept constant at 2%. Two types of hooked-end steel fibers (Kemerix 30/40 and Dramix 60/80) and steel fiber volume contents (0.5% and 1%) were utilized to highlight the combined effects of nanosilica and steel fiber on the impact behavior. The fresh state and mechanical properties such as slump flow, L-box, V-funnel, compressive strength, modulus of elasticity, splitting tensile strength, and flexural strength were evaluated. The microstructure of the samples was examined using a scanning electron microscope. The impact resistance of the specimens was measured by a drop-weight test. Acceleration-time and force-time graphs were plotted and evaluated together with the crack photos of the specimens for the first and failure impactor drops. The incorporations of nanosilica and steel fiber improved splitting tensile strength, flexural strength, impact resistance, and energy absorption capacity, while they decreased compressive strength and modulus of elasticity. For the specimens without nanosilica and with 2% nanosilica, the impact energy improvements were five times and 12.5 times higher for 0.5% short fibrous, 20.5 times and 44.5 times higher for 1% short fibrous, 23.5 times and 31 times higher for 0.5% long fibrous, and 64 times and 144.5 times higher for 1% long fibrous specimens than the specimens without nanosilica and steel fiber, respectively. The long fibers were found more effective in mechanical strength and impact energy than short fibers, and the reinforcing efficiency of fibers enhanced with higher steel fiber volumes. The combined utilization of nanosilica and steel fibers have the potential to delay the crack formation and dissipate energy to the surrounding zones, and this potential increased with higher steel fiber lengths and volume ratios.     

The effect of measuring procedure on the apparent rheological properties of self-compacting concrete

Torque versus time during testing of the rheological properties of fresh concrete has been investigated. The testing was performed in a BML viscometer and on a self-compacting concrete (w/c=0.45, 70% rapid hardening Portland cement, 3% silica fume, 27% fly ash, third generation superplasticizer). The relaxation period needed to obtain steady-state flow may affect the rheological properties estimated and should be taken into account in the selection of measuring procedures. Nonsteady state is likely to cause an overestimation of the plastic viscosity and an underestimation of the yield value. Furthermore, lack of steady state may explain the apparent shear-thickening behaviour of self-compacting concrete reported elsewhere.     

Effects of experimental ternary cements on fresh and hardened properties of self-compacting concretes

Self-compacting concrete (SCC) is a concrete that flows alone under its dead weight and consolidates itself without any additional compaction and without segregation. As an integral part of a SCC, self-compacting mortars (SCMs) may serve as a basis for the mix design of concrete since the measurement of the rheological and viscosity properties of SCC is often impractical due to the need for complex equipment. This paper discusses the properties of SCM and SCC with mineral additions. ordinary Portland cement (OPC), natural pozzolana (PZ), and marble powder (MP) are used in ternary cementitious blends system following the cement substitution with PZ and MP in ratio 1/3. Within the framework of this experimental study, a total of 12 SCM and 6 SCC were prepared having a constant w/b ratio of 0.40. The fresh properties of the SCM were tested for mini-slump flow diameter, mini-V-funnel flow time, and viscosity measurement. Slumps flow test, L-box, J-ring, V-funnel flow time, and sieve stability were measured for SCC. Moreover, the development in the compressive strength was determined at 3, 7, 28, 56, and 90 days. Test results have shown that using ternary blends improved the fresh properties of the mixtures. The combination of natural pozzolana and marble powder increase the slump flow test up to 826 mm for the mixture prepared with 10% of mineral additions. Moreover, the use of mineral addition reduced the time flow to 4.27 s for SCC with 20% mineral addition, thus reducing the viscosity of all mixtures. Addition of MP increases the capacity of the passage through the plates between 88.75 and 93.50% for SCC with 7.5 and 15% of MP, respectively. The ternary system (PZ and MP) improve the sieve stability with the value for 4.07% of SCC with 50% of substitution compared for SSC without additions. The compressive strength of SCC at 90 days with 40% of PZ and MP was similar to that of OPC.     

The effect of recycled concrete aggregate properties on the bond strength between RCA concrete and steel reinforcement

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence that replacing natural coarse aggregate with recycled concrete aggregate (RCA) has on concrete bond strength with reinforcing steel. Two sources of RCA were used along with one natural aggregate source. Numerous aggregate properties were measured for all aggregate sources. Two types of concrete mixture proportions were developed replacing 100% of the natural aggregate with RCA. The first type maintained the same water–cement ratios while the second type was designed to achieve the same compressive strengths. Beam-end specimens were tested to determine the relative bond strength of RCA and natural aggregate concrete. On average, natural aggregate concrete specimens had bond strengths that were 9 to 19% higher than the equivalent RCA specimens. Bond strength and the aggregate crushing value seemed to correlate well for all concrete types.     

SCC mixes with poorly graded aggregate and high volume of limestone filler

Nonpozzolanic fillers are frequently used to optimise the particle packing and flow behaviour of cementitious paste in self-compacting concrete (SCC) mixes. This paper deals with the influence of finely ground limestone and crushed limestone dust on the properties of SCC mixes in the fresh and hardened state. Mixes were prepared using poorly graded crushed limestone aggregate. To compensate the lack of fine material in the crushed sand, a viscosity agent (VA) was added to the mixtures. The results obtained indicate that finer and better-graded limestone dust significantly increases the deformability of the paste. When a high volume of this filler was added to the SCC mix, the required self-compacting properties were achieved at a lower water/(cement+filler) ratio, and it also appeared that the addition of filler improves the 28-day compressive strength of concrete mixes due to the filler effect and improved fine-particle packing.     

Effect of mineral filler type on autogenous shrinkage of self-compacting concrete

Based on an experimental programme, including autogenous shrinkage tests on concrete, ultrasonic monitoring of fresh concrete, and mercury intrusion porosimetry, the influence of the filler type on the autogenous shrinkage of self-compacting concrete has been investigated. The onset of percolating structure formation (time zero) is influenced by the filler type due to a possible accelerating effect of the filler on the cement hydration. Limestone filler accelerates the hydration process, and reduces time zero, while this is not the case when using quartzite filler. Using fly ash, showing only a slight acceleration, a slight reduction of time zero is obtained. A very significant swelling peak is noticed during the first day. This swelling peak is not a measuring artefact, but is caused mainly by water absorption on the filler surface and resulting disjoining pressure. Some part of the swelling peak might also be caused by Ca(OH)₂ crystallisation. The fineness of the filler is an important factor for this swelling behaviour, although also the nature of the filler seems to have an influence. The superplasticiser also interacts with the fillers, influencing the swelling behaviour. The different filler types used in this study did not lead to significant differences in critical pore diameter of the microstructure. This might explain why no significant differences have been found in final autogenous shrinkage values using the different filler types.     

Properties of concretes produced with waste concrete aggregate

An environmentally friendly approach to the disposal of waste materials, a difficult issue to cope with in today's world, would only be possible through a useful recycling process. For this reason, we suggest that clearing the debris from destroyed buildings in such a way as to obtain waste concrete aggregates (WCA) to be reused in concrete production could well be a partial solution to environmental pollution. For this study, the physical and mechanical properties along with their freeze-thaw durability of concrete produced with WCAs were investigated and test results presented. While experimenting with fresh and hardened concrete, mixtures containing recycled concrete aggregates in amounts of 30%, 50%, 70%, and 100% were prepared. Afterward, these mixtures underwent freeze-thaw cycles. As a result, we found out that C16-quality concrete could be produced using less then 30% C14-quality WCA. Moreover, it was observed that the unit weight, workability, and durability of the concretes produced through WCA decreased in inverse proportion to their endurance for freeze-thaw cycle.     

Effects of marble powder as a partial replacement of cement on some engineering properties of self-compacting concrete

Self-compacting concretes (SCC) are highly fluid concretes that can flow and be placed in formwork under their own weight without the requirement of internal or external energy. This fluidity is obtained with the use of high paste volume and superplasticizer. The paste of SCC is made principally of cement, which is the most expensive component of concrete. As a result, the production cost of SCC is higher than conventional concrete. However, to make the manufacture of SCC more practical and economical, the binder is often a binary, ternary even quaternary compound: Portland cement mixed with mineral additions. The primary aim of this work is to study the effect of incorporating the marble powder as a supplementary cementations material on the rheological and mechanical properties of SCC. The fresh properties were measured using the slump flow, J-Ring, V-funnel, and modified slump flow. The properties of hardened SCC such as strengths and ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) were determined at age of 3, 28, and 90 days. The results have shown that using of marble powder in SCC enhances their fresh properties. At hardened state, the incorporation of marble powder decreases the mechanical strengths and UPV. It can be noted that it is possible to produce an economical SCC when the cement is partially substituted by the marble powder.     

Rapid testing method for segregation resistance of self-compacting concrete

A simple apparatus and a rapid method for testing the segregation resistance of self-compacting concrete (SCC) were developed. Extensive test programs of SCC with differences in water-binder ratios, paste volumes, combinations between fine and coarse aggregates and different types as well as different contents of cements and mineral admixtures were carried out. The test results showed that the developed apparatus and method are useful in rapidly assessing the segregation resistance of SCC in both vertical and horizontal directions.     

Effect of coarse aggregate on the workability of sandcrete

The results of an experimental study of the effect of a limited quantity of coarse aggregate on the workability of sandcrete are presented. This study has been conceived within an experimental design framework. Several parameters have been analyzed: aggregate content, aggregate size, aggregate shape and matrix strength (20- and 35-MPa matrices are cast). Statistical analysis shows that, for the 20-MPa matrix, aggregate content [gravel/sand ratio (G/S)<0.7] and aggregate size appear to be the most influent parameters. While for the 35-MPa matrix, only the aggregate concentration has a statistically significant effect. These results show that the workability can be divided by 4 as the aggregate content increases up to G/S=0.6. Thus, sandcrete with a small coarse aggregate content cannot be considered as a classical sandcrete whose mechanical properties, mainly compressive strength, are enhanced by an amount of gravel. Developing general use of sandcrete with coarse aggregate requires building specific mix design to respect both compressive strength and workability.     

The effects of different fine and coarse pumice aggregate/cement ratios on the structural concrete properties without using any admixtures

Structural lightweight concrete solves weight and durability problems in buildings and structures. In order to produce the high strength concrete in the civil engineering applications, lightweight concrete mixtures containing the fine pumice aggregate (FPA) from Nev°ehir region in Turkey and coarse pumice aggregate (CPA) from Yali Island in the Eastern Mediterranean were tested and the research findings were discussed in this paper. To analyse the effects of FPA and CPA/cement ratios on the structural concrete engineering properties, the range of different pumice aggregate/cement (A/C) ratios of 2:1, 2 1/2:1, 3:1, 3 1/2:1 and 4:1 by weight and cement contents of 440, 375, 320, 280 and 245 kg/m³, respectively, were used to make pumice aggregate lightweight concrete (PALC) mixture testing samples with a slump of from 35 to 45 mm.The experimental research findings showed that PALC has strengths comparable to normal weight concrete, yet is typically 30-40% lighter. PALC showed the design flexibility and substantial cost savings by providing less dead load due to its lower density values. The properties, which increase in value and indicate the increasing quality with lower A/C ratios (high cement contents), are compressive strength, modulus of elasticity and density. Properties, which decrease in value and indicate the increasing quality, with lower A/C ratios are water absorption and carbonation depth. In all cases, lowering the A/C ratio (higher cement content) increases quality. The research showed that structural lightweight concrete can be produced by the use of fine and coarse pumice aggregates mixes without using any additions or admixtures.     

Flow conditions of fresh mortar and concrete in different pipes

The variation in fresh concrete flow rate over the pipe cross section was investigated on differently coloured and highly flowable concrete mixes flowing through pipes of different materials (rubber, steel, acryl). First, uncoloured (gray) concrete was poured through the pipe and the pipe blocked. Similar but coloured (black) concrete was then poured into the pipe filled with gray concrete, flowing after the gray concrete for a while before being blocked and hardened. The advance of the colouring along the pipe wall (showing boundary flow rate) was observed on the moulded concrete surface appearing after removing the pipe from the hardened concrete. The shapes of the interfaces between uncoloured and coloured concrete (showing variation of flow rate over the pipe cross section) were observed on sawn surfaces of concrete half cylinders cut along the length axes of the concrete-filled pipe. Flow profiles over the pipe cross section were clearly seen with maximum flow rates near the centre of the pipe and low flow rate at the pipe wall (typically rubber pipe with reference concrete without silica fume and/or stabilizers). More plug-shaped profiles, with long slip layers and less variation of flow rate over the cross section, were also seen (typically in smooth acrylic pipes). Flow rate, amount of concrete sticking to the wall after flow and SEM-images of pipe surface roughness were observed, illustrating the problem of testing full scale pumping.