THE ASIAN EXPERIENCE IN LOW FINES SELF CONSOLIDATING

CONCRETE (SCC) IN EVERYDAY APPLICATIONS

Seow Kiat Huat, BASF Construction Chemicals ASEAN, Singapore
Nilotpol Kar, ASF Construction Chemicals Australia, Sydney
Feng Qiuling, BASF Construction Chemicals Asia Pacific, China, Shanghai

36th Conference on OUR WORLD IN CONCRETE & STRUCTURES: 14 - 16 August 2011,

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th

36 Conference on Our World in Concrete & Structures

Singapore, August 14-16, 2011

THE ASIAN EXPERIENCE IN LOW FINES SELF CONSOLIDATING

CONCRETE (SCC) IN EVERYDAY APPLICATIONS
Seow Kiat Huat1, Nilotpol Kar2 and Feng Qiuling3
1

BASF Construction Chemicals ASEAN, Singapore

BASF South East Asia Pte Ltd,
No. 33, Tuas Avenue 11, 639090 Singapore
E-Mail: kiathuat.seow@basf.com

Keywords: Low-fines SCC, SDC, VMA, hyperplasticiser, Polycarboxylate ether, Smart Dynamic
Concrete.

Abstract. Since the evolution of Self Consolidating Concrete (SCC) in the 1980s in
Japan, the immense benefits accruing out of this technology should have replaced
conventional vibratable concrete to a greater extent in Asia Pacific.
However, classical SCC has its pitfalls in terms of high fines content, imbalance
between stability and fluidity owing to sensitivity of the mix owing to changes in
concrete constituents and the unit cost which varies between 30 50% over
conventional concrete.
In Asia Pacific, use of classical self consolidating concrete at site batch and ready
mix concrete applications is still quite low since over 80% of the concrete is between
grades 25 40 MPa. Any SCC supplied by the concrete producer for these grades
leads to over design in application.
Today, with a new state of the art viscosity modifying agent (VMA) incorporated
in a special Polycarboxylate ether (PCE) based hyperplasticizer, a reduction in the
total fines content leading to a significant decrease in the unit cost of the concrete
(compared to traditional SCC) is possible. At the same time, necessary SCC
properties are maintained. It is thus possible to realise dreams of a high quality
concrete for everyday concrete (grades 25 40 MPa)
In this paper a few cases across Asia Pacific are presented where this new
concept makes it now possible to achieve formerly unseen robustness in highly
flowable SCC mixture, which contains low fines content.
1. INTRODUCTION
The use of high flow concrete mixes has been around for a long time since the mid 80s. The
advancement of admixtures led to the invention of SCC (Self Consolidation Concrete) which originate
in Japan more than 25 years ago which was of a low water-powder ratio, high powder content/limited
1.
aggregate content and used a hyperplasticizer (Polycarboxylate ether based) It became quite a
phenomenon in the early 1990s. What seemed to be a good thing for the concrete industry did not
progress as much as everyone hoped it would be. Up to date, less than 1% of all ready mixed
concrete (RMC) is using SCC. Even in Japan where the invention took place, the use of SCC is

2
3

BASF Construction Chemicals Australia, Sydney

BASF Construction Chemicals Asia Pacific, China, Shanghai

Seow Kiat Huat, Nilotpol Kar and Feng Qiuling

pathetically low. Figure 1 below provides an idea of the self consolidating concrete volume as a part
of the total concrete volumes done in that country mentioned.
RMC Output vs SCC production in major concrete producing countries
350,000,000

320,000,000

RMC ouput (cu.m)

300,000,000

180,000
160,000

250,000,000

140,000
120,000

200,000,000
100,000
150,000,000

110,000,000

100,000
80,000 80,000

100,000,000

60,000
40,000

100,000,000
50,000,000

200,000

30,000 22,000,000

20,000
0

0
Japan

Australia

Country
RMC + precast concrete output

SCC ( cu.m)

180,000

India

China

SCC production

Fig 1 : RMC output vs. SCC production in major concrete producing nations across Asia Pacific

There are several hurdles in the use of SCC. First SCC is designed for its rheological property. In
order to achieve high flowability and to be cohesive (to avoid segregation and bleeding), it is
necessary to increase the powder content of the mix. It requires about 500 to 580 kg of total fines to
ensure that that mix will not segregate or bleed while achieving high flowability thus self consolidating
property. In this 500 to 580 kg of total fines, no less than 450kg is made up of cementitious content.
The resultant mix is that the compressive strength is very high in the order to 60 to 75MPa.
Another major aspect in Asia is that the majority of concrete class required is less than 35 MPa.
The most widely used grade of concrete in construction is between 20 40 MPa almost 85% in usual
construction projects. To make a justifiable point we may cite a case of a concrete structure falling in
the category of R2 reinforcement (as per JASS) and strength class 30 MPa requiring joint-less
2
concrete . The viable option here is self consolidating concrete; but the binder or cementitious fines
3
to have a classical spread of >600 mm would require somewhere to the tune of 450 kg/m of
cementitious fines. This would result in overkill in the concrete mix design this is probably one of
the biggest reasons why such a concrete, in spite of the immense benefits never grew popular across
Asia Pacific. The additional gap of 25 to 40MPa needs to be paid for resulting in high cost of the SCC
mixes.
2. RELEVANCE OF SELF CONSOLIDATING CONCRETE IN ASIA PACIFIC
With the construction boom particularly in China, India & Vietnam in recent times, the project
authorities are looking for speed of construction without compromising on durability aspects of
concrete (matrix, pore structure, permeability, water absorption, shrinkage, modulus of elasticity).
Designers are also interested in making complex designs with ordinary concrete as we step into the
age of differentiation. All the stake holders are looking for differentiation in the market to capture
customers attention and take a unique position and improve their offering levels.
At their individual levels, each stake holder tries to improve their offering in terms of attractiveness
and the result is stiff competition both in terms of quality as well as output. Concrete is quite a
commodity and ready-mix producers are trying to move away from the commoditisation of the second
largest consumed material in the world (after water). Major concrete producers are seeking Value
Added Concrete as a form of differentiation in the very competitive concrete market. One way
identified prior was the art of conventional self consolidating concrete and as pointed out the impact of
SCC was not really felt in Asia Pacific, though some structures namely Akashi Channel Bridge,
Japan; Bangalore International Airport, etc., were classic examples.

Seow Kiat Huat, Nilotpol Kar and Feng Qiuling

3. RECENT INNOVATION IN MAKING ORDINARY CONCRETE SELF CONSOLIDATING
For the ready-mix /site mix concrete supplier, conventional SCC is prepared with high fines content
a combination of cement and pozzolanic materials which are readily available at the batching plant
location. The usual process to produce conventional SCC with a stable consistency without bleed and
segregation (owing to variation in the concrete constituents) is achieved by varying the fines content
and the hyperplasticizer dosage.
It is a quite a challenge to produce everyday concrete strength classes of 20 40 MPa to be of
flowable nature, especially with low cementitious content. With a revolutionary viscosity modifying
agent (VMA) integrated with a hyperplasticizer (PCE), this addresses the conflicting issues of flow and
cohesiveness and the result is a reality of a normal concrete with self consolidating properties. Such a
low fines self consolidating concrete (refer to as Smart Dynamic Concrete concept) in Asia Pacific has
found good use across China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. It brought in a store of
3
benefits for various players in the construction value chain (Fig 2) .
Cost effective

Regular
ready-mix
concrete

Smart Dynamic
Concrete

30 MPa strength
1.5 hours slump
Technology breakthrough in
chemical offers both fluidity and
stability with same/less cement
content as regular concrete
Regular grade of concrete
requires vibration to aid
compaction
SCC requires high cement
content making it costly and on
most occasions over designed
in strength

Highly fluid and

stable
Robust mix
design

Self
Consolidating
Concrete
600-700mm low
Minimal ibration
>2 hours slump

Flowability

Fig.2: Smart Dynamic Concrete (SDC), a low-fines self consolidating concrete incorporates the ideal
properties of cost effectiveness of regular ready mix concrete and the flowability of conventional SCC.
Production method of concrete across countries differs significantly due to local situation in each
country. The current challenges of energy efficiency, a very dense matrix in the cover of concrete
offering higher durability and flowable concrete (highly fluid) will help to save time and money for
issues of reduced energy for consolidation of concrete, repair / rehabilitation issues, placement times
4
and hence construction times . The above factors couple with the growing popularity of ready mix
concrete in Asia Pacific and the ever changing landscape of construction industry in terms of
application / techniques gets more challenging; the role of construction chemicals gets pivotal.
4.

INTRODUCTION OF THE SDC CONCEPT IN ASIA PACIFIC

With the challenges in mind, BASF's construction chemicals division has introduced this
revolutionary low fines self consolidating concrete in Asia Pacific (referred to as Smart Dynamic
Concrete, which was introduced in Europe in 2007), a concept which allows the ready-mix / site batch
concrete industry to reach these goals and help the constructor or the owners to achieve their needs
of faster construction and achieving sustainable construction.
The challenge in Asia Pacific is much more in terms of producing a flowable concrete with low
cementitious binder and in absence of quality limestone or other suitable fillers. Also, with the
variation of in aggregate types and cement types being greater within Asia Pacific, it was quite a
challenge to produce self consolidating mixes in the ordinary grades of concrete constituting > 85%
of the regions concrete - with the admixture combinations without bleeding and segregation.

Seow Kiat Huat, Nilotpol Kar and Feng Qiuling

5.

MEASURABLE PROPERTIES

Like the measurable properties of conventional self consolidating concrete, for example, slump
flow, T500 , V-funnel time, low fines self consolidating concrete (Smart Dynamic Concrete) is also
measured on a similar trend. It is important to point out in the context of application that this Smart
Dynamic Concrete is preferred for R2 and R3 categories of reinforcement (as per JSCE
recommendations) typically for concrete sections where the reinforcing bar spacing is 60-200 mm or
above. Conventional self consolidating concrete is applicable for R1 category (heavily reinforced
3
section having steel of 350 kg/m ) where grades of concrete are definitely higher than 45 MPa.
It has been observed in quite a number of instances ASEAN countries, India, China that low
fines self consolidating concrete prepared with the special VMA integrated within the superplasticizer
has much better robustness in terms of cement compatibility and /or slight changes in water content.
The hyperplasticizer and VMA in combination offer a perfect balance and stability against bleeding
5.
and segregation as shown in Fig 3 as is measured for yield values vs. plastic viscosity
With regards to the cost low fines self consolidating concrete in strength classes 25 -40 MPa have
shown marginal cost increase compared to conventional concrete (referred to as conventional
vibratable /pumpable concrete), but with a huge reservoir of benefits as explained before.

Fig 3 :Yield value against plastic viscosity

6. CASE STUDIES ACROSS ASIA PACIFIC
6.1. India:
Initial trials were taken up in all zones. These show that formulations incorporating the state of the art
viscosity modifying agent have been successfully integrated in various formulations covered under
SDC series superplasticizer. This facilitates the handling at site where practical considerations enable
a 1-component system to be handled easily.
In all cases, the comparison of trials was done in M25 and M 30 grades of concrete between
Smart Dynamic Concrete (SDC) and conventional pumpable concrete (or, conventional vibratable
concrete) at approximately similar cementitious contents. Conventional vibratable concrete used a
BNS (beta-naphthalene sulphonate or sulphonated naphthalene formaldehyde based
superplasticizer) as is widely prevalent across India. Apart from approximately similar cement
contents in the Smart Dynamic Concrete (SDC) mixes, slight changes in coarse aggregate:fine
aggregate ratio and the type of admixture were only done. The admixture in all SDC mixes was a
PCE based superplasticizer integrating the state of the art viscosity modifying agent which controls
cohesion, bleeding and segregation enabling a perfect balance between the yield value and the
plastic viscosity.
A typical mix design of the SDC comparing with a conventional M25 Grade of concrete using the
raw materials in Bangalore is shown below:

Seow Kiat Huat, Nilotpol Kar and Feng Qiuling

Smart Dynamic
Concrete M25

Conventional Pumpable
Concrete M25

Cement

260

280

Fly Ash

90

60

20mm
10mm

340
580

662
422

Cr sand

662

410

River Sand
Water

285
170

410
168

SDC series PCE Superplasticzer series @ 1.3%

4.2

3.06

Ingredients in kg/m3

BNS based superplasticizer @ 0.8% dosage

Fresh Properties (flow), in mm

Flow (mm)

Slump (mm)

Initial

640

185

60 mins
90 mins

610
590

120
95

Compresive Strength (MPa)

3 days

16.5

17.0

7 days

24.5

26.0

28 days

40.5

40.0

Table 1 : Bangalore
A typical mix using OPC and GGBFS (ground granulated blast furnace slag) was also used to
check the efficacy of the SDC series superplasticizer (incorporating the unique VMA). The results
showed very good flowability and cohesiveness and the data is represented below.

Ingredients in kg/m3

Conventional Pumpable
Concrete M30

Cement

228

GGBFS

152

20mm
12mm

250
590

Cr sand

960

River Sand
Water

190

SDC series Superplasticzer series @ 1.0%

3.8

Fresh Properties (flow), in mm

Slump (mm)

Initial

620

60 mins
90 mins

600
520

Compresive Strength (MPa)

3 days

15.5

7 days

28.5

28 days

42.0

Table 2: Bangalore with a combination of GGBFS and OPC 53 grade

Seow Kiat Huat, Nilotpol Kar and Feng Qiuling

6.2. Asean
The SDC technology has been successfully tested at lab scale and plant scale prior to undertaking
some significant projects in ASEAN countries.
Similar comparison between conventional pumpable concrete (vibrated for compaction) and Smart
Dynamic Concrete at similar cementitious contents have shown reduction in manpower and vibration
with higher productivity.
As an example of a site demonstration carried out ( Fig 4), two panels were cast with conventional
pumpable concrete (or traditional vibratable concrete) and Smart Dynamic Concrete respectively
these panels were 12 x 8 and approx 250 mm thick. The panel cast with SDC using a PCE based
superplasticizer integrated with the special VMA was completed in 140 by a single worker with no
vibrator against the other panel cast with traditional vibratable concrete of slump approx 14 cm by
three workers with the help of a vibrator.

Fig 4: Field demonstration of the savings in

labour and in time for placement of
conventional vibratable concrete vs. low fines
self consolidating concrete (Smart Dynamic
Concrete)

6.3

Completed and Current Projects in ASEAN

6.3.1 Malaysia
SDC is currently in use for the construction of a factory to produce PV cell technology in Penang
with an estimated total quantity of about 18,000 m3. The readymix company producing the SDC is
marketing this concept as Green Concrete due to its lower cementitious content and ease of placing
the concrete. The main reason for its use compared to the conventional concrete is the tight schedule
of the project and the requirement for better surface off form finish.
There is a growing interest in SDC across Malaysia and there are quite a few major projects opting
for such a concrete in the near future.
6.3.2 Singapore
Wharf Residences
This was a test case and demonstration for SDC. A small slab of about 100m3 was first cast. After
seeing the benefits of less manpower and the highly flowable mix, the contractor proceeded to cast
nine number of 9m high columns. Through this exercise, it was found that the concrete has better
finish, noise reduction as there was no need for vibration and faster placing time. Various other
concrete elements of the projects were also cast using SDC. The total SDC quantity was about
1000m3.
Other projects using SDC in Singapore
The other projects that have used or currently using SDC are:
a.
JEC Jurong Entertainment Centre (estimated about 800m3)
b.
Alba Condominium at Cairnhill Rise (about 8000m3)

Seow Kiat Huat, Nilotpol Kar and Feng Qiuling

c.

Lush @ Holland Hill Condominium (about 10,000m3)

With the Singapore governments push towards higher productivity for the construction industry
and the tight labour market, SDC will definitely be a growing trend in the coming years.
6.3.3 Indonesia
Since the launch of SDC in early April 2010, the following projects were done:
Date

Project Description

30 April 2010

Slabs for residential construction

3 May 2010

Access road for warehouse

5 May 2010

Foundation/slabs for housing

6 May 2010

Showroom and commercial estate

9 May 2010

Building and commercial estate

10 May 2010

Slabs/access road for warehouse

Although the quantity of SDC concrete was small (about 1000m3) in each of the project, it has
shown that SDC can be applied successfully using the Indonesian raw materials.
6.4. China
The concept of Smart Dynamic Concrete (low fines self consolidating concrete) was first started in
China in 2009 for Asia Pacific. The first biggest pour using the Smart Dynamic Concrete technology
incorporating the unique and versatile viscosity modifying agent in PCE technology was executed in a
single pour of 60,000 cubic metres of concrete for the raft foundation of proposed 632 metre high rise
tower, early this year.
Concrete was supplied using a fleet of approximately 450 trucks, 18 pumps for the C50 (50 MPa
at 90 days) concrete mix. The raft foundation is 121 m in diameter and 6 m thick. The following
targets were set:

slump 180+/-30mm

heat of hydration control
3

concrete placement for the raft to be completed within 60 hours at a rate of 1000m /hr

No bleeding & segregation
The following mix proportion was used:
Ingredients

Water

Cement

Slag

Fly Ash

Sand

Stone

Dosage of
Rheoplus 325 SDC

Qty(kg/m3)

160

240

120

80

760

1000

0.90%

Table 3 : Mix proportion to achieve desired properties for high rise raft foundation
The mixing time at the batching plant was possible at 45s per batch owing to the low viscosity of
the mix as well as the initial workability220 mm (slump) / 550mm (flow) and based on the excellent
flow retention which was > 500 mm at 2 hours.
For purpose of low heat generation a medium heat cement PO 42.5 was used. For better site coordination a centralized GPS station tracked all trucks on the way with consistent production from
each batch plant which was monitored.

Seow Kiat Huat, Nilotpol Kar and Feng Qiuling

The average strengths achieved are indicated below:

Days
Ave Strength (MPa)

7 Days

28 Days

60 Days

90 days

39.8

56.9

63

66.5

Table 4 : compressive strengths achieved at periods 7 days to 90 days

Fig 5.: Aerial view of the raft foundation placement of a major high rise in China
7. CONCLUSIONS
Low fines SCC addresses the needs of the ready mix concrete industry and projects where more
than 80% of the concrete produced is between strength classes 25 40 MPa. This type of concrete
goes into structures that are not heavily reinforced (everyday RCC structures). This eliminates the
extra costs related to fines (material, silos, handling, logistics, etc.) and reduces the binder content for
the required strength class. This means less cement or more supplementary cement materials (SCM).
The innovative viscosity modifying admixture is now available in most Asia Pacific markets and is
poised to be a break through for increasing the use of self-compacting concrete in the construction
industry as it offers multiple benefits to the various stake holders.
8. REFERENCES
[1] Ouchi, M., Nakamura, S., Osterberg, O. and Hallberg, S.E., Lwin, M., - Applications Of SelfCompacting Concrete In Japan, Europe And The United States ISHPC 2003.
[2] Japan Architectural Standards Specification (JASS 5, 2004)
[3] Martin, K., Concrete February 2008 Smart Dynamic Construction - for a new generation of
highly fluid concretes
[4] Jaffer, R., Magarotto, R., Roncero, J., - Smart Dynamic Concrete New Approach for the ready
mixed industry, Advances in Cement-Based Materials, Proceedings International Conference
Advanced Concrete Materials, 17 19 Nov., 2009, Stellenbosch, South Africa, pp 29 33
[5] Kluegge, J., Kar, N., Asmus, S., Christensen, B., - A new viscosity modifying agent (VMA) for low
fines self consolidating concrete (SCC) Proceedings of the Second International Symposium
on Design, Performance and Use of Self Consolidating Concrete, Beijing, China, 5 7 June,
2009.