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Things to Consider about Hot Weather Concreting

When the temperature of freshly mixed concrete approaches approximately 77


degrees Fahrenheit adverse site conditions can impact the quality of concrete.
Ambient temperatures above 90 degrees Fahrenheit and the lack of a protected
environment for concrete placement and finishing (enclosed building) can contribute
to difficulty in producing quality concrete.

The use of liquid nitrogen is one option to reduce


concretes temperature during hot-weather concreting.

The precautions required to ensure a quality end product will vary depending on the
actual conditions during concrete placement and the specific application for which
the concrete will be used. In general, if the temperature at the time of concrete
placement will exceed 77 degrees Fahrenheit a plan should be developed to negate
the effects of high temperatures.
The precautions may include some or all of the following:
1. Moisten subgrade, steel reinforcement, and form work prior to concrete placement.
2. Erect temporary wind breaks to limit wind velocities and sunshades to reduce
concrete surface temperatures.
3. Cool aggregates and mixing water added to the concrete mixture to reduce its initial
temperature. The effect of hot cement on concrete temperature is only minimal.
4. Use a concrete consistency that allows rapid placement and consolidation.
5. Protect the concrete surface during placement with plastic sheeting or evaporation
retarders to maintain the initial moisture in the concrete mixture.
6. Provide sufficient labor to minimize the time required to place and finish the concrete,
as hot weather conditions substantially shorted the times to initial and final set.

7. Consider fogging the area above the concrete placement to raise the relative
humidity and satisfy moisture demand of the ambient air.
8. Provide appropriate curing methods as soon as possible after the concrete finishing
processes have been completed.
9. In extreme conditions consider adjusting the time of concrete placement to take
advantage of cooler temperatures, such as early morning or night time placement.

With proper planning and execution concrete can be successfully placed and
finished to produce high quality durable concrete at temperatures of 95 degrees
Fahrenheit or more.

Setting Time

The effect of high ambient temperatures and high temperature concrete component
materials have on the setting time of concrete mixtures is a topic of concern due to the
reduced time in which concrete must be placed, consolidated and finished; increased
potential for plastic shrinkage cracking, thermal cracking and cold joints; potential strength
reduction due to high water demand and high curing temperatures; difficulty in controlling air
content; and increased urgency for applying appropriate curing method at an early age.
As a general rule of thumb an increase of 20 degrees Fahrenheit will reduce the setting time
of a concrete mixture by as much as 50 percent. As an example, a concrete mixture that
reaches final set in three hours at 60 degrees Fahrenheit may reach final set in as little 1
hours at 80 degrees Fahrenheit. As the concrete temperature increases the setting time is
further reduced. The actual temperature of the concrete mixture as delivered is effected by
the temperature of the materials used in the mixture, the cementitious content of the mixture,
the temperature of the equipment used to batch and transport the concrete, and the ambient
temperature and conditions at the project site. Concrete applications may be considered hot
weather concrete at temperatures ranging from 77 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit depending on
the specific application. Precautions should be planned in advance to counter the effects of
high temperature well in advance of execution to counter these effects.
Precautions may include use of materials with a good performance history in high
temperature conditions, cool concrete materials or concrete mixture, provide concrete
consistency and placement equipment and crew for rapid placement, reduce time of

transport, schedule placement to limit exposure to atmospheric conditions (night time


placement or more favorable weather), plan to limit rapid moisture loss (sun screens, wind
screens, misting, or fogging), and consider the use of an evaporation retarder. Schedule a
preconstruction meeting including all of the participants to discuss the plan to control the
effects specific to the project and expected conditions.

Hot Weather Concreting Part I


POSTED BY CLAZCONS MARCH 21, 2012 LEAVE A COMMENT

With the onset of summer in india and many parts of the globe construction personnel will
need to take extra care or additional measures when it comes to concreting. In fact, some
parts of the world remain hot throughout the year. These are situations when paying
attention to a few simple yet very necessary points on hot weather concreting would
certainly help in completing any concreting without compromising its quality. Thats what
this article is about.
But, before proceding with soothing the trouble lets throw a bit of sunlight in the trouble
itself in order to understand what is it all about. Well, simply put, sunlight itself is the
root of the whole issue. Sunlight leads to hot weather which compels us to adopt special
measures while concreting which is known as hot weather concreting.
But then, what exactly is hot weather? The definition may vary from country to country.
For Indian weather condition, Indian codes prescribe 40C as the threshold for hot
weather concreting. That means, any concreting done at an ambient temperature of more
than 40C can be regarded as hot weather concreting inviting special measures to be
adopted.
Apparently, thats not the case in many other parts of the globe due to different weather
condition. For example, according to ACI 305, any combination of high ambient
temperature, high wind, low relative humidity and solar radiation (sunlight) is a good
enough pre-condition to label concreting as hot weather concreting. Some other views say
that any temperature above a comfortable room temperature, say 25C or so, begins to
make concrete bit uncomfortable ie, concrete starts reacting differently and hence calls
for special care befitting hot weather concreting, if strict quality is to be maintained.
How is hot weather concreting different from concreting in normal temperature? We
studied such things in great details in our engineering courses. To put it very simply &
briefly, concrete sets and gains strength due to hydration of cement within it. Hydration of
cement occurs faster in hot weather. Hydration of cement also releases heat. Hence,

faster the hydration of cement faster the heat generation. This makes the concrete hotter,
further speeding up the process of cement hydration or setting. Fast setting cement does
not allow concrete enough time to gain strength sufficiently. While the initial strength may
not suffer, the long term strength (28-day strength) is adversely affected. This is the key
reason why hot weather concreting needs special care. Otherwise, you would be playing
with the designed strength of the concrete.
But, that is not the only issue associated with hot weather concreting. Water demand of a
concrete mix is higher in hot weather due to rapid evaporation. Unless suitable measures
are adopted, extra water would have to be added to the concrete mix in order to maintain
the workability of the mix. This would increase the water cement ratio which in turn
would decrease the strength of the concrete. If additional cement is added to keep the
w/c ratio unchanged then cost would increase as cement is the costliest ingradient of a
concrete mix.
There are other problems too. Rapid drying of freshly poured concrete surfaces occurs in
hot weather due to quicker evaporation or loss of water from the mix. If proper care is not
taken this can lead to cracks known as plastic shrinkage cracks which are quite difficult to
repair later on. Concrete surface tends to shrink quickly due to fast moisture loss while
the mix is yet to develope sufficient strength to counter these shrinkage stresses resulting
in the cracks.
In hot weather, the concrete bed, forms, steel reinforcement, mixing or concreting
equipments etc. too get hot transferring the heat to the mix contributing further to the
problem.
Based on my understanding on the subject which is based on some studies about the topic
in books, the web as well as my practical experience on hot weather concreting in
projects in India and the Gulf region, few important precautionary measures to be
adopted while concreting in hot weather have been briefly discussed in the next post for
the benefit of construction personnel and readers seeking a bit more info on the subject.
Thermal gradients in bridge elements were historically ignored in the United States, since
the columns, footings, and bent caps were often relatively small. But as element size has
increased for structural, traffic, and aesthetic reasons, thermal gradients and thermal
cracking have become serious concerns for bridge engineers. Many mass concrete projects
specify a 35 F maximum temperature differential, and some limit the maximum internal
temperature (usually 160F). Contractors and engineers on these projects are increasingly
called upon to develop a temperature control plan to meet these specifications.

Unfortunately, even though the intent of the specification is well understood, the validity
of the 35 F maximum temperature differential is questionable. Remember, the goal of
these specifications is to minimize and control cracking. Thermal analysis of mass concrete
elements alone will not directly control cracking risk. Clearly, a more unified approach to
engineering mass concrete to prevent thermal cracking and improve long-term
performance is needed. Research* suggests that the cracking risk of mass concrete can be
lowered by a variety of methods, including:

Reduction of the fresh concrete temperature

Use of a larger maximum size aggregate

Use of aggregate with a low coefficient of thermal expansion

Use of crushed aggregate instead of smooth, round aggregate

Replacement of cement with fly ash, slag, or other suitable supplementary


cementitious materials (SCMs)

Entrained air

Reduction of cement content and paste content

Unfortunately, there hasn't been a good way to quantify the effects of each of these
methods. There is no easy answer when a contractor asks, If I use a crushed limestone
and reduced cement content in my mixture, will this meet the placement temperature
specification? Being able to answer such a question would improve the performance and
economics of mass concrete.

The TxDOT solution

This cracking frame test measures the cracking susceptibility of the concrete mix.

Enlarge

This cracking frame test measures the cracking susceptibility of the concrete mix.

In October 2001, the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) was interviewed by


Concrete Construction magazine for an article on mass concrete. After publication of that
article, TxDOT took a critical look at both the existing mass concrete specification and ACI
Committee 207's guidelines for mass concrete construction. TxDOT recognized the need
for a tool to easily predict the performance of concrete mix designs for mass concrete
applications.
In September 2002, TxDOT initiated a research project to develop software to perform the
temperature analysis of mass concrete elements. Within six weeks, the project grew to
encompass a full-blown concrete mixture design, analysis, and performance prediction
program named Concrete Works. The investment in the project grew from $ 400,000 to
$1,300,000, and the duration from three years to five years. The goal of Concrete Works
was to give laboratory technicians, engineers, and contractors one tool that combines
concrete design, analysis, and performance predictions to improve and guide TxDOT to
better designs. One additional outcome of the research may be a change to the 35 F
maximum temperature differential criteria dictated in the specification. The change could
be switching to a gradient in lieu of the differential restriction and relaxation of the
differential or gradient due to various material influences on cracking. The results and
suggested modification to the specification will be presented to the TxDOT specification
committee at the completion of this research project.

Enlarge
The Concrete Durability Center located at the University of Texas at Austin (UT) submitted the winning
proposal for this project. The research team is composed of Dr. Kevin Folliard (UT, principal
investigator), Dr. Anton Schindler (Auburn University), Dr. Maria Juenger (UT), Dr. Mike Thomas
(University of New Brunswick, Canada), and Dr. Loukas Kallivokas (UT).

*Springenshmid, R., and R. Breitenbcher, Influence of Constituents, Mix Proportions and


Temperature on Cracking Sensitivity of Concrete, Prevention of Thermal Cracking in Concrete at
Early Ages, Edited by R. Springenschmid, RILEM Report 15, EF Spon, London, 1998, pp. 4050.

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