WATER

Responsible for the hydration reactions with the cement

Good water is essential for quality concrete.
It should be good enough to drink--free of trash, organic
matter and excessive chemicals and/or minerals.
The strength and other properties of concrete are highly
dependent on the amount of water and the watercement ratio.

WATER
Generally, cement requires about 3/10 of its weight
of water for hydration. Hence the minimum watercement ratio required is 0.35. But the concrete
containing water in this proportion will be very
harsh and difficult to place. Additional water is
required to lubricate the mix, which makes the
concrete workable. This additional water must be
kept to the minimum, since too much water
reduces the strength of concrete. The watercement ratio is influenced by the grade of concrete,
nature and type of aggregates, the workability and
durability.

WATER
If too much water is added to concrete, the excess
water along with cement comes to the surface by
capillary action and this cement-water mixture
forms a scum or thin layer of chalky material known
as laitance. This laitance prevents bond formation
between the successive layers of concrete and
forms a plane of weakness. The excess water may
also leak through the joints of the formwork and
make the concrete honeycombed. As a rule, the
smaller the percentage of water, the stronger is the
concrete subject to the condition that the required
workability is allowed for.

WATER
Properties of Water
Water suitable for drinking
Chloride < 0.05%
Sulfate < 0.08%
Organic salts < 0.05%
Any drinkable water can be used for concrete making Water containing more than 2000 ppm of dissolved salts
should be tested for its effect on concrete
- Chloride ions not more than 1000 ppm - Sulphate ions
not more than 3000 ppm
- Bicarbonate ions not more than 400 ppm

WATER
Sea water
- no adverse effect on strength and durability.
- Surface dampness, efflorescence, staining.
- Increases risk of corrosion of steel
Sea water is not recommended for reinforced
concrete
Water containing acid or organic substances should
be avoided.
If there is any doubt on water quality carry out
- chemical analysis
- trail mixes

EFFECT OF IMPURITIES IN WATER ON PROPERTIES OF

CONCRETE
1. Suspended particles

5. Algae

2. Miscellaneous
inorganic
salts

6. Sugar

3. Salts in sea water

4. Acids and alkalies

7. Oil contamination.

ADMIXTURES
Admixtures are ingredients other than Portland cement,
water, and aggregates.
Admixtures are added to the concrete mixture immediately
before or during mixing.

Mineral Admixtures
Pozzolanic (cement replacement)
Class C Fly ash 15 to 40% bwc
Class F Fly ash 15 to 25% bwc
Blast Furnace Slag (cement replacement)
25 to 70% bwc
Silica Fume (cement addition)
6 to 12% bwc

Chemical Admixtures

ASTM C-494 and Table 6-1

Water Reducing Type A
Set Retarding Type B
Set Accelerating Type C
Water Reducer-Set Retarding Type D
Water Reducer-Accelerating Type E
High Range Water Reducers Type F
HR Water Reducer-Set Retarding -Type G

CHEMICAL ADMIXTURES
Accelerating admixtures:
Compounds added to cement to decrease its setting time
and to improve the early strength developments - Used in
cold-weather concreting - A 25% of strength gain observed
at the end of three days - CaCl2 (less than 2% by weight of
cement); Not recommended for cold weather concreting;
Triethanolamine; Sodium thiocyanate; Acetyl alcohol; Esters
of carbonic and boric acids; Silicones - Problems: Increased
heat of hydration, also leads to corrosion of steel.
-such as calcium chloride, are used to increase the rate of
hardening--usually during cold weather.

CHEMICAL ADMIXTURES
Retarding admixtures:
Added to concrete to increase its setting times - Used in
hot
weather
applications
Sodium/calcium
triethanolamine salts of hydrogenated adipic or
gluconic acid - Problem: early strength of concrete
reduced
- are used to slow the rate of concrete hardening.
-They are useful for concrete that is placed during hot
weather.

CHEMICAL ADMIXTURES
Water-reducing admixtures and super plasticizers
used to reduce the amount of water used in concrete
mixes - High range water reducers reduce the water
required for mixing by 12% or greater - Added to
improve the consistency/workability of concrete and
increase the strength - Water reducers: Lignosulphates,
hydroxylated carboxylic acids, carbohydrates Superplasticizers: Suphonated melamine/naphtalene
formaldehyde condensates

CHEMICAL ADMIXTURES
Air-entraining admixtures:
Allows dispersal of microscopic air bubbles (diameters
ranging from 20 to 2000 m) throughout the concrete Decreases the freeze-thaw degradation
Foaming agents:
Vinsol resin; Sulphonated lignin compounds; Petroleum
acid compounds; Alkyd benzene compounds

MINERAL ADMIXTURES
Used in concrete to replace part of cement or sand When used to replace sand called as supplementary
cementing materials - Added in large quantities
compared to chemical admixtures.
Pozzolans:
Raw and calcined natural materials such as cherts, shale,
tuff and pumice - Siliceous or siliceous and aluminous
materials which by themselves possess no cementing
property, but in fine pulverized form and in the presence
of water can react with lime in cement to form concrete

MINERAL ADMIXTURES
Fly ash:
By-product of coal from electrical power plants - Finer
than cement - Consists of complex compounds of silica,
ferric oxide and alumina - Increases the strength of
concrete and decreases the heat of hydration - Reduces
alkali aggregate reaction.
Silica fume:
By-product of electric arc furnaces - Size less than 0.1m
- Consists of non-crystalline silica - Increases the
compressive strength by 40-60%