AGGREGATE

RESEARCH

Variables that Influence

Measured Concrete Compressive
Strength
Heather J. Sauter, E.I.T.
Ph.D. Candidate

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Acknowledgement

The following paper was referenced

throughout this presentation:
Richardson, David N., Review of Variables
that Influence Measured Concrete
Compressive Strength, NAA Circular No.
132, NRMCA Publication No. 179, National
Ready Mixed Concrete Association, Silver
Spring, MD 20910.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Why concrete
strength is tested

In research, physical laws or properties may be under

investigation
During construction, an estimate of the in-place
strength of concrete may be desired for determining the
safe time to strip forms or to proceed with further work.
The adequacy of mix proportions may need to be
verified.
Compressive strength data is necessary for quality
control.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Testing of Cylinders

Hardened concrete is typically evaluated for

acceptance using 6 in. (152 mm) by 12 in.
(305 mm) cylinders.
The measured results are dependent upon
adhering strictly to standardized uniform
procedures.
Most testing errors produce lower strength
results.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Testing of Cylinders

The consequences of falsely low results can

be:

Unnecessary delays
Costly follow up testing
Wasteful overdesign
Possible rejection of good concrete

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Variables

Sampling
Casting
Initial Curing
Transporting
Laboratory Curing
Capping
Testing
Reporting

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Sampling

Proper batch representation by sampling is often not

achieved.
ASTM C172 specifies that the sample should be taken
from atleast two places in the middle portion of the load.
Remixing of the sample is also specified to ensure
uniformity of the sample.
Maximum time interval between sampling and casting is
also specified.
Make sure that the concrete for a set of cylinders comes
from a single truck.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Casting

Consolidation
Mold Material
Specimen End Condition
Cylinder Uniformity

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Consolidation

To get the proper consolidation, the method

of consolidation should match the material
being consolidated.
The proper number of layers, consolidation
effort, rod type, and mold type are all
important.
Insufficient consolidation can lead to a
strength loss of as much as 61%.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Mold Material

The type of mold material is important in terms of

rigidity, water absorption, and expansion.
A more rigid mold will flex less during
consolidation resulting in a more compact
specimen.
Mold types:
Cardboard molds with steel base plate
Steel
Plastic

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Specimen End
Condition

The finished condition of the cylinder ends

are important to concrete strength.
A rough end can mean capping problems
Air pockets trapped underneath a sulfur cap can
lead to a loss of strength up to 12%.
The rough interface between the concrete and
capping material will present a nonstandard
stress distribution during testing

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Specimen End
Condition

Upon casting, the specimens should be left

on a level, smooth surface.
Cutting the cylinder end evenly may be a
better procedure but it becomes very costly.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Cylinder Uniformity

Unusual fracture types have been noted for

cylinders when rod penetration has been
insufficient, resulting in poor bond between
layers.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Initial Curing

Temperature
Humidity
Specimen Disturbance during Initial Curing

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Temperature

Lower than standard curing temperatures for

3 to 7 days can cause as much as a 7% loss in
strength.
One day of freezing followed by standard
curing can lead to a loss up to 56%.
Higher than standard curing temperatures
may increase early strength, but later
strengths will suffer.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Humidity

Insufficient humidity during initial curing

can lower measured strength.
Proper humidity can be approached by
covering the cylinders.
In general, the cylinders should be brought
into the lab within 24 hours of casting.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Specimen Disturbance
during Initial Curing

Rough treatment of the cylinder while it is

undergoing setting and initial hardening can
damage the specimen.
Disturbance can be in the form of gross
disturbance or vibration.
For traffic induced vibrations, wet mixes can lose
as much as 5% strength through the segregation
mechanism, while stiff mixes can gain 4% strength
by virtue of improved consolidation.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Transporting

Rolling and bumping in the back of a pickup truck

and result in a 7% strength loss.
Dropping cylinders from waist level can lower
strength by atleast 5%.
Cylinders should be cushioned during transport
and handled gently at all times.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Laboratory Curing

Upon arrival to the lab, cylinders should

immediately be stripped, logged in, and placed in
a proper curing environment until the time of test.
Temperature needs to be maintained at 73 +/- 3 F
either in a fog room or a lime-saturated water tank.
The purpose of wet curing is to maximize
hydration of the cement.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Capping

End Conditions
Capping Materials

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

End Conditions

Four basic specifications per ASTM C617

The capped ends must be flat within 0.002 in. (0.05
mm) in 6 inches.
The ends must be approximately perpendicular to the
specimen axis.
The ends must be approximately parallel to each other.
The caps must not be excessively thick.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Capping Materials

Any capping material used should not

induce a stress distribution in the cylinder
that would cause inaccurate measured
strength results.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Testing

Moisture Condition and Temperature

Loading Rate
Specimen Misalignment
Loading Platens
Specimen Behavior
Seating Behavior
Machine Calibration
Frame Stiffness
Postfailure Inspection

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Moisture Condition
and Temperature

The cylinder must not be allowed to dry out

after capping. A dry cylinder will exhibit 230% higher strength than a saturated one.
A recent study showed that the moisture
gradient is important and that the surface
drying causes shrinkage and lateral biaxial
compression, which increases measured
strength.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Loading Rate

Compressive strength increases with

increased loading rate; the relationship
between strength and rate of loading is
logarithmic.
Choose a loading rate per ASTM C39 and
repeat it to reduce variability.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Specimen
Misalignment

A 12% loss in strength can result from

eccentric loading.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Loading Platens

The degree of stiffness of the steel loading

platens can affect the stress distribution
within the test cylinder.
Radius of the spherically seated head is
important to provide sufficient restraint
during loading and obtain good initial
alignment.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Loading Platens

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Specimen Behavior

There are three basic types of specimen

behavior during loading:
both ends pinned
both ends fixed
one end fixed, one end pinned

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Specimen Behavior

Once significant loads are applied, any

tilting will induce bending and nonuniform
straining which will result in a loss of
strength.
The fixed end situation is desirable so that
there is no tilting during loading.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Seating Behavior

Seating behavior is a function of lubricant type,

sphere-seat contact area, contact type, sphereseat surface finish, and platen geometry.
It is recommended that high-pressure grease
not be used.
A thin coat of petroleum jelly has proven good
performance. ASTM C39 allows the use of
motor oil also.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Machine Calibration

A significant percentage of testing machines

in use can fail to be within calibration
standards giving strength differences of as
much as 19%.
Accuracy of a machine can change over a
relatively short time
Care must be taken during calibration not to
accidentally damage the platens.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Frame Stiffness

Machine frame stiffness can be important,

especially for high strength concrete.
A less rigid frame will stretch during loading
storing more elastic energy.
The less rigid machine will more closely follow the
rapid deformation of the specimen and failure will
be more explosive.
It is not unanimous whether this lowers
compressive strength.

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Postfailure Inspection

Visual inspection of the break can reveal:

poor bonding to coarse aggregate
segregation
a porous and fragile matrix
high air content
soft coarse aggregate

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Conclusions

AGGREGATE
RESEARCH

Thank you
Questions?