ADVANCED CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS

Dr. Vaibhav Sharma

Ph.D. (Geotechnical Engineering)
Assistant Professor
Department of Geotechnical Engineering
School of Civil Engineering
Lovely Professional University, Phagwara
Unit II
• Special Concretes
– Light Weight Concrete
– Vacuum Concrete
– Fiber reinforced concrete
• Fibermatrix interaction mechanisms.
– Polymer Concrete Composites
– Ferrocement
– Self- Compacting Concrete (SCC)
– Hydrophobic Concrete
• Waterproofing System
– High Performance Concrete.
– Ready Mixed Concrete (RMC), its characteristics and advantages.
INTRODUCTION
Concrete
• Concrete is a composite material in which a binding material
mixed in water on solidification binds the inert particles of
well graded fine and coarse aggregates.

• Cement and lime are generally used as binding materials,

whereas sand cinder is used as fine aggregates and crushed
stones, gravel, broken bricks, clinkers are used as coarse
aggregates.

• Freshly prepared concrete till it has not yet set is called wet
or green concrete. After it has thoroughly set and fully
hardened it is called set concrete or just concrete.
Classification of Concrete
Depends on

• Binding material used in concrete.

• Design of concrete.
• Purpose of concrete.
Classification of Concrete
According to binding material
• Cement concrete

• Lime concrete.
Classification of Concrete
According to binding material – Cement concrete
• The concrete consisting of cement, sand and coarse aggregates
mixed in a suitable proportions in addition to water is called
cement concrete.

• In this type of concrete cement is used as a binding material, sand

as fine aggregates and gravel, crushed stones as coarse aggregates.

• In cement concrete useful proportions of its ingredients are:

1 part cement:1-8 part sand:2-16 parts coarse aggregates.
• USES
– Commonly used in buildings and other important engineering works
where strength and durability is of prime importance.
Classification of Concrete
According to binding material – Cement concrete
Classification of Concrete
According to binding material – Lime concrete
• The concrete consisting of
– lime,
– fine aggregates, and
– coarse aggregates
– mixed in a suitable proportions with water
• In this type of concrete,
– hydraulic lime is generally used as a binding material,
– sand and cinder are used as fine aggregates and
– broken bricks and gravel can be used as coarse aggregates.
• USES:
– Used for the sake of economy in foundation works,
– under floors, over roof and
– where cement is not cheaply and easily available in required quantity.
Classification of Concrete
According to Design of Concrete

• Plain cement concrete (PCC).

• Reinforced cement concrete(RCC).
• Pre-stressed cement concrete.
Classification of Concrete
According to Design of Concrete – PCC
• The cement concrete in which no reinforcement
is provided is called plain cement concrete or
mass cement concrete.

• This type of concrete is strong in taking

compressive stresses but weak in taking tensile
stresses.

• USES:
– Commonly used for foundation work and flooring of
buildings.
Classification of Concrete
According to Design of Concrete – Plain cement
Classification of Concrete
According to Design of Concrete – RCC
• The cement concrete in which reinforcement is embedded for taking
tensile stress is called reinforced cement concrete.

• In this type of concrete the steel reinforcement is to be used generally in

the form of round bars,6mm to 32mm dia.

• This concrete is equally strong in taking tensile, compressive and shear

stresses.

• Usual proportions of ingredients in a reinforced concrete are

– 1part of cement:1-2parts of sand:2-4parts of crushed stones or gravel.

• USES
– Commonly used for construction of slabs, beams, columns, foundation,
precast concrete.
Classification of Concrete
According to Design of Concrete – RCC
Classification of Concrete
According to Design of Concrete – Pre-stressed
• The cement concrete in which high compressive stresses are
artificially induced before their actual use is called pre-stresses
cement concrete.

• In this type of cement concrete, the high compressive stresses are

induced by pre-tensioning the reinforcement before placing the
concrete, and the reinforcement is released when final setting of
the concrete take place.

• Uses
– This concrete can take up high tensile and compressive stresses
without development of cracks.
– The quantity of reinforcement can be considerably reduced by using
this concrete.
Classification of Concrete
According to Design of Concrete – Pre-stressed
Classification of Concrete
According to Design of Concrete – Pre-stressed
Classification of Concrete
According to Design of Concrete – Pre-stressed
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose
• Light Weight Concrete
• Vacuum Concrete
• Fiber reinforced concrete (FRC)
• Polymer Concrete Composites
• Ferrocement
• Self- Compacting Concrete (SCC)
• Hydrophobic Concrete
• High Performance Concrete.
• Ready Mixed Concrete (RMC)
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Light weight Concrete

• The concrete prepared by using coke breeze,

cinder or slag as coarse aggregate is called
light weight concrete.
• The concrete is light in weight and posses
heat insulating properties.
• USES
– This concrete is used in making precast structural
units for partition and wall lining.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Vacuum Concrete
• The cement concrete from which entrained air and excess
water is removed after placing it, by suction with the help of
vacuum pump is called vacuum concrete.

• In this concrete the excess water which is added to increase

workability but not required for the hydration of cement of
concrete is removed by forming vacuum chamber
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Vacuum Concrete
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Fiber-reinforced Concrete
• Fiber-reinforced concrete (FRC) is concrete containing fibrous material
which increases its structural integrity.

• It contains short discrete fibers that are uniformly distributed and

randomly oriented.

• Fibers include
– steel fibers
– glass fibers
– synthetic fibers and natural fibers
each of which lend varying properties to the concrete.

• In addition, the character of fiber-reinforced concrete changes with

varying concretes, fiber materials, geometries, distribution, orientation,
and densities.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – FRC benefits
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – FRC benefits
• Glass fibers can improve:
– Improve concrete strength at low cost.
– Adds tensile reinforcement in all directions, unlike rebar.
– Add a decorative look as they are visible in the finished concrete surface.
• Polypropylene and nylon fibers can:
– Improve mix cohesion, improving pumpability over long distances
– Improve freeze-thaw resistance
– Improve resistance to explosive spalling in case of a severe fire
– Improve impact and abrasion–resistance
– Increase resistance to plastic shrinkage during curing
– Improve structural strength
– Reduce steel reinforcement requirements
– Improve ductility
– Reduce crack widths and control the crack widths tightly, thus improving durability
• Steel fibers can:
– Improve structural strength
– Reduce steel reinforcement requirements
– Reduce crack widths and control the crack widths tightly, thus improving durability
– Improve impact– and abrasion–resistance
– Improve freeze-thaw resistance
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – FRC benefits
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – FRC mechanism
• Mechanics and
Micromechanics of
FRC beam,
a) Four-point flexure
test,
b) Stressed element,
c) Stress–strain of
stressed element
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – FRC mechanism
• Mechanisms of fiber–matrix
interactions

• Physical modeling of
debonding and pullout of
fibers by fiber pullout test.
Classification of Concrete
Distribution of shearing stress over the fiber surface
a) At pre-cracking stage
b) At post-cracking stage
Classification of Concrete
Types of fiber matrix interfacial bond
Classification of Concrete
Factors affecting fiber-matrix bond
• Type of the Fiber
– Material
– Shape
– Synthetic/ Natural
• Alignment of the Fiber w.r.t. the load application
• Strength and Composition of the Matrix
• Length of the Fiber
• Rate of Loading
• Other Parameters
– Content of admixture
– Influence of seawater and salt environments
– Content of fiber.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose –Geopolymer
• The term geopolymer represents a broad range of materials characterized by chains or networks of
inorganic molecules.

• There are nine different classes of geopolymers, but those of greatest potential application for
transportation infrastructure are composed of alumino-silicate materials that may be used to
completely replace portland cement in concrete construction.

• These geopolymers rely on thermally activated natural materials (e.g., kaolinite clay) or industrial
by-products (e.g., fly ash, slag) to provide a source of silicon (Si) and aluminum (Al), which are
dissolved in an alkali-activating solution and then polymerize in chains or networks to create the
hardened binder.

• Some of these systems have decades, often being referred to as alkali-activated cements or
inorganic polymer cement.

• Most geopolymer systems rely on minimally processed natural materials or industrial by-products
to provide the binding agents, and thus require relatively little energy and release minimal amounts
of CO2 during production.

• Since portland cement is responsible for upward of 85 percent of the energy and 90 percent of the
CO2 attributed to a typical ready-mixed concrete, the energy and CO2 savings through the use of a
geopolymer can be significant
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Geopolymer - Drawbacks
• The major drawback of current geopolymer technologies is their lack of versatility
and cost-effectiveness compared to portland cement systems.

• Although numerous geopolymer systems have been proposed (most of which are
patented), most suffer from being difficult to work with, requiring great care in
production while posing a safety risk due the high alkalinity of the activating
solution (most commonly sodium or potassium hydroxide).

• In addition, the polymerization reaction is very sensitive to temperature and

usually requires that the geopolymer concrete be cured at elevated temperatures,
effectively limiting its use to precast applications.

• Considerable research is underway to develop geopolymer systems that address

these technical hurdles, creating a low-embodied energy, low-𝐶𝑂2 binder that has
properties similar to portland cement.

• In addition, research is also focusing on the development of user-friendly

geopolymers that do not require the use of highly caustic activating solutions.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Geopolymer - Applications
• Currently, geopolymer concrete has very limited transportation
infrastructure applications, being primarily restricted to
international use in the precast industry.

• A blended portland-geopolymer cement known as Pyrament®

(patented in 1984) has been used for rapid pavement repair, a
technology still in use by the U.S. military along with geopolymer
pavement coatings designed to resist the heat generated by vertical
takeoff and landing aircraft.

• Potential applications of geopolymers for bridges include precast

structural elements and decks as well as structural retrofit using
geopolymer fiber composites.

• To date, none of these potential applications is beyond the

development stage.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Geopolymer - Benefits
• Benefits to be derived from the use of geopolymer concrete fit
squarely into enhanced sustainability through increased longevity
and reduced environmental impacts.

• The geopolymer systems under development for transportation

infrastructure possess excellent mechanical properties and are
highly durable, and therefore would result in increased longevity
when used in harsh environments such as marine structures or
pavements/structures exposed to heavy and frequent deicer
applications.

• Furthermore, these systems rely on the use of industrial by-

products (e.g., fly ash, slag). Most significantly, the widespread use
of geopolymer concrete would significantly reduce the embodied
energy and 𝐶𝑂2 associated with the construction of concrete
transportation infrastructure, significantly reducing its
environmental footprint.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Ferro-cement
• It is a system of construction using reinforced mortar or plaster (lime or
cement, sand, and water) applied over an "armature" of metal mesh,
woven, expanded metal, or metal-fibers, and closely spaced thin steel rods
such as rebar.
• The metal commonly used is iron or some type of steel, and the mesh is
made with wire with a diameter between 0.5 mm and 1 mm.
• The cement is typically a very rich mix of sand and cement in a 3:1 ratio;
when used for making boards, no gravel is used, so that the material is not
concrete.
• Ferro-cement is used to construct relatively thin, hard, strong surfaces and
structures in many shapes such as hulls for boats, shell roofs, and water
tanks.
• Ferro-cement originated in the 1840s in France and the Netherlands and is
the origin of reinforced concrete.
• It has a wide range of other uses, including sculpture and prefabricated
building components.
• The term "ferro-cement" has been applied by extension to other
composite materials, including some containing no cement and no ferrous
material.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Ferro-cement
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Ferro-cement - Advantages
• The advantages of a well built ferro-concrete construction are the
low weight, maintenance costs, and long lifetime in comparison
with purely steel constructions.

• However, meticulous building precision is considered crucial,

especially with respect to the cementitious composition and the
way in which it is applied in and on the framework, and how or if
the framework has been treated to resist corrosion.

• When a ferro-concrete sheet is mechanically overloaded, it will

tend to fold instead of break or crumble like stone or pottery.

• As a container, it may fail and leak but possibly hold together. Much
depends on the techniques used in the construction.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Ferro-cement - Disadvantages
• The disadvantage of ferro concrete construction is the labor-
intensive nature of it, which makes it expensive for industrial
application in the western world.

• In addition, threats to degradation (rust) of the steel components is

a possibility if air voids are left in the original construction, due to
too dry a mixture of the concrete being applied, or not forcing the
air out of the structure while it is in its wet stage of construction,
through vibration, pressurized spraying techniques, or other means.

• These air voids can turn to pools of water as the cured material
absorbs moisture.

• If the voids occur where there is untreated steel, the steel will rust
and expand, causing the system to fail.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose –
Self Consolidating Concrete (SCC)
• Self-consolidating concrete (SCC) is a high-performance concrete
that can flow easily into tight and constricted spaces without
segregating and without requiring vibration.

• First used in the 1980s, the key to creating effective SCC is the
development of a mixture that is not only fluid but also inherently
stable so as to prevent segregation.

• Flowable properties are typically achieved with one or more of the

following mix design attributes.

• High cementitious materials content.

• Inclusion of next-generation superplasticizers (possibly in

combination with a viscosity-modifying admixture).
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose –
Self Consolidating Concrete (SCC)
• Inclusion of mineral admixtures (e.g., silica fume, fly ash,
ground-granulated blast furnace slag), which help reduce the
potential for segregation.
• Careful selection of aggregate volume and gradation. In
particular, low aggregate volume and smaller coarse
aggregate size are often needed to improve flow around steel
reinforcement to reach restricted areas.
• The flowability of SCC is measured in terms of spread when
using a modified version of the slump test (ASTM C 143), and
it typically ranges from 457 to 813 mm depending on the
project requirements .
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose –
Self Consolidating Concrete (SCC) - Application
• SCC has been used in a variety of applications, including
– architectural concrete,
– columns,
– residential structures,
– beams,
– tanks,
– footers, and
– pumped concrete.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose –
Self Consolidating Concrete (SCC) - Benefits
• Faster placement rate with no mechanical vibration and less
spreading, resulting in savings in placement costs.
• Improved and more uniform architectural surface finish with
little to no remedial surface work.
• Ease of filling restricted sections and hard-to-reach areas.
• Improved consolidation around reinforcement and improved
bond with reinforcement.
• Improved pumpability.
• Improved uniformity of in-place concrete by eliminating
variable operator-related effort of consolidation.
• Shorter construction periods and resulting cost savings.
• Reduction or elimination of vibrator noise, potentially
increasing available hours for construction in urban areas.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Hydrophobic concrete
• It is produced by introducing admixtures that shut down the active capillary transport mechanism
and reduce absorption levels to less than 1 percent, as tested under the BSI 1881-122 procedure.

• While ordinary low water/cement ratio concrete absorbs from 3 to 5 percent, hydrophobic
concrete absorbs less than 1 percent.

• Hydrophobic concrete has a long history of use in Australia, Asia, and Europe, and experience in the
United States dates back to about 1999 (CP 2006).

• Hycrete,, New Jersey, markets a family of products that provide waterproofing and corrosion
protection when added to concrete, thus rendering a hydrophobic material.

• These admixtures effectively seal internal capillaries that are responsible for water penetration into
concrete, making the resultant product completely waterproof. As a result, for below-ground
structures, external waterproof membranes, coatings, or sheeting treatments are no longer
required, which increases productivity.

• The use of hydrophobic material also makes the concrete completely recyclable at the end of its life
since it is the presence of those external waterproofing membranes that make concrete unsuitable
for recycling. In addition, the product also provides corrosion protection by forming a protective
coating around the steel reinforcement.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Hydrophobic concrete
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Hydrophobic concrete -
Applications
• Primary applications for hydrophobic concrete include
– subgrade walls and slabs,
– elevated decks for parking structures, plazas and
– green-roof systems,
– tunnels,
– transportation infrastructure, and marine facilities.
• In the highway field, the most logical use of these
hydrophobic concrete is in the construction of bridges, and
several highway agencies have constructed experimental
bridge projects featuring Hycrete admixtures.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Hydrophobic concrete -
Benefits
• The concrete is effectively waterproofed since the internal
capillaries are sealed.
• This eliminates the need for any external waterproofing for below-
ground structures, an activity that can be time- and weather-
sensitive, so the overall construction schedule can be accelerated.
• The corrosion of embedded steel is prevented or reduced, not only
by reducing the permeability of the concrete but also by forming a
protective layer around the steel.
• A key environmental benefit is that concrete that would otherwise
be waterproofed externally (through toxic chemicals and volatile
organic compounds) can now be fully recycled at the end of its
service life if it employed hydrophobic admixtures.
• In addition, concrete constructed with the Hycrete waterproofing
admixtures has earned credit under the LEED program since savings
in time and materials are realized.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – High performance concrete
• Engineered cement composites (ECC) are high-performance, fiber-
reinforced cement-based materials.
• ECCs are similar to conventional fiber-reinforced concrete (FRC) in
terms of its constituent materials, except coarse aggregates are not
used (these adversely affect the ductile behavior of the material)
and lower fiber contents are employed.
• Furthermore, unlike FRC, ECC is a micromechanically designed
material, which means that the mechanical interactions between
the fiber, cement matrix, and interface are taken into account by a
micromechanical model which relates these individual constituent
properties to an overall composite response .
• The end result is a highly ductile composite material nicknamed
“bendable” concrete by many researchers.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – High performance concrete -
Benefits
• High tensile ductility (strain capacities of 3 to 5 percent, about 300
times that of conventional concrete).

• High fracture toughness.

• Autogenous healing of hairline cracks.

• Higher compressive strengths.

• Improved structural integrity.

• Resistance to plastic shrinkage.

• Improved post-cracking behavior.

Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – High performance concrete -
Applications
• Applications Because of its light weight, ECC has perhaps the
greatest potential for use on
– bridges,
– bridge decks, and
– other highway structures.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Ready-mix Concrete (RMC)
• Ready-mix concrete refers to concrete that is specifically
manufactured for customers' construction projects, and supplied to
the customer on site as a single product.

• It is a mixture of Portland or other cements, water and aggregates:

sand, gravel, or crushed stone.

• All aggregates should be of a washed type material with limited

amounts of fines or dirt and clay.

• An admixture is also added to improve work-ability of the concrete

and/or increase setting time of concrete (using retarders) to factor
in the time required for the transit mixer to reach the site.

• Is manufactured in a batch plant, according to a set engineered mix

design.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Ready-mix Concrete (RMC)
• Ready-mix concrete is normally delivered in two ways.
– First is the barrel truck or in–transit mixers.
• This type of truck delivers concrete in a plastic state to the site.
– Second is the volumetric concrete mixer.
• This delivers the ready mix in a dry state and then mixes the concrete on site.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Ready-mix Concrete (RMC) –
Batch Plant
• Batch plants combine a precise amount of gravel, sand, water and cement
by weight (as per a mix design formulation for the grade of concrete
recommended by the structural consultant), allowing specialty concrete
mixtures to be developed and implemented on construction sites.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Ready-mix Concrete (RMC) –
Barrel truck or In–transit mixers
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Ready-mix Concrete (RMC) –
Concrete Mixer
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Ready-mix Concrete (RMC) –
Applications
• Ready-mix concrete is often used instead of other materials due to the cost and wide
range of uses in building, particularly in large projects like high-rise buildings and
bridges.

• Ready-mixed concrete is used in construction projects where the construction site is

not willing, or is unable, to mix concrete on site.

• Using ready-mixed concrete means product is delivered finished, on demand, in the

specific quantity required, in the specific mix design required.

• For a small to medium project, the cost and time of hiring mixing equipment, labour,
plus purchase and storage for the ingredients of concrete, added to environmental
concerns (cement dust is an airborne health hazard) may simply be not worthwhile
when compared to the cost of ready-mixed concrete, where the customer pays for
what they use, and allows others do the work up to that point.

• For a large project, outsourcing concrete production to ready-mixed concrete suppliers

means delegating the quality control and testing, material logistics and supply chain
issues and mix design, to specialists who are already established for those tasks, trading
off against introducing another contracted external supplier who needs to make a
profit, and losing the control and immediacy of on-site mixing.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Ready-mix Concrete (RMC) –
Precautions
• Concrete has a limited lifespan between batching / mixing and curing.

• This means that ready-mixed concrete should be placed within 30 to 45

minutes of the batching process to hold slump and mix design
specifications, environmental and material factors, plus in-transit mixing,
allow for up two hours to elapse.

• Modern admixtures and water reducers can modify that time span to
some degree.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Ready-mix Concrete (RMC) –
Pros and Cons
• Materials are combined in a batch plant, and the hydration process begins at the
moment water meets the cement, so the travel time from the plant to the site, and the
time before the concrete is placed on site, is critical over longer distances. Some sites
are just too distant.
• The use of admixtures, retarders and cements like pulverized fly ash or ground
granulated blast-furnace slag (GGBS) can be used to slow the hydration process,
allowing for longer transit and waiting time.
• Concrete is formable and pourable, but a steady supply is needed for large forms. If
there is a supply interruption, and the concrete cannot be poured all at once, a cold
joint may appear in the finished form.
• The biggest advantage is that concrete is produced under controlled conditions.
Therefore, Quality concrete is obtained, as a ready-mix concrete mix plant makes use of
sophisticated equipment and consistent methods. There is strict control over the testing
of materials, process parameters and continuous monitoring of key practices during the
manufacturing process. Poor control on the input materials, batching and mixing
methods in the case of site mix concrete is solved in a ready-mix concrete production
method.
• Speed in the construction practices followed in ready mix concrete plant is followed
continuously by having mechanized operations. The output obtained from a site mix
concrete plant using a 8/12 mixer is 4 to 5 metric cubes per hour which is 30-60 metric
cubes per hour in a ready mix concrete plant.
Classification of Concrete
According to the Purpose – Ready-mix Concrete (RMC) –
Pros and Cons
• Better handling and proper mixing practice will help reduce the consumption of cement
by 10 – 12%. Use of admixtures and other cementitious materials will help to reduce
the amount of cement as is required to make the desired grade of concrete.
• Less consumption of cement indirectly results in less environmental pollution.
• Ready mix concrete manufacture have less dependency on human labours hence the
chances of human error is reduced. This will also reduce the dependency on intensive
labour.
• Cracking and shrinkage. Concrete shrinks as it cures. It can shrink 1⁄16 inch (1.59mm)
over a 10 foot long area (3.05 meters). This causes stress internally on the concrete and
must be accounted for by the engineers and finishers placing the concrete, and may
require use of steel reinforcement or pre-stressed concrete elements where this is
critical.
• Access roads and site access have to be able to carry the weight of the ready-mix truck
plus load which can be up to 32 tonnes for an eight-wheel 9 m3 truck. (Green concrete
is approximately 3,924 pounds per cubic yard, or 2,400 Kg/m3). This problem can be
overcome by utilizing so-called "mini mix" trucks which use smaller 4 m3 capacity
mixers able to reach more weight restricted sites. Even smaller mixers are used to allow
a 7.5 tonne truck to hold approximately 1.25 m3, to reach restricted inner city areas
with bans on larger trucks.