Geopolymer Concrete - A New Eco-friendly Material of Construction

N. P. Rajamane, Head, Concrete Composites Lab; N Lakshmanan, Former

Director and Presently Project Advisor Structural Engg Research Centre,
Chennai, and Nataraja M C, Professor, SJ College of Engg, Mysore
General
The cement industry is the Indias second highest payer of Central Excise
and Major contributor to GDP. With infrastructure development growing and
the housing sector booming, the demand for cement is also bound to
increase. However, the cement industry is extremely energy intensive. After
aluminium and steel, the manufacturing of Portland cement is the most
energy intensive process as it consumes 4GJ per tonne of energy. After
thermal power plants and the iron and steel sector, the Indian cement
industry is the third largest user of coal in the country. In 2003-04, 11,400
million kWh of power was consumed by the Indian cement industry. The
cement industry comprises 130 large cement plants and more than 300 mini
cement plants. The industrys capacity at the beginning of the year 2008-09
was about 198 million tones. The cement demand in India is expected to
grow at 10% annually in the medium term buoyed by housing, infrastructure
and corporate capital expenditures. Considering an expected production and
consumption growth of 9 to 10 percent, the demand-supply position of the
cement industry is expected to improve from 2008-09 onwards.
Coal-based thermal power installations in India contribute about 65% of the
total installed capacity for electricity generation. In order to meet the
growing energy demand of the country, coal-based thermal power
generation is expected to play a dominant role in the future as well, since
coal reserves in India are expected to last for more than 100 years. The ash
content of coal used by thermal power plants in India varies between 25 and
45%. However, coal with an ash content of around 40% is predominantly
used in India for thermal power generation. As a consequence, a huge
amount of fly ash (FA) is generated in thermal power plants, causing several
disposal-related problems. In spite of initiatives taken by the government,
several non-governmental organizations and research and development
organizations, the total utilization of FA is only about 50%. India produces
130 million tonne of FA annually which is expected to reach 175 million
tonne by 2012. Disposal of FA is a growing problem as only 15% of FA is
currently used for high value addition applications like concrete and building
blocks, the remainder being used for land filling. Globally, less than 25% of
the total annual FA produced in the world is utilized. In the USA and China,
huge quantities of FA are produced (comparable to that in India) and its
reported utilization levels were about 32% and 40%, respectively, during
1995. FA has been successfully used as a mineral admixture component of
Page 1 of 25

Portland pozzolan blended cement for nearly 60 years. There is effective

utilization of FA in making cement concretes as it extends technical
advantages
as
well
as
controls
the
environmental
pollution.
Ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) is a by-product from the blastfurnaces used to make iron. GGBS is a glassy, granular, non metallic
material consisting essentially of silicates and aluminates of calcium and
other bases. Slag when ground to less than 45 micron from coarser, popcorn
like friable structure, will have a specific surface of about 400 to 600 m2/kg
(Blaine). GGBS has almost the same particle size as cement. GGBS, often
blended with Portland cement as low cost filler, enhances concrete
workability, density, durability and resistance to alkali-silica reaction.
Alternative but promising gainful utility of FA and GGBS in construction
industry that has emerged in recent years is in the form of Geopolymer
cement concretes (GPCCs), which by appropriate process technology utilize
all classes and grades of FA and GGBS; therefore there is a great potential
for reducing stockpiles of these waste materials.
Importance of Geopolymer Cement Concretes
Producing one tonne of cement requires about 2 tonnes of raw materials
(shale and limestone) and releases 0.87 tonne (H 1 tonne) of CO2, about 3
kg of Nitrogen Oxide (NOx), an air contaminant that contributes to ground
level smog and 0.4 kg of PM10 (particulate matter of size 10 m), an air
borne particulate matter that is harmful to the respiratory tract when
inhaled. The global release of CO2 from all sources is estimated at 23 billion
tonnes a year and the Portland cement production accounts for about 7% of
total CO2 emissions. The cement industry has been making significant
progress in reducing CO2 emissions through improvements in process
technology and enhancements in process efficiency, but further
improvements are limited because CO2 production is inherent to the basic
process of calcinations of limestone. Mining of limestone has impact on landuse patterns, local water regimes and ambient air quality and thus remains
as one of the principal reasons for the high environmental impact of the
industry. Dust emissions during cement manufacturing have long been
accepted as one of the main issues facing the industry. The industry handles
millions of tonnes of dry material. Even if 0.1 percent of this is lost to the
atmosphere, it can cause havoc environmentally. Fugitive emissions are
therefore a huge problem, compounded by the fact that there is neither an
economic incentive nor regulatory pressure to prevent emissions.
The cement industry does not fit the contemporary picture of a sustainable
industry because it uses raw materials and energy that are non-renewable;
extracts its raw materials by mining and manufactures a product that cannot
be recycled. Through waste management, by utilizing the waste by-products
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from thermal power plants, fertiliser units and steel factories, energy used in
the production can be considerably reduced.This cuts energy bills, raw
material costs as well as green house gas emissions. In the process, it can
turn abundantly available wastes, such as fly ash and slag into valuable
products,
such
as
geopolymer
concretes.
Geopolymer cement concretes (GPCC) are Inorganic polymer composites,
which are prospective concretes with the potential to form a substantial
element
of
an
environmentally
sustainable
construction
by
replacing/supplementing the conventional concretes. GPCC have high
strength, with good resistance to chloride penetration, acid attack, etc.
These are commonly formed by alkali activation of industrial aluminosilicate
waste materials such as FA and GGBS, and have a very small Greenhouse
footprint when compared to traditional concretes.
Basics of Geopolymers
The term geopolymer was first introduced by Davidovits in 1978 to describe
a family of mineral binders with chemical composition similar to zeolites but
with an amorphous microstructure. Unlike ordinary Portland/pozzolanic
cements, geopolymers do not form calcium- silicate-hydrates (CSHs) for
matrix formation and strength, but utilise the polycondensation of silica and
alumina precursors to attain structural strength. Two main constituents of
geopolymers are: source materials and alkaline liquids. The source materials
on alumino-silicate should be rich in silicon (Si) and aluminium (Al). They
could be by-product materials such as fly ash, silica fume, slag, rice-husk
ash, red mud, etc. Geopolymers are also unique in comparison to other
aluminosilicate materials (e.g. aluminosilicate gels, glasses, and zeolites).
The concentration of solids in geopolymerisation is higher than in
aluminosilicate gel or zeolite synthesis.
Composition of Geopolymer Cement Concrete Mixes
Following materials are generally used to produce GPCCs:
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
v.

Fly ash,
GGBS,
Fine aggregates and
Coarse aggregates
Catalytic liquid system (CLS): It is an alkaline activator solution (AAS) for
GPCC. It is a combination of solutions of alkali silicates and hydroxides,
besides distilled water. The role of AAS is to activate the geopolymeric
source materials (containing Si and Al) such as fly ash and GGBS.
Formulating the GPCC Mixes
Unlike conventional cement concretes, GPCCs are a new class of materials
and hence, conventional mix design approaches are applicable. The
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formulation of the GPCC mixtures requires systematic numerous

investigations on the materials available.
Preparation of GPCC Mixes
The mixing of ingredients of GPCCs can be carried out in mixers used for
conventional cement concretes such as pan mixer, drum mixer, etc
Mechanical Properties
Compressive Strength: With proper formulation of mix ingredients, 24
hour compressive strengths of 25 to 35 MPa can be easily achieved without
any need for any special curing. Such mixes can be considered as self
curing. However, GPCC mixes with 28 day strengths up to about 60-70 MPa
have
been
developed
at
SERC.
Modulus of Elasticity The Youngs modulus or modulus of elasticity (ME),
Ec of GPCC is taken as tangent modulus measured at the stress level equal
to 40 percent of the average compressive strength of concrete cylinders. The
MEs of GPCCs are marginally lower than that of conventional cement
concretes
(CCs),
at
similar
strength
levels.
Stress Strain Curves The stress-strain relationship depends upon the
ingredients
of
GPCCs
and
the
curing
period.
Rate of Development of Strength This is generally faster in GPCCs, as
compared to CCs.
Reinforced GPCC Beams
Load carrying capacity of GPCC beams, are up to about 20% more of CC
beams at similar concrete strength levels. Cracking of concrete occurs
whenever the tensile strength of the concrete is exceeded. The cracking in
reinforced concrete is attributable to various causes such as flexural tensile
stresses, diagonal tension, lateral tensile strains, etc. The cracking moment
increases as the compressive strength increases in both GPCC and CC
beams.
Reinforced concrete structures are generally analyzed by the conventional
elastic theory (Clause 22.1 of IS 456:2000) which is equivalent to assuming
a linear moment-curvature relationship for flexural members. However, in
actual behaviour of beams, non-linear moment curvature relationship is
considered. The moment-curvature relation can be idealized to consist of
three straight lines with different slopes. The slopes of these line changes as
the behaviour of the beam is changed due to increasing load. Thus each
straight line indicates different phases of beam history. The momentcurvature relations of GPCCs and CCs are essentially similar.
The service load is generally considered as the load corresponding to a
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deflection of span/350 or maximum crack width of 0.2 mm, whichever is

less. The deflections at service loads for the GPCC and CC beams are found
to be almost same. Thus, at service loads, the behaviour of the GPCC and
CC
beams
are
similar.
Ductility factor of the beams is considered as the ratio of deflection at
ultimate moment (U) to the deflection at yield moment (Y). The ductility
factor decreases as the tensile reinforcement increased. The ductility factor
of GPCC beams could be marginally less than CC beams indicating higher
stiffness of GPCC beams. The crack patterns observed for GPCC beams are
similar to the CC beams.
Reinforced GPCC Columns
The concrete compressive strength and longitudinal reinforcement ratio
influence the load capacity of columns. The load carrying capacity increases
with the increase in concrete compressive strength and longitudinal
reinforcement ratio. Crack patterns and failure modes of GPCC columns are
similar to those of CC columns.
Bond Strength of GPCC with Rebars
The bond strength of GPCCs with rebars are higher compared to CC. Thus
developmental length of steel bars in reinforced GPCC can be kept same, as
in the case of reinforced CC. The bond strengths of GPCC and PPCC are
significantly more and conservative than the design bond stress
recommended in IS: 456-2000. The GPCCs possess satisfactory bond with
embedded steel bars so that the conventional design process of reinforced
structural components can be applied conservatively to GPCCs also.
Durability Aspects of GPCCS
The GPCC specimens have chloride permeability rating of low to very low
as per ASTM 1202C. GPCCs offer generaly better protection to embedded
steel from corrosion as compared to CC. The GPCC are found to possess very
high acid resistance when tested under exposure to 2% and 10% sulphuric
acids.
Concluding Remarks on GPCCS
From the test data generated at SERC, it can be concluded that GPCCs are
good candidates materials of constructions from both strength and durability
considerations. Geopolymer concrete shows significant potential to be a
material for the future; because it is not only environmentally friendly but
also possesses excellent mechanical properties. Practical recommendations
on use of geopolymer concrete technology in practical applications such as
precast concrete products and waste encapsulation need to be developed in
Indian
context.
Because of lower internal energy (almost 20% to 30 % less) and lower CO2
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emission contents of ingredients of geopolymer based composites compared

to those of conventional Portland cement concretes, the new composites can
be considered to be more eco-friendly and hence their utility in practical
applications needs to be developed and encouraged.

What is Sprayed Concrete?

Sprayed concrete is a method of applying concrete that is
generally self supporting without the need for form work.
Sprayed concrete is often referred to as Gunite (dry mix) or
Shotcrete (wet mix)
The Gunite process was developed in 1895 and was
commercially available in the early 1900s.
Material is conveyed in a dry or semi dry state using
compressed air to the nozzle where water is added to
hydrate and mix the concrete before application with velocity
onto the substrate.
Shotcrete was commercially developed after the 2nd World
War but was not in general use until the 1970s. The
concrete mix is supplied in the wet form and is pumped to
the spraying nozzle where air is added to project the
concrete onto the substrate. The use of accelerators added
at the nozzle can assist in applying the concrete in overhead
situations or to increase early strengths gain requirements in
ground support and tunnelling.
Both methods provide a means of applying concrete that is
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as good and in many cases superior to conventional

concrete.

Why Should You Use Sprayed Concrete?

High strength, low permeability, high durability

Reduction in formwork saving time and money

High early strength gain

Low water / cement ratio

Good adhesion and bond strengths

Ability to convey material over 200 metres to point of

application

Proven process in use for over 100 years

1919 Nozzleman

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Gunite Arch Lining

EXTREME WEATHER CONCRETING

In countries which experience extreme weather conditions special problems are
encountered in preparation, placement and curing of concrete. India has
regions of extreme hot weather (hot-humid and hot-arid) as well as cold
weather. The Indian Standards dealing with extreme weather concreting are: IS:
7861 (Part 1-1975 Reaff. 2007)-Hot weather concreting and IS: 7861 (Part 21981 Reaff. 2007) -Cold weather concreting.

HOT WEATHER CONCRETING:

Special problems are encountered in the preparation, placement and curing of
concrete in hot weather. High temperature result in :

Rapid hydration of cement

Increased evaporation of mixing water

Greater mixing water demand

Large volume changes in concrete resulting in cracks.

Reduction in strength.
The climatic factors affecting concrete in hot weather are:

Page 8 of 25


High ambient temperature

Reduced relative humidity

Increased wind velocity

Problems associated with hot weather concreting shall be addressed as follows:

Controlling the temperature of concrete ingredients

Suitable proportioning of concrete mixes.

Controlling the temperature of concrete as placed.

Controlling the processes such as concrete production and delivery

Carrying out effective protection and curing of placed concrete.

Controlling the temperature of concrete ingredients:

The most direct approach to keep concrete temperature down is by controlling
the temperature of its ingredients. The contribution of each ingredient to the
temperature of concrete is a function of the temperature, specific heat and
quantity used of that ingredient. The aggregates and mixing water exert the
most pronounced effect on temperature of concrete. Thus, in hot weather all
available means shall be used for maintaining these materials at as low
temperatures as practicable.

Aggregates
Any one of the procedures or a combination of the procedures given below may
be used for lowering the temperature or at least for preventing excessive
heating of aggregates.
Shading stockpiles from direct rays of the sun.
Sprinkling the stockpiles of coarse aggregate with water and keeping them
moist.
This results in cooling by evaporation, and this procedure is specially effective
when relative humidity is low. Such sprinkling should not be done haphazardly
because it leads to excessive variation in surface moisture and thereby impairs
Page 9 of 25

uniformity of workability. When coarse aggregates are stockpiled during hot

weather, successive layers should be sprinkled as the stockpile is-built up. If
cold water is available, heavy spraying of coarse aggregate immediately before
use may also be done to have a direct cooling action. Coarse aggregates may
also be cooled by methods, such as inundating them in cold water or by
circulating refrigerated air through pipes or by other suitable methods.

Water
The mixing water has the greatest effect on temperature of concrete, since it
has a specific heat of about 4.5 to 5 times that of cement or aggregate. The
temperature of water is easier to control than that of other ingredients and,
even though water is used in smaller quantities than the other ingredients, the
use of cold mixing water will effect a moderate reduction in concrete placing
temperatures. For a nominal concrete mixture containing 336 kg of cement, 170
kg water, 1850 kg of aggregate per ma, a change in 2C water temperature will
effect a 0.5 C change in the concrete temperature.
Efforts shall be made to obtain cold water, and to keep it cold by protecting
pipes, water storage tanks, etc. Tanks or trucks used for transporting water
shall be insulated and/or coloured and maintained white or yellow. Under
certain circumstances, reduction in water temperature may be most
economically accomplished by mechanical refrigerator or mixing with crushed
ice. Use of ice as a part of the mixing water is highly effective in reducing
concrete temperature since, on melting alone, it takes up heat at the rate of 80
kcal/kg. To take advantage of heat of fusion, the ice shall be incorporated
directly into the concreteas part of the mixing water. Conditions shall be such
that the ice is completely melted by the time mixing is completed.
NOTE :- If the ice is not melted completely by the time mixing is completed,
there can be a possibility of Ice melting after consolidation of concrete and thus
leaving hollow pockets in concrete, with detrimental effects.
Recommended procedure for concreting during hot weather conditions is given
below:
Ambient temperature shall be below 40 C at the time of placement of
concrete. Concreting may be planned during morning and evening hours.
The period between mixing and delivery (placing) shall be kept an absolute
minimum.
Keep aggregates under shade and cool aggregates by sprinkling water.

Page 10 of 25

Formwork, reinforcement shall be sprinkled with cool water just prior to

placement of concrete.

Case study of Extreme weather concreting

COLD WEATHER CONCRETING:
The production of concrete in cold weather introduces special and peculiar
problems which do not arise while concreting at normal temperatures. Quite
apart from the problems associated with setting and hardening of cement
concrete, severe damage may occur if concrete which is still in the plastic state
is exposed to low temperature, thus causing ice lenses to form and expansion
to occur within the pore structure. Hence it is essential to keep the temperature
of the concrete above a minimum value before it is placed in the formwork.
After placing, concrete may be kept above a certain temperature with the help
of proper insulating methods before the protection is removed. During periods
of low ambient temperature, special techniques are to be adopted to cure the
concrete while it is in the formwork or after its removal.
The Precautions to be taken and methods adopted for concreting in sub-zero
temperature is listed below.

a.

Utilization of the heat developed by the hydration of cement and

practical methods of insulation.

b.
c.

Selection of suitable type of cement

d.
e.
f.

Admixtures of anti-freezing materials

Economical heating of materials of concrete

(Heating of water is the easiest to be adopted)

Electrical heating of concrete mass

Use of air-entraining agents.

Page 11 of 25

Engineering Materials
Contents


Admixtures

Types of Admixtures

Chemical Admixtures
1. Plasticizers
2. Super Plasticizers
3. Accelerators
4. Set Retarders

Mineral Admixtures
1. Cementitious
2. Pozzolanic
3. Blast Furnace Slag
4. Flyash
5. Silica Fume
6. Rice Husk

Related Pages

Admixtures
A material other than water, aggregates, or cement that is used as an ingredient of concrete or mortar to
control setting and early hardening, workability, or to provide additional cementing properties.
Why is admixture used?
Over decades, attempts have been made to obtain concrete with certain desired characteristics such as
high compressive strength, high workability, and high performance and durability parameters to meet the
requirement of complexity of modern structures.
The properties commonly modified are the heat of hydration, accelerate or retard setting time,
workability, water reduction, dispersion and air-entrainment, impermeability and durability factors.

Types of Admixtures
Page 12 of 25

Chemical admixtures - Accelerators, Retarders, Water-reducing agents, Super

plasticizers, Air entraining agents etc.
Mineral admixtures - Fly-ash Blast-furnace slag, Silica fume and Rice husk Ash etc
Chemical admixtures
1. Water-reducing admixture / Plasticizers:
These admixtures are used for following purposes:
1. To achieve a higher strength by decreasing the water cement ratio at the
same workability as an admixture free mix.
2. To achieve the same workability by decreasing the cement content so as
to reduce the heat of hydration in mass concrete.
3. To increase the workability so as to ease placing in accessible locations
4. Water reduction more than 5% but less than 12%
5. The commonly used admixtures are Ligno-sulphonates and hydrocarbolic
acid salts.
6. Plasticizers are usually based on lignosulphonate, which is a natural
polymer, derived from wood processing in the paper industry.
Actions involved:

1. Dispersion:
Surface active agents alter the physic chemical forces at the interface. They are adsorbed on the cement
particles, giving them a negative charge which leads to repulsion between the particles. Electrostatic
forces are developed causing disintegration and the free water become available for workability.

2. Lubrication:
As these agents are organic by nature, thus they lubricate the mix reducing the friction and increasing the
workability.

Page 13 of 25

3. Retardation:
A thin layer is formed over the cement particles protecting them from hydration and increasing the setting
time. Most normal plasticizers give some retardation, 3090 minutes

2. Super Plasticizers:
These are more recent and more effective type of water reducing admixtures also known as high range
water reducer. The mainbenefits of super plasticizers can be summarized as follows:

Increased fluidity:
Flowing
Self-leveling
Self-compacting concrete
Penetration and compaction round dense reinforcement

Reduced W/C ratio:

Very high early strength, >200% at 24 hours or earlier
Very high later age strengths, >100 MPa or 15000 psi.
Reduced shrinkage, especially if combined with reduced cement content.
Improved durability by removing water to reduce permeability and diffusion.

The commonly used Super Plasticizers are as follows:



Sulphonated melamine formaldehyde condensates (SMF)

Give 1625%+ water reduction. SMF gives little or no retardation, which makes them very effective at
low temperatures or where early strength is most critical. However, at higher temperatures, they lose
workability relatively quickly. SMF generally give a good finish and are colorless, giving no staining in
white concrete. They are therefore often used where appearance is important.

Sulphonated naphthalene formaldehyde condensates (SNF)

Typically give 1625%+ water reduction. They tend to increase the entrapment of larger, unstable air
bubbles. This can improve cohesion but may lead to more surface defects. Retardation is more than with
SMF but will still not normally exceed 90 minutes. SNF is a very cost-effective.

Polycarboxylate ether superplasticizers (PCE)

Typically give 2035%+ water reduction. They are relatively expensive per liter but are very powerful so
a lower dose (or more dilute solution) is normally used.
Page 14 of 25

In general the dosage levels are usually higher than with conventional water reducers, and the possible
undesirable side effects are reduced because they do not markedly lower the surface tension of the water.

3. Accelerators:
An admixture which, when added to concrete, mortar, or grout, increases the rate of hydration of
hydraulic cement, shortens the time of set in concrete, or increases the rate of hardening or strength
development.
Accelerating admixtures can be divided into groups based on their performance and application:

1. Set Accelerating Admixtures,

Reduce the time for the mix to change from the plastic to the hardened state. Set accelerators have
relatively limited use, mainly to produce an early set.

2. Hardening Accelerators,
Which increase the strength at 24 hours by at least 120% at 20C and at 5C by at least 130% at 48 hours.
Hardening accelerators find use where early stripping of shuttering or very early access to pavements is
required. They are often used in combination with a high range water reducer, especially in cold
conditions.
Calcium chloride is the most effective accelerator and gives both set and hardening characteristics.
However, is limited due to acceleration of corrosion of steel reinforcement and decrease resistance
of cement paste in a sulfate environment. For this reason, it should not be used in concrete where any
steel will be embedded but may be used in plain unreinforced concrete. Chloride-free accelerators are
typically based on salts of nitrate, nitrite, formate and thiocyanate. Hardening accelerators are
often based on high range water reducers, sometimes blended with one of these salts. Accelerating
admixtures have a relatively limited effect and are usually only cost effective in specific cases where very
early strength is needed for, say, access reasons. They find most use at low temperatures where concrete
strength gain may be very slow so that the relative benefit of the admixture becomes more apparent.
In summary, a hardening accelerator may be appropriate for strength gain up to 24 hours at low
temperature and up to 12 hours at ambient temperatures. Beyond these times, a high range water reducer
alone will usually be more cost-effective.

4. Set Retarders:
The function of retarder is to delay or extend the setting time of cement paste in concrete. These are
helpful for concrete that has to be transported to long distance, and helpful in placing the concrete at high
temperatures.
When water is first added to cement there is a rapid initial hydration reaction, after which there is little
formation of further hydrates for typically 23 hours. The exact time depends mainly on the cement type
and the temperature. This is called the dormant period when the concrete is plastic and can be placed.
At the end of the dormant period, the hydration rate increases and a lot of calcium silicate hydrate and
calcium hydroxide is formed relatively quickly. This corresponds to the setting time of the concrete.
Retarding admixtures delay the end of the dormant period and the start of setting and hardening. This is
useful when used with plasticizers to give workability retention. Used on their own, retarders allow later
vibration of the concrete to prevent the formation of cold joints between layers of concrete placed with a
significant delay between them.
Page 15 of 25

The mechanism of set retards is based on absorption. The large admixture anions and molecules are
absorbed on the surface of cement particles, which hinders further reactions between cement and water
i.e. retards setting. The commonly known retards are Calcium Lignosulphonates and Carbohydrates derivatives used in fraction of percent by weight of cement.

5. Air Entrained Admixtures:

An addition for hydraulic cement or an admixture for concrete or mortar which causes air, usually in
small quantity, to be incorporated in the form of minute bubbles in the concrete or mortar during mixing,
usually to increase its workability and frost resistance. Air-entraining admixtures
are surfactants that change the surface tension of the water. Traditionally, they were based on fatty acid
salts or vinsol resin but these have largely been replaced by synthetic surfactants or blends of surfactants
to give improved stability and void characteristics to the entrained air. Air entrainment is used to produce
a number of effects in both the plastic and the hardened concrete. These include:
Resistance to freeze thaw action in the hardened concrete.
Increased cohesion, reducing the tendency to bleed and segregation in the plastic concrete.
Compaction of low workability mixes including semi - dry concrete.
Stability of extruded concrete.
Cohesion and handling properties in bedding mortars.

Mineral Admixtures in Concrete

Types of Mineral Admixtures
1. Cementitious
These have cementing properties themselves. For example:
Ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS)

2. Pozzolanic
A pozzolan is a material which, when combined with calcium hydroxide (lime), exhibits cementitious
properties. Pozzolans are commonly used as an addition (the technical term is "cement extender") to
Portland cement concrete mixtures to increase the long-term strength and other material properties of
Portland cement concrete and in some cases reduce the material cost of concrete. Examples are:
Fly ash
Silica Fume
Rice Husk Ash
Metakaolin

Pozzolanic Action:
The additive act in three ways
Filler
Nucleating

Pozzolanic
1. Filler:
These additives/admixtures are finer than cement, so when added to concrete they occupy the small pores
previously left vacant.
Page 16 of 25

2. Nucleating:
These fine particles accelerate the rate of hydration and precipitation starts.

3. Pozzolanic:
When cementing material reacts with water the following reaction take place:
C2S + H CSH + CH
C3S + H CSH + CH
CSH is responsible for strength while CH is a soluble material reacts and dissolves in water leaving
behind pores. So when admixture is added
SiO3 or Al2O3+ CH CSH
Thus, it reduces the amount of CH & increase CSH
Conditions to Declare a Material Pozzolan:
Having silica + Alumina oxide+ ferrous oxide more than 70%.
Surface area on normal admixture is more than 300m/kg.
Surface area should be more than cement used.

3. Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBFS)

Ground granulated blast-furnace slag is the granular material formed when molten iron blast
furnace slag (a by-product of iron and steel making) is rapidly chilled (quenched) by immersion
in water. It is a granular product, highly cementitious in nature and, ground to cement
fineness, hydrates like Portland cement.
(Blast-Furnace Slag: A by-product of steel manufacture which is sometimes used as a
substitute for Portland cement. In steel industry when iron ore is molted, then in the molted state
all the impurities come at its surface which are removed called slag. It consists mainly of the
silicates and aluminosilicates of calcium, which are formed in the blast furnace in molten form
simultaneously with the metallic iron. Blast furnace slag is blended with Portland cement clinker
to form PORTLAND BLASTFURNACE SLAG CEMENT). GGBFS is used to make durable
concrete structures in combination with ordinary Portland cement and/or other pozzolanic
materials. GGBFS has been widely used in Europe, and increasingly in the United States and in
Asia (particularly in Japan and Singapore) for its superiority in concrete durability, extending the
lifespan of buildings from fifty years to a hundred years.
Concrete made with GGBFS cement sets more slowly than concrete made with ordinary
Portland cement, depending on the amount of GGBFS in the cementitious material, but also
continues to gain strength over a longer period in production conditions. This results
in lower heat of hydration and lower temperature rises, and makes avoiding cold
joints easier, but may also affect construction schedules where quick setting is required.
Use of GGBFS significantly reduces the risk of damages caused by alkali-silica reaction (ASR),
provides higher resistance to chloride ingress, reducing the risk of reinforcement corrosion, and
provides higher resistance to attacks by sulfate and other chemicals.

Benefits:
1. Durability

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GGBFS cement is routinely specified in concrete to provide protection against both sulphate attack and
chloride attack
GGBFS is also routinely used to limit the temperature rise in large concrete pours. The more gradual
hydration of GGBFS cement generates both lower peak and less total overall heat than Portland cement.

2. Appearance
In contrast to the stony grey of concrete made with Portland cement, the near-white color of GGBFS
cement permits architects to achieve a lighter colour for exposed fair-faced concrete finishes, at no extra
cost.

3. Strength
Concrete containing GGBFS cement has a higher ultimate strength than concrete made with Portland
cement. It has a higher proportion of the strength-enhancing calcium silicate hydrates (CSH) than
concrete made with Portland cement only, and a reduced content of free lime, which does not contribute
to concrete strength. Concrete made with GGBFS continues to gain strength over time, and has been
shown to double its 28 day strength over periods of 10 to 12 years.

4. Fly Ash:
The finely divided residue resulting from the combustion of ground or powdered coal. Fly ash is generally
captured from the chimneys of coal-fired power plants; it has POZZOLANIC properties, and is
sometimes blended with cement for this reason.
Fly ash includes substantial amounts of silicon dioxide (SiO2) (both amorphous and crystalline) and
calcium oxide (CaO). Toxic constituents include arsenic, beryllium, boron, cadmium, chromium, cobalt,
lead, manganese, mercury, molybdenum, selenium, strontium, thallium, and vanadium.

Class F Fly Ash:

The burning of harder, older anthracite and bituminous coal typically produces Class F fly ash. This fly
ash is pozzolanic in nature, and contains less than 10% lime (CaO). The glassy silica and alumina of Class
F fly ash requires a cementing agent, such as Portland cement, quicklime, or hydrated lime, with the
presence of water in order to react and produce cementitious compounds.

Class C Fly Ash:

Fly ash produced from the burning of younger lignite or subbituminous coal, in addition to having
pozzolanic properties, also has some self-cementing properties. In the presence of water, Class C fly ash
will harden and gain strength over time. Class C fly ash generally contains more than 20% lime (CaO).
Unlike Class F, self-cementing Class C fly ash does not require an activator. Alkali and sulfate (SO4)
contents are generally higher in Class C fly ashes.
In addition to economic and ecological benefits, the use of fly ash in concrete improves its workability,
reduces segregation, bleeding, heat evolution and permeability, inhibits alkali-aggregate reaction, and
enhances sulfate resistance. Even though the use of fly ash in concrete has increased in the last 20 years,
less than 20% of the fly ash collected was used in the cement and concrete industries.
One of the most important fields of application for fly ash is PCC pavement, where a large quantity of
concrete is used and economy is an important factor in concrete pavement construction.
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5. Silica Fume
By-product of semiconductor industry
The terms condensed silica fume, microsilica, silica fume and volatilized silica are often used to describe
the by-products extracted from the exhaust gases of silicon, ferrosilicon and other metal alloy furnaces.
However, the terms microsilica and silica fume are used to describe those condensed silica fumes that are
of high quality, for use in the cement and concrete industry.
Silica fume was first obtained in Norway, in 1947, when environmental restraints made the filtering of
the exhaust gases from the furnaces compulsory.
Silica Fume consists of very fine particles with a surface area ranging from 60,000 to 150,000 ft/lb or
13,000 to 30,000 m/kg, with particles approximately 100 times smaller than the average cement particle.
Because of its extreme fineness and high silica content, Silica Fume is a highly effective pozzolanic
material. Silica Fume is used in concrete to improve its properties. It has been found that Silica Fume
improves compressive strength, bond strength, and abrasion resistance; reduces permeability of concrete
to chloride ions; and therefore helps in protecting reinforcing steel from corrosion, especially in chloriderich environments such as coastal regions.

6. Rice Husk Ash:

This is a bio waste from the husk left from the grains of rice. It is used as a pozzolanic material in cement
to increase durability and strength.
The silica is absorbed from the ground and gathered in the husk where it makes a structure and is filled
with cellulose. When cellulose is burned, only silica is left which is grinded to fine powder which is used
as pozzolana.

Admixtures
Admixtures are added to concrete batch immediately before or during mixing concrete. Concrete
admixtures can improve concrete quality, manageability, acceleration or retardation of
setting time among other properties that could be altered to get specific results. Many, not to say
all, concrete mixes today contain one or more concrete admixtures.
1. Concrete Admixtures: Set-Retarding
Set retarding concrete admixtures are used to delay the chemical reaction that takes place when
the concrete starts the setting process. These types of concrete admixtures are commonly used to
reduce the effect of high temperatures that could produce a faster initial setting of concrete. Set
retarding admixtures are used in concrete pavement construction, allowing more time for
finishing concrete pavements, reducing additional costs to place a new concrete batch plant on
the jobsite and helps eliminate cold joints in concrete. Retarders can also be used to resist
cracking due to form deflection that can occur when horizontal slabs are placed in sections.
Most retarders also function as water reducers and may entrain some air in concrete.

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2. Concrete Admixtures: Air-Entrainment

Air entrained concrete can increase the freeze-thaw durability of concrete. This type of
admixture produces a more workable concrete than non-entrained concrete while reducing
bleeding and segregation of fresh concrete. Improved resistance of concrete to severe frost
action or freeze/thaw cycles. Other benefits from this admixture are:
High resistance to cycles of wetting and drying

High degree of workability

High degree of durability

The entrained air bubbles act as a physical buffer against the cracking caused by the stresses due
to water volume augmentation in freezing temperatures. Air entrainers are compatible with
almost all the concrete admixtures. Typically for every 1% of entrained air, compressive
strength will be reduced by about 5%.
3. Concrete Admixtures: Water-Reducing
Water-reducing admixtures are chemical products that when added to concrete can create a
desired slump at a lower water cement ration than what is normally designed. Water-reducing
admixtures are used to obtain specific concrete strength using lower cement content. Lower
cement contents result in lower CO2 emissions and energy usage per volume of concrete
produced. With this type of admixture, concrete properties are improved and help place
concrete under difficult conditions. Water reducers have been used primarily in bridge decks,
low-slump concrete overlays, and patching concrete. Recent advancements in admixture
technology have led to the development of mid-range water reducers.
4. Concrete Admixtures: Accelerating
Accelerating concrete admixtures are used to increase the rate of concrete strengthdevelopment,
or to reduce concrete setting time. Calcium chloride could be names as the most common
accelerator component; however, it could promote corrosion activity of steel reinforcement.
Nonetheless, concrete best practices such as proper consolidation, adequate cover and proper
concrete mix design could prevent these corrosion issues. Accelerating admixtures are especially
useful for modifying the properties of concrete in cold weather.
5. Concrete Admixtures: Shrinkage Reducing
Shrinkage reducing concrete admixtures are added to concrete during initial mixing. This type of
admixture could reduce early and long term drying shrinkage. Shrinkage reducing
admixtures can be used in situations where shrinkage cracking could lead to durability problems
or where large numbers of shrinkage joints are undesirable for economic or technical reasons.
Shrinkage reducing admixtures can, in some cases, reduce strength development both at early
and later ages.
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6. Concrete Admixtures: Super plasticizers

The main purpose of using super plasticizers is to produce flowing concrete with very high
slump in the range of 7-9 inches to be used in heavily reinforced structures and in placements
where adequate consolidation by vibration cannot be readily achieved. The other major
application is the production of high-strength concrete at w/c's ranging from 0.3 to 0.4. It has
been found that for most types of cement, super plasticizer improves the workability of concrete.
One problem associated with using a high range water reducer in concrete is slump loss. High
workability concrete containing super plasticizer can be made with a high freeze-thaw
resistance, but air content must be increased relative to concrete without super plasticizer.
7. Concrete Admixtures: Corrosion-Inhibiting
Corrosion-inhibiting admixtures fall into the specialty admixture category and are used to slow
corrosion of reinforcing steel in concrete. Corrosion inhibitors can significantly reduce
maintenance costs of reinforced concrete structures throughout a typical service life of 30 40
years. Other specialty admixtures include shrinkage-reducing admixtures and alkali-silica
reactivity inhibitors. Corrosion inhibiting admixtures have little effect on strength at later
ages but may accelerate early strength development. Calcium nitrite based corrosion
inhibitors do accelerate the setting times of concretes over a range of curing temperatures unless
they are formulated with a set retarder to offset the accelerating effect.

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Types of concrete
Some common and main types of concrete are:
Normal concrete
High Strength Concrete
Types
High Performance Concrete
of
Air Entrained Concrete
concrete
Light Weight Concrete
Self Compacting Concrete
Shotcrete
Pervious Concrete
Roller Compacted Concrete
Explanation of different types of concrete are as below:
Normal Concrete
The concrete in which common ingredients i.e. aggregate, water, cement are used is
known as normal concrete. It is also called normal weight concrete or normal strength
concrete.
It has a setting time of 30 - 90 minutes depending upon moisture in atmosphere, fineness
of cement etc.
The development of the strength starts after 7 days the common strength values is 10
MPa (1450 psi) to 40 MPa (5800 psi). At about 28 days 75 - 80% of the total strength is
attained.
Almost at 90 days 95% of the strength is achieved.
Properties of Normal Concrete
Its slump varies from 1 - 4 inches.
Density ranges from 140 pcf to 175 pcf.
It is strong in compression and weak in tension.
Air content 1 - 2 %.
Normal concrete is not durable against severe conditions e.g. freezing and thawing.

High strength concrete

Compressive strength of high strength concrete mix is usually greater than 6,000 pounds per square inch.
High strength concrete is made by lowering the water cement (W/C) ratio to 0.35 or lower.
Often silica fume is added to prevent the formation of free calcium hydroxide crystals in the cement,
which might reduce the strength at the cement aggregate bond. Low w/c ratios and the use of
silica fume make concrete mixes significantly less workable, which is particularly likely to be
a problem in high-strength concrete applications where dense rebar cages are likely to be used.
To compensate for the reduced workability in the high strength concrete mix, superplasticizers
are commonly added to high-strength mixtures.
Aggregate must be selected carefully for high strength mixes, as weaker aggregates may
not be strong enough to resist the loads imposed on the concrete and cause failure to start in the aggregate.
High Performance Concrete

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This mix has the following main properties:

High strength.
High workability.
High durability.
Ease of placement.
Compaction without segregation.
Early age strength.
Long-term mechanical properties.
Permeability.
Density.
Heat of hydration.
Toughness.
Volume stability.
Long life in severe environments.
Preparation
High strength concrete mix can be prepared with careful selection of ingredients and optimization of mix design.

High workability is attained by super plasticizers, they lower the water cement ratio to 0.25 which
is the amount required only for hydration process.High durability is attributed to fly ash and silica
fume which modify the e mineralogy of the cement;
it enhances the compatibility of ingredients in concrete mass and reduces the CH amount.
Fly ash also causes ball bearing effect increasing workability.
The admixtures are 20-25% fly ash of partial replacement of cement and rest 70% is Ordinary
Portland Cement.As it is not usually durable against freezing and thawing so air entrained agents
can also be utilized.
Properties of high performance concrete mix
Strength of high performance concrete ranges from 10000 psi - 15000 psi
Water cement ratio can be reduced to 0.25
Air Entrained Concrete
One of the greatest achievements in field of concrete technology is development of air entrained concrete.
It is used where the concrete is vulnerable to freezing and thawing action.
It is used where the concrete is vulnerable to freezing and thawing action.
It is prepared by adding the air entraining admixture.
The air entrainment in concrete does the following functions:.
It lowers the surface tension of water and thus bubbles are created.
Secondly the air entraining agents prevents coalescing i.e. the combining of bubbles.
The diameter of these bubbles ranges form 10 micrometer to 1000
micrometer and in entrapped air the diameter of bubble is greater than 1mm.
Air entraining agents OR air entrained admixtures are used for the purpose of making entrained air in concrete.
FREEZING AND THAWING:
There are two phenomenons regarding the freezing and thawing action on concrete.
when water inside concrete mass freezes it expands 9-10% due to this increase in the size it
exerts pressure on its surrounding and thus creating a tensile force due to which micro cracks
appear in the concrete. Due to freezing these micro cracks develop into fissures which results in
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disruption of concrete.
When the air entrained agents are present, extra amount of air is there as water expands
these air bubble provide them thin space and the exertion of pressure is prevented.
Second is of osmotic pressure: In a concrete structure there are two parts, frozen and unfrozen.
As the water content is higher in the frozen part, the osmotic pressure is developed and water
tends to flow towards the low water concentration part. If capillaries are not available, the water develops cracks.
Normal concrete can not sustain 3-4 cycles of freezing and thawing where as the AEA concrete
can sustain 100 cycles of it.
DRAW BACKS of Air Entrained Concrete:
It has low strength as compare to normal concrete.

LIGHT WEIGHT CONCRETE

The concrete which has substantially lower mass per unit volume then the concrete made of ordinary
ingredients is called lightweight concrete. The aggregates used are lighter in weight.
Density of light weight concrete is 240 kg/m (15pcf) -1850 kg/m (115 pcf).
Strength of light weight concrete blocks varies from 7 MPa (1000 psi) - 40 MPa (5800 psi).
Some times Air Entrained Admixtures are also added to it giving resistance to freezing and thawing along with strength.
Uses of Light weight concrete:
Used where extra load is not applied e.g. parapet wall, road lining etc. or to reduce dead load.

SELF COMPACTING CONCRETE

The concrete where no vibration is required. The concrete is compacted due to its own weight.
It is also called self consolidated concrete or flowing concrete. It can be also categorized as high
performance concrete as the ingredients are the same, but in this type of concrete workability is increased.
This self-consolidating concrete is characterized by:
Extreme fluidity as measured by flow, typically between 650-750 mm on a flow table, rather than slump (height).
No need for vibrators to compact the concrete.
Placement being easier.
No bleed water, or aggregate segregation.
Uses and Applications of Self Compacting Concrete:
It is used in location unreachable for vibrations. e.g. underground structure, deep wells or at bottom of deep sea.
SCC can save up to 50% in labor costs due to 80% faster pouring and reduced wear and tear on formwork.

Shotcrete
Shotcrete concrete uses compressed air to shoot concrete onto (or into) a frame or structure.
Shotcrete is mortar or (usually) concrete conveyed through a hose and pneumatically projected at
through a shortcrete nozzle with high velocity onto a surface. Shotcrete undergoes placement and
compaction at the same time due to the force with which it is projected from the nozzle.
It can be impacted onto any type or shape of surface, including vertical or overhead areas.
Shotcrete is frequently used against vertical soil or rock surfaces, as it eliminates the need for formwork.
It is sometimes used for rock support, especially in tunneling.
Shotcrete is also used for applications where seepage is an issue to limit the amount of water entering a
construction site due to a high water table or other subterranean sources.
This type of concrete is often used as a quick fix for weathering for loose soil types in construction zones.

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Pervious concrete
Pervious concrete contains a network of holes or voids, to allow air or water to move through the concrete.
This allows water to drain naturally through it, and can
both remove the normal surface water drainage infrastructure, and allow replenishment
of groundwater when conventional concrete does not.
It is formed by leaving out some or the entire fine aggregate (fines), the remaining large aggregate
then is bound by a relatively small amount of Portland cement.
When set, typically between 15% and 25% of the concrete volumes are voids, allowing water to drain.
The majority of pervious concrete pavements function well with little or no maintenance. Maintenance of
pervious concrete pavement consists primarily of
prevention of clogging of the void structure.In preparing the site prior to construction,
drainage of surrounding landscaping should be designed to prevent flow of
materials onto pavement surfaces. Soil, rock, leaves, and other debris may infiltrate the
voids and hinder the flow of water, decreasing the utility of the pervious concrete pavement.

Roller compacted concrete

Roller compacted concrete, sometimes called rollcrete, is a low-cement-content stiff concrete placed using
techniques borrowed from earthmoving and paving work.
The concrete is placed on the surface to be covered, and is compacted in place using large heavy rollers typically
used in earthwork.The concrete mix achieves a high density and cures over time into a strong monolithic block.
Roller compacted concrete is typically used for concrete pavement. Roller compacted concrete dams can also be built,
as the low cement content causes less heat to be generated while curing than typical for conventionally placed massive
concrete pours.

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