ABSTRACT

We deal with the development of Floating type of concrete by using lightweight aggregate and
Aluminium powder as an air entraining agent. There are many types of lightweight concrete
which can be produced either by using lightweight aggregate or by using an air entraining
agent. This concrete is a non-structural concrete. In this study, comparison has been made
between plain cement concrete and lightweight concrete having different proportion of
Aggregate size and fix quantity of Aluminum content (i.e. 2%) by the weight of cement has been
taken into account. It helps to increase volume of concrete and hence reduce the weight.
Keywords: Floating concrete, Lightweight Aggregates, LWC, Silica Fumes, Aluminium powder,
Fly ash, Density, Compressive strength.

INTRODUCTION
The present day world is witnessing construction of very challenging and difficult civil
engineering structures. Researchers all over the world are attempting to develop low density or
lightweight concrete by using different admixtures in concrete up to certain proportions.
Floating concrete is made by introducing air or gas into concrete slurry, so that when the mix
sets and hardens, uniform cellular structure is formed. Thus it is a mixture of water, cement and
finely crushed sand. We mix fine powder of Aluminum to the slurry and it reacts with the
calcium hydroxide present in it thus producing hydrogen gas. This hydrogen gas when
contained in the slurry mix gives the cellular structure and thus makes the concrete lighter than
the conventional concrete.
OBJECTIVE
1. To discuss the importance of floating concrete in the construction industry.
2. To study the properties of the materials used for making this concrete.
3. Comparative study on the properties of normal concrete and Floating concrete or light
transmitting concrete.

FLOATING CONCRETE
Floating concrete is a fluid mixture of density less than water, which is suitable to build floating
structures, reducing the consumption of land for buildings. Light weight concrete (foamed
concrete) is a versatile material which consists primarily of a cement based mortar mixed with
at least 20% of volume air. Floating concrete can be considered as the subset of Lightweight
Concrete(LWC).

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NEED
As the construction industry sees a big boom, it is required to decrease the overall weight of
the structures as the self-weight of concrete is one of the major factors for economic point of
view of the structures and also serviceability and safety requirements.
Lighter the concrete less will be the labour required, more will be the savings in dead load and
hence lesser will be the effect of seismic forces.

PROPERTIES OF LWC
• Light Weight: Density range from 300 Kg/m3 to 1850 Kg/m3 as compared to 1800
Kg/m3 to 2400 Kg/m3 for conventional brick and concrete respectively. Despite millions
of tiny air filled cells, it is strong and durable. There is Lightweight advantage for the
structure design, leading to savings in supporting structures and foundation.
• Compressive Strength: (<1 to 40) N/mm2.
• Excellent Acoustic Performance: It can be used as effective sound barrier and for
acoustic solutions. Hence, highly suitable for partition walls, floor screens/roofing and
panel material in auditoriums.
• Earthquake Resistant: Since lighter than concrete & brick, the lightness of the material
increases resistance against earthquake.
• Insulation: Superior thermal insulation properties compared to that of conventional
brick and concrete, so reduces the heating and cooling expenses. In buildings, light-
weight concrete will produce a higher fire rated structure.
• Workability: Products made from lightweight concrete are lightweight, making them
easy to place using less skilled labor. The bricks can be sawed, drilled and shaped like
wood using standard hand tools, regular screws and nails. It is simpler than brick or
concrete.
• Lifespan: Weather proof, termite resistant and fire proof.
• Savings in Material: Reduces dead weight of filler walls in framed structures by more
than 50% as compared to brickwork resulting in substantial savings. Due to the bigger
and uniform shape of blocks, there is a saving in bed mortar and plaster thickness. In
most cases the higher cost of the light-weight concrete is offset by a reduction of
structural elements, less reinforcing steel and reduced volume of concrete.
• Water Absorption: Closed cellular structures and hence have lower water absorption.

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 • Skim Coating: Do not require plaster and water repellent paint suffices. Wallpapers and
plasters can also be applied directly to the surface.
• Modulus of Elasticity: The modulus of elasticity of the concrete with lightweight
aggregates is lower, 0.5 – 0.75 to that of the normal concrete. Therefore, more
deflection is there in lightweight concrete
• The principal factors necessitating modification of proportioning and control
procedures for lightweight aggregate concrete, compared to normal weight concrete,
are the greater absorptions and the higher rates of absorption of most lightweight
aggregates.

MATERIALS USED
•A floating concrete structure is usually a solid body made of reinforced concrete & an
inner chain of chambers filled with a lightweight impermeable material, typically
polystyrene but, here the concrete is made to float by addition of Aluminium powder (It
generates fluffiness in the concrete same as baking soda does in a cake. This admixture
when added to mortar or concrete mixture react chemically with hydroxides present in
the cement & form minute bubbles of hydrogen gas of size ranging from 0.1 to 1 mm
throughout the cement-water as an air entraining agent).
•In addition to this, the concrete includes-
• Polypropylene fibers for good binding,
• Nano Silica (having particle size less than 100 nm) to improve concrete
workability & strength, increase resistance to water penetration & to
help control the leaching of calcium,
• CaCl2 as an accelerator &
• Water proofing agents (One of the major requirements of floating
concrete is it should not have any leakage through it. The porosity of the
concrete mortar should almost be equal to zero).
Aluminium mesh instead of steel mesh is used for reinforcement, for making it light
weight & corrosion resistant. Carbon fiber mesh can also replace the Aluminium mesh
as it is the best among the light weight but strong meshes available.

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 VARIOUS OBSERVATIONS

• Slump:
1. Due to lower aggregate density, structural lightweight concrete does not slump as much
as normal-weight concrete with the same workability.
2. A lightweight air-entrained mixture with a slump of 50 to 75 mm (2 to 3 in.) can be
placed under conditions that would require a slump of 75 to 125 mm (3 to 5 in.)
3. With higher slumps, the large aggregate particles tend to float to the surface, making
finishing difficult.
4. A slump of 50 to 100 mm (2 to 4 in.) produces the best results for finishing.
5. Air contents are generally between 5% and 8%, depending on the maximum size of
coarse aggregate (paste content) used and the exposure conditions.

• Aggregates used shall comply with the following conditions:

a) At least 95% of aggregates must be via the 18mm BS sieve.
b) The stone aggregate used shall not exceed 10% by 10 mm BS sieve.
c) Stone did not diffuse through the BS 4mm sieve.
• There are three types of lightweight concrete:
1. Lightweight Aggregate Concrete
2. Aerated Concrete
3. No-Fines Concrete
• In case of RCC structures, increase the cover by 10mm extra, to avoid corrosion steel.

MAKING OF FLOATING CONCRETE

• There is no codal provisions in our code.
• Finely divided aluminum powder is generally used as gas producing agent.
• Its quantity is about (0.2 to 2)% of weight of cement.
• Aluminum powder reacts with Ca(OH)2 to liberate hydrogen bubbles.

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 • Powdered zinc, aluminum alloy or hydrogen peroxide can also be used as gas producing
agents.
• Foamed concrete is produced by adding foaming agent, usually hydrolyzed protein or
resin soaps, during mixing
• In some cases, stable preformed foam is also added during mixing.
Compressive strength varies from 12Mpa to 14Mpa for a concrete of density 500kg/m3.

Basic comparision between Density and Strength of Floating concrete

(2% Al powder is used in each sample)

REFERENCES

 ACI manual of concrete practice index—2015

 Standard practice for selecting proportions for structural lightweight concrete (ACI
211.2-98)
 Dhawal Desai, “Development of Light Weight Concrete”, Civil Engineering Portal, 2014.
 N. Sivalinga Rao, Y.Radha Ratna Kumari, V. Bhaskar Desai, B.L.P. Swami, “Fibre
Reinforced Light Weight Aggregate (Natural PumiceStone) Concrete”,International
Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research Volume 4, Issue 5, May-2013 ISSN 2229-
5518.
 Lakshmi Kumar Minapu1, M K M V Ratnam2, Dr. U Rangaraju, “(Experimental Study on
Light Weight AggregateConcrete with Pumice Stone, Silica Fume and Fly Ash as a Partial
Replacement of Coarse Aggregate)”, International Journal of Innovative Research in
Science, Engineering and Technology Vol. 3, Issue 12.

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