Tech Brief

NOVEMBER 2019 FHWA-HIF-17-009

AIR ENTRAINMENT AND CONCRETE DURABILITY

INTRODUCTION
Hydraulic cement concrete (hereafter referred to simply as concrete) is composed of
aggregates bound together by a hydrated cement paste. Concrete contains a
significant amount of porosity including small gel pores (0.5 to 10 nm in size) that are
an intrinsic feature of the hydration products formed when water reacts with cement,
capillary pores (10 nm to 10 μm in size) that are the remnant of the original water-
filled space that existed between the cementitious grains at the time of mixing, and
much larger spherical air voids (0.05 to 1.25 mm in size) that were purposefully
entrained in the concrete (Mindess, Young, and Darwin 2003). In addition, concrete
contains irregularly shaped air voids that were entrapped during the mixing process.

The entrained air component plays a critical role in ensuring the durability of the
concrete and is the focus of this Tech Brief. It provides background on the
mechanisms responsible for freeze-thaw damage, discusses the importance of
critical saturation, and introduces specific strategies to better establish an acceptable
entrained air-void system. This Tech Brief supplements the information provided in
several other FHWA Tech Briefs:

• Ensuring Durability of Concrete Paving Mixtures – Part I: Mechanisms and

Mitigation (Van Dam 2016a).
• Ensuring Durability of Concrete Paving Mixtures – Part II: Testing and
Construction (Van Dam 2016b).
• Chemical Deicers and Concrete Pavements: Impacts and Mitigation (Van Dam
2018).

BACKGROUND
As concrete freezes, ice first begins to form within the larger pores. The temperature
at which this occurs depends both on the size of the pores and the chemistry of the
pore solution within them. The formation of ice is expansive and results in changes
in the pore solution chemistry that results in the generation of stress within the
concrete (Powers 1945; Powers 1954; Powers 1955, Powers and Helmuth 1956;
Marchand, Pleau, and Gagné 1995; Penttala 1998; Scherer and Valenza 2005).

It is well known that the freeze-thaw durability of concrete is influenced by the size
and volume of air bubbles entrained in the concrete and its permeability (ACI 2016;
Kosmatka and Wilson 2016). Combined, these factors strongly influence the rate
and degree to which concrete will saturate when exposed to fluids, such as water.
This is illustrated in figure 1, which shows eight stages of saturation (Weiss 2014).
When a dry concrete is exposed to a fluid on one side (the left side in figure 1), as
would occur in a standard sorptivity test such as ASTM C1585, the fluid is first
absorbed into the smallest pores, which includes the gel pores and capillary pores.
The wetting front progresses through the sample, saturating these small pores while
bypassing the larger entrained and entrapped air voids as shown in Stages 2 through
5 in figure 1. Stage 5 defines the point where the gel and capillary pores are
saturated whereas the entrained and entrapped air voids remain empty. The line
drawn through points 1 to 5 in figure 1 defines the initial rate of absorption, which
normally takes 10 to 18 hours to occur when the fluid is water under standard test
conditions (Todak, Lucero, and Weiss 2015).

The images above are Applied Pavement Technology originals

and FHWA has permission to utilize them in this Tech Brief.
2 Air Entrainment and Concrete Durability

figure 3 (Todak, Lucero, and Weiss 2015), increasing the

volume of entrained air decreases the overall degree of
saturation at the inflection point that occurs when gel and
capillary pores are saturated (stage 5 in figure 1). This
reduces the degree of saturation below critical levels,
illustrating one of the key principles explaining why
entrained air enhances freeze-thaw durability (Todak,
Lucero, and Weiss 2015).

© 2014 William J. Weiss

Figure 1. Illustration of water absorption into concrete

during sorptivity test (note: initial saturation [stages 1-5]
© 2019 Karl Peterson
is characterized by filling of gel and capillary pores,
whereas secondary absorption [stages 5-8] is Figure 2. Stereo micrograph of entrained air voids
characterized by filling of entrained and entrapped air). (spherical bubbles) in hardened concrete; larger,
irregular voids are entrapped air.
As fluid continues to be adsorbed, the larger entrained
and entrapped air voids become progressively saturated
as illustrated in Stages 6 to 7, until complete saturation
occurs at Stage 8. The line drawn through points 5 to 8
in figure 1 illustrates the secondary rate of absorption,
which can take months to years before Stage 8 is reached
(Todak, Lucero, and Weiss 2015).

A network of uniformly dispersed entrained air bubbles

(such as shown in figure 2) can provide the needed empty
space to relieve pressures generated as the concrete
freezes. Because of their large size, entrained and
entrapped air bubbles are the last space to saturate in
concrete, remaining largely unsaturated under normal
service conditions. It is widely recognized that concrete
that is saturated below a critical level will not be damaged
from freeze-thaw cycles because enough of the larger © 2015 William J. Weiss
pores in the concrete are empty and provide adequate Figure 3. Illustration of the effect of volume of entrained air
space to accommodate the hydraulic and osmotic and w/cm on degree of saturation during a sorptivity test.
pressures that develop as ice forms. But if this same
concrete undergoes freezing and thawing in a critically
The water-to-cementitious materials ratio (w/cm) directly
saturated state (somewhere between 75 to 91 percent
impacts the volume of the capillary pores in the concrete,
saturation with the most recent research pointing to a
which in turn directly impact the rate at which fluid is
value of around 86 percent saturation), damage will occur
absorbed and transported. Concrete made with a high
even in a single freeze-thaw cycle, irrespective of air-void
w/cm has an increased volume of capillary pores, which
volume (Fagerlund 1977; Yang, Weiss, and Olek 2007; Li
saturate relatively quickly resulting in an increased initial
et al. 2012).
rate of absorption (Todak, Lucero, and Weiss 2015).
Furthermore, as illustrated in figure 3, concrete with a high
The role of entrained air voids in protecting concrete w/cm has increased permeability, allowing fluid to more
against freeze-thaw damage is to provide additional void easily pass through the concrete resulting in more rapid
space that largely remained unsaturated. As shown in
 Air Entrainment and Concrete Durability 3

saturation of the air voids (Castro, Bentz, and Weiss dispersed throughout the mortar phase in the concrete
2011). Thus, concrete with a high volume of entrained air (see figure 2). The stiffness of the concrete mixture, the
and a low w/cm will take a very long time to reach critical type and duration of mixing, and many other factors are
saturation, whereas a concrete with a low volume of influential in the formation of the entrained air. Excellent
entrained air and high w/cm may quickly reach critical summaries of these factors are provided by Nagi et al.
saturation. (2007) and by Kosmatka and Wilson (2016).

HOW IS AIR ENTRAINED IN CONCRETE? HOW MUCH AIR IS NEEDED TO PROTECT THE
HYDRATED CEMENT PASTE IN CONCRETE?
Air is entrained in concrete during batching either through
the use of air-entraining cement or through the addition of Guidance provided by the American Concrete Institute
an air-entraining admixture (AEA) (AASHTO M 154, (ACI 2016) indicates that the required air content to
ASTM C260/C260 M). The most common AEAs are protect the hydrated cement paste is dependent on both
composed of one or more of the following materials the freeze-thaw exposure condition (presented in table 1)
(Kosmatka and Wilson 2016): and the paste content (or mortar fraction) in the concrete
(which is most often related to the nominal maximum
• Wood resin (i.e., Vinsol resin). aggregate size, as shown in table 2). Table 2 shows that
as aggregate size decreases (mortar fraction increases),
• Sulfonated hydrocarbons. the total air required to protect the concrete increases.
• Fatty and resinous acids. ACI mixture proportions are based on an assumption of
angular coarse aggregates; thus, it is sometimes possible
• Synthetic materials, including detergents. to reduce the required air content by approximately 1
percent if rounded aggregates are used. Additionally,
AEAs are surfactants that create stable air bubbles in the more air may be required for pavements subjected to
fresh concrete as it is mixed. These bubbles remain once heavy deicer use.
the concrete has hardened and ideally are uniformly
Table 1. ACI freeze-thaw exposure classes (ACI 2016).

Exposure Class Severity Condition

F0 Not Applicable Concrete not exposed to freezing and thawing cycles
Concrete exposed to freezing and thawing conditions, but very low probability of
F1 Moderate
concrete being near saturation at time of exposure1
Concrete exposed to freezing and thawing conditions, with a high probability of
F2 Severe concrete being near saturation at time of exposure, but no deicing chemical
exposure2
F3 Very Severe Concrete exposed to freezing and thawing conditions as well as deicing chemicals3
1 Examples are vertical surfaces above the level of snow accumulation and horizontal, elevated floors in areas protected from direct exposure to moisture.
2 Examples are vertical surfaces below the level of snow accumulation, vertical surfaces with sufficient moisture exposure to allow the concrete to be near
saturation prior to freezing, retaining walls or other vertical elements with one side exposed to moisture, and slabs-on-grade that are not protected from
freezing
3 Examples are vertical surfaces that may have deicing chemical-contaminated snow piled against them, sidewalks or pavements that receive deicing
chemicals, and concrete that receives frequent exposure to seawater and freezing and thawing conditions.

Table 2. Recommended air contents for different exposure class and nominal maximum aggregate size (based on ACI 2016).

Nominal maximum aggregate size, Air Content Exposure Air Content Exposure
mm (in.) Class F1, percent1 Class F2 and F3, percent1
9.5 (3/8) 7 7.5
12.5 (1/2) 7 7
19 (3/4) 6.5 7
25 (1) 6.5 6.5
37.5 (1-1/2) 6 6.5
50 (2) 6 6
75 (3) 5 5.5
1 A reasonable field tolerance on air content is recommended as ±1.5 percent.
4 Air Entrainment and Concrete Durability

HOW IS AIR ENTRAINMENT MEASURED? concrete as assessed in AASHTO T 161 (Ley and Tabb
2013; Welchel 2014). The failure criterion has been
It is the size and distribution of the air voids in hardened
established for the SAM Number of 0.2 psi, which is
concrete that ultimately influence the durability of the
roughly correlated to an ASTM C457 spacing factor of
concrete subjected to freezing and thawing. But because
0.008 inch and an AASHTO T 161 DF of 70 percent.
assessing the air-void system parameters in hardened
Current results suggest that the SAM Number has a better
concrete is time consuming and expensive, it is most
correlation with AASHTO T 161 DF than it does to the
common to measure the required total volume of air in the
ASTM C457 spacing factor (Ley 2015). The SAM method
fresh concrete. Standard tests (or variations thereof)
is currently undergoing evaluation by a number of states.
used by state highway agencies include:
In hardened concrete, the air-void system characteristics
• AASHTO T 152: Standard Method of Test for Air can be directly characterized through manual assessment
Content of Freshly Mixed Concrete by the Pressure of magnified images of a polished concrete surface as
Method (eq. ASTM C231) – The pressure method is described in ASTM C457, Standard Test Method for
the most commonly used test to assess the air Microscopical Determination of Parameters of the Air-
content of paving grade concrete made with normal Void System in Hardened Concrete. ASTM C457
weight aggregates. measures the total volume of air in the concrete and
• AASHTO T 196: Standard Method of Test for Air calculates other air-void system parameters that are
Content of Freshly Mixed Concrete by the Volumetric related to freeze-thaw durability, including:
Method (eq. ASTM C173) – The volumetric method
(also known as the Roll-A-Meter) can be used to • Spacing factor – An index related to the distance of
measure the total air in fresh concrete containing any one air void to the next and recommended to be 0.008
type of aggregate, including lightweight or porous inches (0.200 mm) or less.
aggregates.
• Specific surface – The surface area of air voids
• AASHTO T 121: Standard Method of Test for Density divided by their volume, recommended to be 600
(Unit Weight), Yield, and Air Content (Gravimetric) of inch2/inch3 (24 mm2/mm3) or greater.
Concrete (eq. ASTM C138) – The gravimetric method
is based on the calculated difference of the actual The ability of the concrete to resist freeze-thaw damage
density of the fresh concrete to the theoretical density increases as the spacing factor decreases (i.e., the air
of the concrete mixture (which uses the specific voids become more closely spaced) and as the specific
gravities of the materials for absolute volume) with no surface increases. ASTM C457 discusses a desired
air present. The measured density is subtracted from maximum spacing factor of 0.008 inch (0.200 mm) for
the theoretical density determined from absolute freeze-thaw resistance for concrete subjected to
volumes of the ingredients assuming no air is present, moderate exposure conditions, stipulating that this value
then divided by the theoretical density. can be higher for mild exposure and should be lower for
severe exposure conditions, especially if the concrete is
Although these tests methods are common, it is recognized exposed to deicing chemicals.
the total volume of air in the concrete is not necessarily
related to the air void size and spacing required to protect ASTM C457 requires a trained technologist using a
the concrete against freeze-thaw damage. Thus, alternate microscope and can take 3 hours or more to execute.
tests that make some assessment of the air-void system Alternative automated methods in which digitally captured
characteristics in fresh concrete, such as the Super Air images are analyzed (e.g., RapidAir 457, flatbed scanner
Meter (SAM), are being investigated. method [Peterson et al. 2001]) have been developed and
are undergoing standardization. But automated methods
The SAM is standardized under AASHTO TP 118, still require extensive sample preparation and can only be
Provisional Standard Method of Test for Characterization conducted on hardened concrete. As a result, ASTM
of the Air-Void System of Freshly Mixed Concrete by the C457 or related automated methods are suitable for air-
Sequential Pressure Method. It is a modified version of void system evaluation during the concrete mixture
an AASHTO T 152 pressure meter (Ley and Tabb 2013; design phase or for forensic investigations but are not
Welchel 2014), but instead of using a single testing suitable for conducting QC or acceptance testing during
pressure as is used in AASHTO T 152, the SAM uses construction since the results take days to obtain. More
sequential pressures to determine the volume of total air detailed information on these test methods is provided by
and to make an inference regarding the quality of the air- Van Dam (2016b).
void system. The SAM obtains the same air content
information garnered using the AASHTO T 152 test but AIR ENTRAINMENT PROBLEMS
also determines a SAM Number from the additional
In most cases, the total air content of the fresh concrete
higher-pressure testing sequences. The SAM Number
is correlated with the air void size and spacing in the
has been correlated to the air void spacing factor obtained
hardened concrete; thus, achieving the required air
through ASTM C457 and the Durability Factor (DF) of
 Air Entrainment and Concrete Durability 5

content in the fresh concrete results in adequate sieves) whereas fine sands (less than No. 100 sieve)
resistance to freeze-thaw damage. But this is not always have negligible effect.
the case as there are times when the air content in the
fresh concrete is acceptable just prior to placement but an • Concrete temperature – For a given mixture, as
unacceptable air-void system is not produced in the temperature increases, a higher dosage of AEA is
hardened concrete. These problems can be generally required to maintain the air content.
classified into the following two categories:
The air content of fresh concrete over time will provide a
good indication of stability of the air-void system. Such
• Air-void system instability results in loss of air through
testing is common when determining mixture proportions
handling and consolidation.
and should be repeated as materials change during
• An irregular air-void system is produced with regards construction. Furthermore, periodically testing after the
to bubble size and spacing. paver will provide a good indication of air loss due to
placement.
Air-Void System Instability
Irregular Air-Void Systems
With regards to air-void system instability, the loss of a
certain amount of air (1 to 2 percent) is common during A concrete may have acceptable volumes of air but still
the placement process when the concrete is pumped be susceptible to freeze-thaw damage because of an
and/or consolidated (Whiting and Nagi 1998; Taylor et al. irregular air-void system. Irregularity may include:
2006; Ram et al. 2012). It is generally thought that the air
that is lost is in the larger air bubbles, which are not as • Large bubbles spaced far apart – This can occur due
critical to freeze-thaw protection as the smaller bubbles. to interactions between AEA and some chemical
To address the air loss that occurs through the slipform admixture, most notably polycarboxylate-based
paver, a number of highway agencies will either sample water-reducers.
the concrete behind the paver (e.g., Kansas, Indiana) or
require that the air content of the concrete placed on • Air voids accumulating at coarse aggregate interfaces
grade in front of the paver be higher than that required in (see figure 4 [Ram et al. 2012]) – This can be due to
anticipation of the loss of air (e.g., Wisconsin, Iowa). Of retempering (the late addition of water) concrete
additional concern is that overvibration may lead to containing non-Vinsol resin AEA (Kozikowski et al.
localized loss of air, which may result in the development 2005). Others have found that air voids can form
of vibrator trails on a slipformed pavement. Under these along the aggregate interface if porous aggregates
conditions, the concrete in the vicinity of the vibrator is are batched dry of SSD (Buenfeld and Okundi 1999).
segregated, being largely devoid of coarse aggregate and Air void accumulation at coarse aggregate interfaces
often low in air and can exhibit localized freeze-thaw often results in loss of strength.
damage. Often this is considered a concrete mixture
problem, although setting the frequency of the internal
vibrators too high can be a contributing factor (Stutzman
1999; Taylor et al. 2006).

Aside from the loss of air due to placement, other factors

that can contribute to air loss include (Nagi et al. 2007):

• Cement alkalinity – As alkalinity increases the air

content increases for a given dosage of AEA.
• Supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) – The
use of SCMs can impact the air content. Carbon
present in fly ash can significantly reduce the air
content, as can SCMs that are more finely ground or
Source: WisDOT
that are highly porous.
Figure 4. Stereo micrographs showing air void
• Chemical admixtures – AEA interactions with some accumulating at interface with coarse aggregate.
chemical admixtures, particularly water-reducers
based on co-polymer chemistry, have had negative
• Air void coalescence in paste (see figure 5) –
effects on air void stability.
Coalescence of air voids have been observed in
• Aggregates – Aggregate size and texture can some cases (Ram et al. 2012). The major cause of
influence air content, with crushed stone entraining such clustering is uncertain, but it is thought to be
less air than gravel aggregates. The particle size of due, at least in part, to insufficient concrete mixing. In
sand is also influential with middle size fractions being some cases, the coalescence was observed in
most effective in entraining air (No. 30 to No. 100 concrete with high air void content.
6 Air Entrainment and Concrete Durability

fresh concrete is related to the size and spacing of the

entrained air voids in the hardened concrete; an
assumption that is not always true. Furthermore, as
freeze-thaw conditions increase in severity, the maximum
allowable w/cm is reduced, lowering the concrete
permeability and increasing the strength.

REFERENCES
American Concrete Institute (ACI). 2016. Guide to
Durable Concrete. ACI 201.2R. American Concrete
Institute, Farmington Hills, MI. Tables 1 and 2 are
authorized reprints from this reference.

Buenfeld, N. R. and Okundi, E. 1999. “Release of Air

Source: WisDOT from Unsaturated Aggregate During Setting of Concrete,”
Construction and Building Materials, Vol. 13. Elsevier,
Figure 5. Stereo micrographs showing coalescing in
Philadelphia, PA.
paste.
Castro, J., D. Bentz, and W. J. Weiss. 2011. “Effect of
Addressing irregular air-void systems is difficult as the
Sample Conditioning on the Water Absorption of
problem will likely not be observed through normal
Concrete.” Cement and Concrete Composites. Volume
construction testing (other than strength loss that may
33, No. 8. Elsevier, Philadelphia, PA.
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interfaces). Such problems are usually only detected in
the course of a study or forensic investigation in which Fagerlund, G. 1977. “The International Cooperative Test
petrographic analysis is conducted. Fortunately, such of the Critical Degree of Saturation Method of Assessing
problems are thought to be relatively rare. the Freeze/Thaw Resistance of Concrete.” Materials and
Structures. Volume 10, No. 4. Springer, New York, NY.
OTHER FACTORS
Kosmatka, S. H. and M. L. Wilson. 2016. Design and
In addition to the total air content, the maximum w/cm is also Control of Concrete Mixtures. 16th Edition. EB0001.15.
typically specified to help enhance resistance to freeze-thaw Portland Cement Association, Skokie, IL.
damage. This is a recognition that the overall porosity
decreases as w/cm decreases, resulting in a decrease in Kozikowski, R. L, D. B. Vollmer, P. C. Taylor, and S. H.
permeability and an increase in strength. ACI (2016) Gebler. 2005. Factors Affecting the Origin of Air-Void
recommends a maximum w/cm of 0.50 for a freeze-thaw Clustering. PCA R&D Serial No. 2789. Portland Cement
Exposure Classes F1, and 0.45 for Exposure Classes F2 Association, Skokie, IL.
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maximum w/cm for Exposure Class F3 is 0.40). Ley, M. T. 2015. “Update on the SAM and the Box Test.”
Presentation at the Fall 2015 Meeting of the National
Additionally, if the pavement is hand-finished, the SCM Concrete Consortium, Milwaukee, WI.
content should be limited to a maximum of 25 percent fly
ash or 50 percent slag cement, by mass of total Ley, M. T. and B. Tabb. 2013. Development of a Robust
cementitious materials. More recently, there has been Field Technique to Quantify the Air-Void Distribution in Fresh
recognition that formed and machine finished surfaces, Concrete. Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK.
such as slipformed pavement surfaces, are not greatly at
risk of scaling and thus these limits are not considered Li, W., M. Pour-Ghaz, J. Castro, and J. Weiss. 2012.
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Relating to Freeze-Thaw Damage in Concrete Pavement
CONCLUDING REMARKS Joints.” Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering. Vol 24,
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Nagi, M., P. Okamoto, R. Kozikowski, and K. Hover. Todak, H., C. Lucero, and W. J. Weiss. 2015. “Why is the
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Peterson, K., R. Swartz, L. Sutter, and T. Van Dam. 2001. Van Dam, T. 2016b. Ensuring Durability of Concrete
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Scanner.” Transportation Research Record 1775. 034. Federal Highway Administration, Washington, DC.
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8 Air Entrainment and Concrete Durability

Contact—For more information, contact:

Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)

Office of Preconstruction, Construction and Pavements
Tom Yu ([email protected])

Researcher—This Tech Brief was developed by Thomas J. Van Dam (NCE) and prepared under FHWA’s Concrete
Pavement Best Practices Program (DTFH61-14-D-00006). Applied Pavement Technology, Inc. of Urbana, Illinois served
as the contractor to FHWA.

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Key Words—concrete pavements, concrete materials, freeze-thaw, air content, air void system, air entrainment, spacing
factor

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NOVEMBER 2019 FHWA-HIF-17-009