Concrete works

The concrete contains blocks of natural stone is made by mixing cement, sand,
gravel and water. That the active substance in the mixture is the cement which binds
physically and chemically with water and solidifies.
Components of concrete:
3. Cement: Portland cement is manufactured from limestone and clay which are
ground together with water to form slurry. This is then dried and burnt at high
temperature after which it is ground to a fine powder. Main types of cement are:
i. Ordinary Portland cement
ii. Rapid hardening cement
iii. Sulphate-resisting cement
iv. Extra rapid-hardening cement
v. Ultra low-heat cement
vi. Water repellent cement
vii. Hydrophobic cement
viii. High alumina cement
ix. Pozzolana cement
2. Aggregates: The type and quality of aggregates, which make up the bulk of
concrete, vary according to the purpose. The size, shape, grain, density and grading
of aggregate all affect the workability of the concrete. They also affect its strength.
Aggregate used in concrete classified to fine and coarse aggregate.
1. Water: Mixing water should be clean and free from acids, vegetable or
deleterious matter. Normally it should be fit for drinking.
4. Admixtures: They are used in concrete to get especial properties.
Storing concrete materials:
The storage arrangements for cement and aggregate depend on the scope of the
work but the followings precautions are essential.
Cement: where possible cement should be stored in a weatherproof shed and kept
quite dry. The shed should preferably without windows and with the door on the
leeward side to prevent draughts and rain penetration. The floor should be made of
either strong boards and joists raised clear of the ground, or of blanks laid on a dry
concrete slab above ground level. All cement should be stored for the shortest
possible time.
Aggregate: These should always be kept in a clean condition and should not become
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contaminated with undesirable substances. Aggregate on medium- to large scale
building sites are usually stored in bins. The floor of the bins are made of weak
concrete and drained or laid to falls. The barriers or walls are built of stout planks,
sleepers or concrete blocks. Aggregates are stored in adjoining bins but with
dividing walls that high enough to cope with the highest stockpile without
overspilling.
Layout of storage: Aggregate bins, mixers, cement sheds and water supply should be
arranged to permit good access to materials, and the easy transport of concrete from
the mixer to the delivery point.
Batching of concrete:
This operation is concerned with the measurement of dry materials for making
concrete which may be mixed either by hand or machine. Manual mixing is fairly
common with small builders. To get the correct proportion of materials a gauge box
is used. This is still made in the traditional one cubic foot size for convenient
handling, but the size can also be worked out to suit a 05 kg bag of cement. Thus, for
a 3:2:4 nominal mix, using a bag as a measure, the box would be 575.3 m1 in coarse
aggregate (5734m1), one box of fine aggregate (575.3m1) to one bag of cement
(57510m1). Often gauge boxes are made bottomless to facilitate handling.
When sand or fine aggregate is damp it tends to swell or bulk and proportions should
be adjusted daily to allow for this. The bulking factor varies but generally it is about
20 per cent in damp conditions. Very dry or very wet (saturated) sand does not bulk
at all.
Mixing: Three methods of specifying mixes are recognized in building regulations.
These are:
3. Designed mix: They refer to high grade or special work and will not be dealt with
at this stage.
2. Standard mixes: also called prescribed mixes are specified by giving the dry
weights of aggregates.
1. Nominal mixes are those specified by volume and used for small-to medium-
scale work.
Mixing:
Hand mixing is used where only small quantities of concrete are needed. It should be
carried out on a clean hard surface or platform to prevent soil contamination. The
cement, sand and coarse aggregate must be thoroughly mixed before water added.
The amount of water must given a good workable mix but the slump should not
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 normally exceed 05mm. Water should be added from a watering can through a rose
and mixing continued with shovels or hoes until a uniform colure is obtained. Hand
mixing must only be used for non-structural concrete.
Concrete mixers are in wide use today even in for jobbing or maintenance work. For
small-scale concreting, gauge boxes with bottoms are filled and tipped into the
mixer drum as it revolves, the boxes being counted as they are tipped in. larger
mixers have loading skips at ground level which are loaded with dry materials as
required, then lifted mechanically and tipped into the drum and water is added as
necessary. Bottomless gauge boxes placed in the skip can be used for measuring in
this case. Some machines, termed weigh batchers, have dials which record the
weight of these measured materials. This is done before the mixing starts thus
eliminating any further need for boxes throughout the day. Measured materials
should be weighed and dials reset daily.
Transport of concrete:
Concrete transported by different equipments, but it shall satisfy the followings:
3. Avoid the segregation of concrete components
2. Prevent concrete to contamination with any other materials
1. Transport and laid the concrete in short time before initial setting
4. Equivalent between transport quantity with production
0. Economy factor
Lay of concrete and compaction:
The concrete should lie in the forms and sometimes without forms as for footings
and compacted by many ways. Any way may be use to compact concrete shall satisfy
the followings:
3. Homogeneous of concrete without segregation
2. Get the required shape and good surface
1. Product concrete with less content of voids and more dense
4. Laid and compact the concrete in short time before initial setting
0. Good bonding with old concrete
0. Satisfy the required properties of concrete
To satisfy the above points, the followings points must be take in care:
3. Laid the concrete within 15 minutes from the time of add water in cold weather
and 25 minutes from the time of add water in hot weather
2. Be careful in laid of concrete without any vibrating in forms and avoid to stock
the concrete in one place
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 1. Avoid to threw the concrete from 370 meter because it due to segregate the
concrete components, so openings may be done in columns and walls and chutes
used with 3:1 slope to carry concrete
4. For walls, horizontal layers according to the required thickness with 370 meter in
cold weather and 3 meter in hot weather and be careful to avoid initial setting and
pressure in fresh concrete.
0. Don’t cast in rain day
0. Be careful in laid of concrete in slop surface and cast start from down to up
without forms for low slope and with temporary form for high slope
.. For columns and walls, prefer to decrease w/c ratio for upper layers
8. For slabs supported in columns and walls, cast cannot start before 1 hours of
casting of columns and walls

Why we compact concrete with good efficiency?

We compact concrete with good efficiency, so we can:
3. Decrease w/c ratio and it means more strength and low shrinkage
2. Can compact the concrete with high thickness
1. More dense of concrete and low voids and it means good quality and low
permeability of concrete
4. More penetration of concrete between bars and good shape
0. Ability to use mixes with low workability and this mean high strength
0. Decrease the time to remove side forms and this is very important for production
of tiles and blocks
Finish of concrete:
The surface of concrete must be finished with the required level and as the
required texture.
Curing of concrete:
Traditional processes for curing are:
3. Spreading with water
2. Submerged in water
1. Covered with wet soil or sand
4. Covered with plastic sheets
0. Covered with wet clothes
0. Paint with chemical materials
.. Steam curing
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Concrete works in hot weather:
Hot weather has negative affect during concrete works and this affect be more
negative if there is wind during concrete works.
The suggest problems are:
3. More water required to get required workability
2. High rate of reduce workability with time
1. Difficult to control air entrained in fresh concrete
4. Reduce the time of initial setting
0. Difficult to transport, lie and curing of concrete
0. Increase of plastic shrinkage
.. Increase of dimensional change for solid concrete
8. Increase the ability to crack
9. Reduce the final strength of concrete
35.Decrease the durability of concrete
33.Increase of permeability of concrete
32.Decrease the bond between steel bars and concrete
31.Increase the ability of corrosion of steel
Many processes have to taken to avoid the above points and these include:
3. Raw materials:
a. Mixing water: Chilled water must be used or artificial ice. The use of artificial ice
with 05: instead of mix water reduces 331C.
b. Cement: Avoid new grinding cement in concrete works
c. Admixtures: Use of retarders type B or super plasticizers type D according to
ASTM C494-.3
d. Aggregate: Store the aggregate in shadow place and spread the coarse aggregate
with water
2. Mix of raw material and concrete:
Rearrange the feeding of raw materials in the mixer to avoid crystallization of
cement when it contact with water.
It is important to decrease the time of mix to decrease the temperature of mixing and
also it is important to paint the mixer with white color and spread it with water
1. Transport of concrete:
It is important to decrease the time of transportation
4. Laid and compact of concrete:
In additional to normal process for laid and compact of concrete, it is important to
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follow these processes:
a. Be sure to be able to cast in continuous way without any stop
b. It is important to make shadow to decrease the temperature of forms and bars
c. Be accurate in indicate the positions of joints
d. Prefer to shadow all equipments by wet clothes
e. It is better to start concrete after mid day
f. Avoid cold joints

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