Concrete is a composite artificial conglomerate construction stone material made essentially of Portland cement, water, and aggregates.

When first mixed the water and cement constitute a paste which surrounds all the individual pieces of aggregate to make a plastic mixture. A chemical reaction called hydration takes place between the water and cement, and concrete normally changes from a plastic to a solid state in about 2 hours. Thereafter the concrete continues to gain strength as it cures. A typical strength-gain curve is shown in Figure 1. The industry has adopted the 28-day strength as a reference point, and specifications often refer to compression tests of cylinders of concrete which are crushed 28 days after they are made. PORTLAND CEMENT + H2O + ROCK = HARDENED CONCRETE + ENERGY(HEAT) Typical Composition by Volume Cement Water Aggregate 7-15% 14-21% 60-80%

Concrete has almost no tensile strength (usually measured to be about 10 to 15% of its compressive strength), and for this reason it is almost never used without some form of reinforcing. Its compressive strength depends upon many factors, including the quality and proportions of the ingredients and the curing environment. The single most important indicator of strength is the ratio of the water used compared to the amount of cement. Basically, the lower this ratio is, the higher the final concrete strength will be. (This concept was developed by Duff Abrams of The Portland Cement Association in the early 1920s and is in worldwide use today.) A minimum w/c ratio (water-to-cement ratio) of about 0.3 by weight is necessary to ensure that the water comes into contact with all cement particles (thus assuring complete hydration). In practical terms, typical values are in the 0.4 to 0.6 range in order to achieve a workable consistency so that fresh concrete can be placed in the forms and around closely spaced reinforcing bars. Typical stress-strain curves for various concrete strengths are shown in Figure 2. Most structural concretes have f'c values in the 3000 to 5000 psi range. However, lower-story columns of high-rise buildings will sometimes utilize concretes of 12,000 or 15,000 psi to reduce the column dimensions which would otherwise be inordinately large. Even though Figure 2 indicates that the maximum strain that concrete can sustain before it crushes varies inversely with strength, a value of 0.003 is usually taken (as a simplifying measure) for use in the development of design equations. Fresh Concrete Fresh concrete is that stage of concrete in which concrete can be moulded and it is in plastic state. This is also called "Green Concrete". Another term used to describe the state of fresh concrete is consistence, which is the ease with which concrete will flow. Properties of Fresh Concrete 1. Setting of Concrete The hardening of concrete before its hydration is known as setting of concrete. It also means the hardening of concrete before it gains strength or the transition process of changing of concrete from plastic state to hardened state. Setting of concrete is based or related to the setting of cement paste. Thus cement properties greatly affect the setting time. Factors affecting setting: Following are the factors that affect the setting of concrete.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

Water Cement ratio Suitable Temperature Cement content Type of Cement Fineness of Cement Relative Humidity Admixtures Type and amount of Aggregate

Workability is often referred to as the ease with which a concrete can be transported, placed and consolidated without excessive bleeding or segregation. Or the internal work done required to overcome the frictional forces between concrete ingredients for full compaction. It is obvious that no single test can evaluate all these factors. In fact, most of these cannot be easily assessed even though some standard tests have been established to evaluate them under specific conditions. In the case of concrete, consistence is sometimes taken to mean the degree of wetness; within limits, wet concretes are

more workable than dry concrete, but concrete of same consistence may vary in workability. Because the strength of concrete is adversely and significantly affected by the presence of voids in the compacted mass, it is vital to achieve a maximum possible density. This requires sufficient workability for virtually full compaction to be possible using a reasonable amount of work under the given conditions. Presence of voids in concrete reduces the density and greatly reduces the strength: 5% of voids can lower the strength by as much as 30%. Factors affecting concrete workability: Water-Cement ratio Amount and type of Aggregate Amount and type of Cement Weather conditions Temperature Wind Chemical Admixtures Sand to Aggregate ratio i. Water content or Water Cement Ratio More the water cement ratio more will be workability of concrete. Since by simply adding water the inter particle lubrication is increased. High water content results in a higher fluidity and greater workability. Increased water content also results in bleeding. another effect of increased water content can also be that cement slurry will escape through joints of formwork. ii. Amount and type of Aggregate More the amount of aggregate less will be workability.

Using smooth and round aggregate increases the workability. Workability reduces if angular and rough
aggregate is used.

Greater size of Aggregate- less water is required to lubricate it, the extra water is available for workability Angular aggregates increases flakiness or elongation thus reduces workability. Round smooth aggregates
require less water and less lubrication greater workability in a given w/c ratio

Porous aggregates require more water compared to non absorbent aggregates for achieving sam degree of
workability. iii. Aggregate Cement ratio More ratio, less workability. Since less cement mean less water, so the paste is stiff. iv. Weather Conditions 1. Temperature If temperature is high, evaporation increases, thus workability decreases

2. Wind: If wind is moving with greater velocity, the rate of evaporation also increase reduces the amount of water and ultimately reducing workability.
3(a). Concrete Bleeding Bleeding in concrete is sometimes referred as water gain. It is a particular form of segregation, in which some of the water from the concrete comes out to the surface of the concrete, being of the lowest specific gravity among all the ingredients of concrete. Bleeding is predominantly observed in a highly wet mix, badly proportioned and insufficiently mixed concrete. In thin members like roof slab or road slabs and when concrete is placed in sunny weather show excessive bleeding. Prevention of Bleeding in concrete

 Bleeding can be reduced by proper proportioning and uniform and complete mixing. Use of finely divided pozzolanic materials reduces bleeding by creating a longer path for the water to traverse. Air-entraining agent is very effective in reducing the bleeding. Bleeding can be reduced by the use of finer cement or cement with low alkali content. Rich mixes are less
susceptible to bleeding than lean mixes. 3(b). Segregation in concrete Segregation can be defined as the separation of the constituent materials of concrete. A good concrete is one in which all the ingredients are properly distributed to make a homogeneous mixture. There are considerable differences in the sizes and specific gravities of the constituent ingredients of concrete. Therefore, it is natural that the materials show a tendency to fall apart. Segregation may be of three types 1. Coarse aggregate separating out or settling down from the rest of the matrix. 2. Paste separating away from coarse aggregate. 3. Water separating out from the rest of the material being a material of lowest specific gravity. Hydration in concrete Concrete derives its strength by the hydration of cement particles. The hydration of cement is not a momentary action but a process continuing for long time. Of course, the rate of hydration is fast to start with, but continues over a very long time at a decreasing rate In the field and in actual work, even a higher water/cement ratio is used, since the concrete is open to atmosphere, the water used in the concrete evaporates and the water available in the concrete will not be sufficient for effective hydration to take place particularly in the top layer. If the hydration is to continue, extra water must be added to refill the loss of water on account of absorption and evaporation. Therefore, the curing can be considered as creation of a favorable environment during the early period for uninterrupted hydration. The desirable conditions are, a suitable temperature and ample moisture. Concrete, while hydrating, releases high heat of hydration. This heat is harmful from the point of view of volume stability. Heat of hydration of concrete may also shrinkage in concrete, thus producing cracks. If the heat generated is removed by some means, the adverse effect due to the generation of heat can be reduced. This can be done by a thorough water curing. Air Entrainment Air entrainment reduces the density of concrete and consequently reduces the strength. Air entrainment is used to produce a number of effects in both the plastic and the hardened concrete. These include:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
STEEL

Resistance to freezethaw 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.

is an alloy of iron and carbon. Pure irons strength remarkably increases when alloyed with carbon. The tensile strength increases with increasing carbon content but the ductility reduces. Steel having its properties because of the presence of carbon alone is called Plain carbon steel. For all structural steels, the modulus of elasticity can be taken as 205,000 MPa and the tangent modus at the onset of strain hardening is roughly 1/30th of that value or approximately 6700 MPa. High strength steels, due to their specific microstructure, do not show a sharp yield point but rather they yield continuously as shown in Fig. 1.6. For such steels the yield stress is always taken as the stress at which a line at 0.2% strain, parallel to the elastic portion, intercepts the stress strain curve.

Low carbon steel or mild steel: The carbon content does not increases 0.25% Soft and ductile mostly used for construction purpose Uses Sheets, rods, wires, pipes, hammers, chains, shafts etc Medium-carbon steel : The carbon content is 0.25 to 0.5 % Stronger than the mild steel slightly less ductile Uses Shafts, connecting rods and rails etc High- carbon steel : Carbon content is above 0.5% Harder and stronger than mild steel and medium carbon steel Uses Keys, knifes, drills etc Properties of Mild Steel Ductile and malleable It corrodes quickly It can be permanently magnetized It is tough and more elastic than cast iron and wrought iron and withstands shocks and impacts well It is equally strong in tension, compression and shear Its specific gravity is 7.8 It is not much affected by Saline water Properties of High-carbon Steel Its structure is granular It is more tough and elastic than mild steel It is easier to harden and then to weld It is more difficult to forge and then to weld It can be permanently magnetized Comparatively it is stronger in compression than in tension or in shear It withstands vibration and shocks better

MecProp: Compressive strength, Density, Ductility, Fatigue limit, Flexural modulus, Flexural strength, Fracture toughness, Hardness, Plasticity (physics), Poisson's ratio, Shear modulus, Shear strain, Shear strength, Softness, Specific modulus, Specific weight, Tensile strength, Yield strength, Young's modulus