SELF COMPACTING CONCRETE(SCC)

Dr. AJAY SHARMA

Deptt. of Structural Engineering
MBM Engineering College JODHPUR
PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH
CONVENTIONAL CONCRETE
DURABILITY CONCERN
ADVENT OF SCC
PRESENT STATE- OF- THE -ART

Self Compacting Concrete

Concrete that is able to flow under its
own weight and completely fill the
form work even in the presence of
congestion of reinforcement without
the need of any vibration, whilst
maintaining homogeneity.

USE OF SCC STARTED IN JAPAN

BY PROF. OZAWA AND OKAMURA
FIRST USE WAS REPORTED IN 1988
FIRST ACI WORKSHOP IN 1994 AT
BANGKOK

Four Anchor Blocks were

Casted Using SCC

GAS TANK USING SCC

TEHNOLOGY

SELF COMPACTING CONCRETE!

faster construction

reduction in site manpower

better surface finishes
easier placing
improved durability
greater freedom in design
thinner concrete sections
reduced noise levels, absence of vibration

INTREST IN SCC HAS INCREASED

DUE TO DIFFICULTY
EXPERIENCED IN
HIRING SKILLED LABOUR

PROPER VIBRATION PRACTICES

RETEMPERING
PROPER FORMWORK

POOR VIBRATION LEADS TO

segregation of the aggregates

greater settlement
fluctuations in behaviour while setting
presence of voids, high permeability
and poor distribution of pores if
vibration is insufficient

 poor surface appearance with regard to

colour, holes and sand streaking

poor impermeability due to bleeding around
the aggregates
poor quality of the concrete skin, in other
words of its surface
lack of homogeneity within the concrete,
which leads to variations in strength
honey-combs
cold joints.

RETEMPERING, leading to:

increase in water cement ratio and

therefore a decrease in strengths

less cohesivity
low homogeneity
poor durability

INAPPROPRIATE USE OF FORMS,

leading to:

greater loss of grout from the formwork

due to incorrect sealing of the
moulds
poor outer surface due to non-uniform
use of the form release agent.

Why self Compacting Concrete?

The advent of self-compacting concrete
represents a considerable step forward in respect
of the durability of the structures. Mixing and
casting are much easier thanks to its incredible
properties of SCC.

WHAT IS DURABILITY?
"CAPACITY OF A WORK TO WITHSTAND
AGGRESSIVE AGENTS OF VARIOUS
NATURE, KEEPING THE MECHANICAL AND
FUNCTIONAL PROPERTIES UNCHANGED".

The intrinsic causes of deterioration are

linked to the fact that the concrete often has
weak points .A very important property of
concrete is its permeability or porosity, on
which its durability mostly depends.
The chemical causes of concrete
deterioration are:
sulphate attack
carbon dioxide, inorganic acids (for pH less
than 5, the concrete must be protected with a
coating)

 organic acids
organic substances
chloride attack (on the reinforcement rods)
others (ammonium salts, magnesium, etc)
The physical causes of concrete deterioration are:

freezing and thawing

shrinkage
high temperatures

The mechanical causes of concrete

deterioration are:
abrasion
erosion
cavitation.

The intrinsic causes in the material are:

the composition of the concrete
(water/cement ratio and aggregates/cement
ratio; quality of raw materials; cement,
aggregates , water, admixtures)
workability of the concrete at the time of
casting
curing of the concrete after casting

all our efforts to make a durable and reliable

structures which require insignificant
maintenance work, then we can say it has
been worthwhile.

Self Compacting Concrete offers to

some extent the solution to all these
problems of concreting at site.

HISTORY OF
DEVELOPMENT

Characteristics of the
mechanism of self-compaction

CONSTITUENT MATERIALS FOR

SCC
Cement
Aggregates
Mixing water
Admixtures (Superplasticizers)
Viscosity modifying Agent(VMA)
Additions including Mineral fillers semi-inert,
pozzolanic or latent hydraulic
Fibres
Pigments

Relations between the different

properties of Self-Compacting Concrete

RQUIREMENT FOR SELF COMPACTING

CONCRETE
Filling Ability
Passing ability
Segregation Resistance
A Concrete mix can only be classified as self
compacting concrete if the requirement for all
three characteristics are fulfilled

THREE IMPORTANT PROPERTIES

The fluidity of the concrete is defined as its
capacity to flow into the moulds or forms even
if the presence of obstacles which may
interfere with its path.
The deformability of the concrete is its
capacity to change shape and to pass through
different sections without losing cohesivity and
therefore without segregating or blocking.
Segregation of the concrete is the tendency
of the mortar and the coarse aggregates to
separate.

The mechanism of self-compaction

High quantity of fines (500-550 Kg/m3)

Superplasticizers with high water reduction
Viscosity modifying agents (VMA)
Effect of VMA

Effect of VMA

REQUIREMENT OF
CONCRETE MIX DESIGN
PROPER MIXING OF CONSTITUENT
MATERIAL
MAINTAINING W/C RATIO FOR STRENGTH
TESTING WORKABILITY PARAMETERS
ADJUSTMENTS FOR ADMIXTURES AND
MINERAL FILLERS
ENSURING STRENGTH

Mix design procedure

List of test methods for workability

properties of SCC

S.No.
Method
Property
1 Slump-flow by Abrams cone Filling ability
2 T50cm slump flow
Filling ability
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

J-ring
V-funnel
V-funnel at T5minutes

Passing ability
Filling ability
Segregation resistance

L-box
U-box
Fill box
GTM screen stability test
Orimet

Passing ability
Passing ability
Passing ability
Segregation resistance
Filling ability

ACCEPTANCE CRITRIA FOR SCC

Unit
mm
sec

Min

Max

1
2

Method
Slump-flow by Abrams cone
T50cm slump flow

650
2

800
5

3
4
5

J-ring
V-funnel
V-funnel at T5minutes

mm
sec
sec

0
6
0

10
12
+3

L-box

(h2/h1)

0.8

1.0

(h2 - h1)mm

0
90
0
0

30
100
15
5

S.No.

7
8
9
10

U-box
Fill box
GTM screen stability test
Orimet

%
%
sec

Depending on the apparent problem, the following

courses of action might be appropriate:

the use of additional or different types of filler,

(if available);
modify the proportions of the sand or the
coarse aggregate;
the use of a viscosity modifying agent, if not
already included in the mix;
adjust the dosage of the superplasticizer and/or
the viscosity modifying agent;

 the use of alternative types of Superplasticizers

(and/or viscosity modifying agent) which may
be more compatible with local materials
different dosage rates of admixture to modify
the water content, and hence the water/powder
ratio.

A procedure for efficiently designing SCC mixes is

shown below. It is based on a method
developed by Okamura.
Designation of desired air content ( mostly 2 % )
Determination of coarse aggregate volume
Determination of sand content
Design of paste composition
Determination of optimum water:powder ratio and
Superplasticizers dosage in mortar
Finally the concrete properties are assessed by
standard tests.
Definition of desired air content ( mostly 2 % )

Generally coarse aggregate content (D> 4 mm)

should be between 50 per cent and 60 per cent.
The optimal volume content of sand in the mortar
varies between 40 50 % depending on paste
properties.
Design of paste composition
Initially the water:powder ratio for zero flow (p )
is determined in the paste, with the chosen
proportion of cement and additions.

Determination of water powder ratio p

Slump flow test

V funnel test

ORIMET TEST

Fill Box test

U-Box Test

L-Box Test

Calculate H2/H1, the blocking ratio.

The whole test has to be performed within 5
minutes.

Determination of optimum volumetric

water/powder ratio and superplasticizer dosage
in mortar.
Target values are slump flow of 24 to 26 cm and VFunnel time of 7 to 11 seconds.
At target slump flow, where V-funnel time is lower than
7 seconds, then decrease the water/powder ratio.
For target slump flow and V-funnel time in excess of 11
seconds, water/powder ratio should be increased.
If these criteria cannot be fulfilled, then the particular
combination of materials is inadequate. A trial with a
different superplasticizer is the preferred alternative.
Second alternative is a new additive, and as a last
resort a different cement.

Summing up, self-compacting concrete clearly

has better properties than any other concrete
produced today, especially with regard to
durability.
These properties may be summed up as follows:
adequate fluidity
sufficient deformability
high resistance to segregation
exceptional filling capacity
high workability;
appropriate plastic viscosity
excellent stability
high durability;

Advantages SCC

The advantages for the Building contractor

are:
decrease in professional diseases of the
workers.
savings in labour, vibrators and energy
solution of site problems
increase speed of work
better product quality

THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR

ENJOYING WITH ME
HAVE A NICE TIME!