High performance concrete [abstract]
Abstract
In the Engineering industry, the improvement of existing materials allows for
technological advancement and the construction of more reliable structures
without over design. High Performance Concrete (HPC), a material widely
utilized in heavy structural construction is a cheap and dependable material
that can be studied to reach its optimum performance. This research is based
on the measurement of early age characteristics of the High Performance
Concrete (HPC), the study of the influence of water binder ratio and binder
composition on setting, and the influence of strength, slump, and air content
in the material. For the measurement of setting we have to use an instrument
called the Mortar Penetrometer. With it we can measure the (psi) of the
Mortar to see in how much time it sets. The process is done by changing the
needle of the Mortar Penetrometer (1/2, 1/10,1/20,1/40) and the pressing down
in the specimen as established in the ASTM C 403 Procedure. The water binder
ratio was divided in three sets: .25, .30 & .40. I had six concrete mixes to
do, that the numbers or formulas of how much of every material I had to use
was already given by Patrick Earney a PhD student at Columbia, Missouri in
the Civil Engineering department. By utilizing fly ash and silica fume
within a 0.35 water binder ratio, the observation can be made that the high
performance concrete is harder and more durable, even though it takes longer
to set.