Concrete Fundamentals: Composition, Characteristics, and Uses
Importance of the Water-Cement Ratio
The finely powdered cement, when combined with water in a specific ratio, is called the water-cement ratio.
Plasticity
Due to its plasticity, concrete adapts to any shape as the mold is transported.
Hardness
Are they dry? – Function
It is a granular material composed of particles of stone origin, different sizes, hard and stable. Its aim is to build a skeleton or inert concrete structure.
What is Concrete?
Concrete, in its most general form, is a mass composed of stone materials associated with binders.
It is an element consisting of aggregates and cement paste.
What Types of Concrete Do You Know?
- Concrete
- Concrete in large masses
- Pre- and post-tensioned concrete
- Concrete for hydraulic works
- Concrete paving
- Translucent concrete
- Special concretes
What is Particle Size?
Particle size is the measure of grain.
What is Meant by Cement Paste?
The cement paste is formed by the mixture of hydraulic cement and water and is the active binder in concrete. The mixture of these two elements forms, when fresh, the so-called cement paste.
Why is it Called Hydraulic Binder?
Cement is in the form of a fine, soft, gray powder. Mixed with water, it forms a paste that hardens under water and in the air.
Because of this feature, and needing water for curing, it is defined as a hydraulic binder.
What Do You Mean by Homogeneous Mixture?
The homogeneous mixture of these materials is achieved by dosing in adequate quantities to form a plastic mass, easy to work with, to which specific properties may be conferred, in addition to shaping it the way you want.
What Role Do Formwork or Shuttering Play?
A type of temporary building, which is installed to create the walls, and once it has fulfilled its function, it is disarmed.
What is Consolidation or Compaction?
Its purpose is to accommodate the concrete to form molds or formwork, in order to accommodate the concrete to form most suitably, expelling as much trapped air as possible.
What is the Importance of Density?
The density is mainly to expel as much air into the formwork or shuttering so that the concrete density is greater.
Why Does Segregation Occur?
Segregation is a product of the incorrect expulsion of air in concrete.
What are the Advantages of Concrete as a Material?
- It is an inexpensive material.
- It allows us to have the forms you want.
- Easy to carry.
- It can be worked at different temperatures.
- Resistant to loads such as wind, snow, corrosion, bad environment, and fire.
- You can build outdoors, underground, or underwater.
What Do You Mean by Curing?
For fibers to grow, especially in their early youth, during the first hours and days, the presence of water is required. This procedure to care for or maintain the presence of water is known as curing.
(What elements does it contain?
Do they consider it essential?
What is Meant by Hardening?
What is Setting?
The end of the set is the hardening of the finished paste.
What are the Estimated Times Under Normal Conditions?
It lasts about 3 hours in a state of paste, to start the setting and solidified in 4-5 hours of preparation.
What is Meant by Setting?
The process of hardening to form a progressively increasing hardness and strong resistance.
What is False Setting?
False setting is the dehydration of gypsum, making it set and harden quickly, forming a rigid skeleton.
It does not truly have a dry crust.
What is Flash Setting?
It’s when the plaster is of poor quality, or not enough, or there is a complete absence of it.
So here the procedure is premature stiffening because of the chemical reactions and irreversible plunge.
What is Meant by Exothermic?
It is a chemical reaction that releases heat.
Why Should the Change in Volume Occur?
It is due to expansion if the environment is high humidity or contraction if it is low.