Page 1 of 7
European Journal of Business &
Social Sciences
Available at https://ejbss.org/
ISSN: 2235-767X
Volume 07 Issue 05
May 2019
Available online: https://ejbss.org/ P a g e | 1601
Mechanical Behaviour of Super Absorbent Polymer Concrete
MAHESWARI. S
DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING
PRIST UNIVERSITY, THANJAVUR - 613 403
ABSTRACT
Internal curing refers to the process by which the hydration of cement occurs because of
the availability of additional internal water that is not part of the mixing Water. Excessive
evaporation of water (internal or external) from fresh concrete should be avoided; otherwise, the
degree of cement hydration would get lowered and thereby concrete may develop unsatisfactory
properties. Curing operations should ensure that adequate amount of water is available for
cement hydration to occur. This paper discusses different aspects of achieving optimum cure of
concrete without the need for applying external curing methods. Self-Curing of concrete (SCC)
can be done by adding admixtures while mixing the concrete in two ways. The admixtures may
be added in the form of powder or liquid. This study reports experimental results of selected
performance features of SCC. In Self Curing of Concrete the admixture added is Hydropod.
Concrete mixtures are produced by the addition of Hydropod for the ratio of 0.1%, 0.2%, 0.3%,
0.4% and 0.5% to the weight of cement. The properties like workability, compressive strength
and split tensile strength of Self Curing of Concrete are investigated in this present study.
1. INTRODUCTION
The ACI-308 Code states that “internal curing refers to the process by which the hydration of
cement occurs because of the availability of additional internal water that is not part of the
mixing Water.” Conventionally, curing concrete means creating conditions such that water is not
lost from the surface i.e., curing is taken to happen ‘from the outside to inside’. In contrast,
‘internal curing’ is allowing for curing ‘from the inside to outside’ through the internal reservoirs
(in the form of saturated lightweight fine aggregates, superabsorbent polymers, or saturated
wood fibers) Created. ‘Internal curing’ is often also referred as ‘Self–curing.’
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European Journal of Business &
Social Sciences
Available at https://ejbss.org/
ISSN: 2235-767X
Volume 07 Issue 05
May 2019
Available online: https://ejbss.org/ P a g e | 1602
When the mineral admixtures react completely in a blended cement system, their demand for
curing water (external or internal) can be much greater than that in a conventional ordinary
Portland cement concrete. When this water is not readily available, due to depercolation of the
capillary porosity, for example, significant autogenous deformation and (early-age) cracking may
result.
Due to the chemical shrinkage occurring during cement hydration, empty pores are created
within the cement paste, leading to a reduction in its internal relative humidity and also to
shrinkage which may cause early-age cracking. This situation is intensified in HPC (compared to
conventional concrete) due to its generally higher cement content, reduced water/cement (w/ c)
ratio and the pozzolanic mineral admixtures (fly ash, silica fume). The empty pores created
during self-desiccation induce shrinkage stresses and also influence the kinetics of cement
hydration process, limiting the final degree of hydration. The strength achieved by IC could be
more than that possible under saturated curing conditions.
Often specially in HPC, it is not easily possible to provide curing water from the top surface at
the rate required to satisfy the ongoing chemical shrinkage, due to the extremely low
permeabilities often achieved.
MIX DESIGN
For making concrete, it is essential to select proper ingredients, evaluate their properties and
have the know-how of the interaction of different materials for optimum usage.
Cement 43 Grade ordinary Portland cement purchased locally was used for casting the
specimens.
Aggregate River sand and 20mm size coarse aggregate used for casting the specimens.
Water It is generally stated that the water fit for drinking is fit for making concrete. Potable
drinking water was used for both mixing and curing of concrete specimens.
Indian standard recommended mix design procedure was adopted for arriving mix proportions
for M25 and M35 grade concretes.
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European Journal of Business &
Social Sciences
Available at https://ejbss.org/
ISSN: 2235-767X
Volume 07 Issue 05
May 2019
Available online: https://ejbss.org/ P a g e | 1603
Factors to be considered for mix design
The grade designation giving the characteristic strength requirement of concrete.
The type of cement influences the rate of development of compressive strength of
concrete.
Maximum nominal size of aggregates to be used in concrete may be as large as possible
within the limits prescribed by IS 456:2000.
The cement content is to be limited from shrinkage, cracking and creep.
The workability of concrete for satisfactory placing and compaction is related to the size
and shape of section, quantity and spacing of reinforcement and technique used for
transportation, placing and compaction.
The Mix proportion is shows below
For M25 Grade concrete
Cement : Fine aggregate : Coarse Aggregate : W/c ratio
1 : 1.51 : 2.57 : 0.45
Experimental Details:
Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) of 43 Grade conforming to Bureau of India Standard (BIS)
Specifications of IS: 8112 (1989) with specific gravity 3.05 was used in this study. The locally
available natural sand conforming to grading Zone II of IS: 383 (1970) was used in the
production of concrete. 20 mm maximum size natural coarse aggregate available from the local
quarries conforming to the grading requirements of IS: 383 (1970) was used. The super
