Contents

1. What is concrete?
1.1 Definition
1.2 History
1.3 Composition
1.3.1 Cement
1.3.2 Water
1.3.3 Aggregates
1.3.4 Reinforcement
1.3.5 Chemical admixtures

2. Building with concrete

2.1 Mixing concrete
2.2 Curing
2.3 Damage modes
2.4 Concrete recycling
2.5 Advantages and disadvantages
2.6 World records
2.7 Did you know?

3. Conclusion
 1.1 Definition
Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement, aggregate, water, and
chemical admixtures.

The word concrete comes from the Latin word "concretus" (meaning compact or condensed).

Concrete solidifies and hardens after mixing with water and placement due to a chemical process
known as hydration. The water reacts with the cement, which bonds the other components together,
eventually creating a robust stone-like material.
Concrete is used to make pavements, pipe, architectural structures, foundations,
motorways/roads, bridges, parking structures, brick/block walls, fences and poles.

1.2History

It is uncertain where concrete was first discovered, but it was first used on a large scale by Roman
engineers.

Its widespread use in many Roman structures, led to the Roman Architectural Revolution, that
freed Roman construction from the restrictions of stone and brick material and allowed for revolutionary
new designs both in terms of structural complexity and dimension.

Many excellent examples of structures made from concrete are still standing, notably the huge
monolithic dome of the Pantheon in Rome and The vast system of Roman aqueducts.

(Modern structural concrete differs from Roman concrete in two important details. First, its mix
consistency is fluid and homogeneous, allowing it to be poured into forms rather than requiring hand-
layering together with the placement of aggregate. Second, integral reinforcing steel gives modern
concrete assemblies great strength in tension, whereas Roman concrete could depend only upon the
strength of the concrete bonding to resist tension.)

1.3. Composition

1.3.1 Cement

Cement is a building material made by grinding calcined limestone and clay to a fine
powder, which can be mixed with water and poured to set as a solid mass.

Portland cement is the most common type of cement in general usage. It is a basic ingredient of
concrete, mortar, and plaster. English masonry worker Joseph Aspdin patented Portland cement in 1824;
it was named because of its similarity in color to Portland limestone, quarried from the English Isle of
Portland and used in London architecture.

1.3.2 Water

Combining water with cement forms a cement paste by the process of hydration. The cement
paste glues the aggregate together, fills voids within it, and allows it to flow more freely.
Less water in the cement paste will yield a stronger, more durable concrete; more water will give
a free-flowing concrete.
Impure water used to make concrete can cause premature failure of the structure.
1.3.3 Aggregates

Fine and coarse aggregates make up the bulk of a concrete mixture. Sand, natural gravel and
crushed stone are mainly used for this purpose. Recycled aggregates (from construction, demolition and
excavation waste) are increasingly used as partial replacements of natural aggregates.

Decorative stones such as quartzite, small river stones or crushed glass are sometimes added to
the surface of concrete for a decorative "exposed aggregate" finish.

The presence of aggregate greatly increases the robustness of concrete over and above that of
cement, which otherwise is a brittle material.

1.3.4 Reinforcement

Concrete is strong in compression, as the aggregate efficiently carries the compression load.
However, it is weak in tension as the cement holding the aggregate in place can crack, allowing the
structure to fail.
The Romans discovered that including horse hair in the concrete mixture made concrete
less vulnerable to cracking while it hardened.
Nowadays engineers add steel reinforcing bars, steel fibers, glass fiber, or plastic fiber to carry
tensile loads.

1.3.5 Chemical admixtures

Chemical admixtures are materials in the form of powder or fluids that are added to the concrete
to give it certain characteristics not obtainable with plain concrete mixes. In normal use, admixture
dosages are less than 5% by mass of cement, and are added to the concrete at the time of mixing. The
common types of admixtures are as follows:

 Accelerators speed up the hydration (hardening) of the concrete.

 Retarders slow the hydration of concrete
 Air entrainments add and entrain tiny air bubbles in the concrete, which will reduce damage
during freeze-thaw cycles, increasing the concrete's durability
 Plasticizers increase the workability of plastic or "fresh" concrete, allowing it to be placed more
easily, with less consolidating effort.
 Pigments can be used to change the color of concrete
 Corrosion inhibitors are used to minimize the corrosion of steel bars in concrete.
 Bonding agents are used to create a bond between old and new concrete.

2.1. Mixing concrete

Thorough mixing is essential for the production of uniform, high quality concrete.

It has been shown that the mixing of cement and water into a paste before combining these
materials with aggregates can increase the compressive strength of the resulting concrete.
 2.2. Curing

After the concrete has been placed, care needs to be taken to properly cure concrete, and achieve
best strength and hardness. Cement requires a moist, controlled environment to gain strength and harden
fully. The cement paste hardens over time, initially setting and becoming rigid though very weak, and
gaining in strength in the weeks following. In around 3 weeks, over 90% of the final strength is typically
reached, though it may continue to strengthen for decades.

2.3. Damage modes

Concrete can be damaged by many processes, such as the expansion of corrosion products of the
steel reinforcement bars, freezing of trapped water, fire or radiant heat, aggregate expansion, sea water
effects, bacterial corrosion, erosion by fast-flowing water, physical damage and chemical damage.

2.4. Concrete recycling

Concrete recycling is an increasingly common method of disposing of concrete structures.
Concrete debris was once routinely shipped to landfills for disposal, but recycling is increasing due to
improved environmental awareness, governmental laws, and economic benefits.

Concrete, which must be free of trash, wood, paper and other such materials, is collected from
demolition sites and put through a crushing machine, often along with asphalt, bricks, and rocks.

Reinforced concrete contains rebar and other metallic reinforcements, which are removed with
magnets and recycled elsewhere. The remaining aggregate chunks are sorted by size. Larger chunks may
go through the crusher again. Smaller pieces of concrete are used as gravel for new construction projects.
Aggregate base gravel is laid down as the lowest layer in a road, with fresh concrete or asphalt placed
over it. Crushed recycled concrete can sometimes be used as the dry aggregate for brand new concrete if
it is free of contaminants, though the use of recycled concrete limits strength.

2.5 Advantages and disadvantages

Advantages

Concrete buildings are more resistant to fire than those constructed using wood or steel frames.
Since concrete does not burn and stops fire from spreading, it offers total fire protection for occupants and
their property. Furthermore, it does not produce any smoke or toxic gases. Neither heat, flames nor the
water used to extinguish a fire seriously affect the structure of concrete walls and floors making repairs
after a fire a relatively simple task.

Concrete also provides the best resistance of any building material to high winds, hurricanes,
tornadoes due to its lateral stiffness that results in minimal horizontal movement. When properly designed
for ductility, it also provides superior resistance to seismic events.

As a result of all these benefits, insurance for concrete homes is often 15 to 25 percent lower
than for comparable wood frame homes.

(fire resistance, high winds resistance, it can be poured into a form on-site, or pre-fabricated, it
can be poured and cured under water, if necessary, it can be recycled)
Disadvantages

Both concrete and asphalt are the primary contributors to what is known as the urban heat island
effect.

Light-colored concrete can reflect up to 50% more light than asphalt and reducing ambient
temperature. With lower temperatures, the demand for air conditioning decreases, saving energy.

(easily corrodes when exposed to seawater, has low tensile strength, it requires
special care and precautions during casting otherwise it could cause cracks and failure,
concrete dust released by building demolition or natural disasters was concluded to be the major
source of dangerous air pollution)

2.6. World records

The largest concrete pour

The world record for the largest concrete pour in a single project is the Three Gorges Dam in
Hubei Province, China by the Three Gorges Corporation. The amount of concrete used in the construction
of the dam is estimated at 16 million cubic meters over 17 years.

Continuous pours

The world record for largest continuously poured concrete raft was achieved in August 2007 in
Abu Dhabi. The pour (a part of the foundation for the Abu Dhabi's Landmark Tower) was 16,000 cubic
meters of concrete poured within a two day period. The previous record (close to 10,500 cubic meters)
was held by Dubai Contracting Company and achieved March 23, 2007.

The world record for largest continuously poured concrete floor was completed November 8,
1997, in Louisville, Kentucky. The monolithic placement consisted of 20,900 m2 of concrete placed
within a 30 hour period.

2.7 Did you know

Concrete is used more than any other man-made material in the world.

As of 2006, about 7.5 cubic kilometers of concrete are made each year—more than one cubic
meter for every person on Earth.

3. Conclusion

Concrete is the most suitable material for construction, since it can withstand whatever
compression forces and can be formed to any shape you like.
Concrete structures have minimal maintenance requirements and as a result minimal social
disruption.
Due to the long life of concrete structures and to concrete recycling the waste put into landfills is
minimized.