JOURNAL OF ALGEBRAIC STATISTICS

Volume 13, No. 3, 2022, p. 2289 - 2292

The Effect of Curing Period and Curing Delay on Properties of

Sameer S. Shastri2
Department of Civil Engineering
Sinhgad College of Engineering
ssshastri.scoe@sinhgad.edu

ABSTRACT
The curing of concrete is the process of keeping the moisture and temperature conditions of the concrete normal for the
hydration reaction, allowing the concrete to develop hardening properties over time, and it is recognized worldwide that
concrete must be fully cured to achieve optimal properties, and many studies clearly It is shown that delayed curing has a
detrimental effect on concrete, and even delaying curing for one day has the greatest impact on strength. Although delayed
curing increased the compressive strength of concrete, the strength reduction caused by delayed curing did not recover.
This was demonstrated by wet jute curing processes using different curing protocols with initial water curing periods of 3,
7, 14, and 28 days in continuous air and continuous water, and delayed curing of 7 days, results including ordinary portland
cement (OPC) requires at least 3 days to cure, while Pozzolanic Cement Concrete (PPC) requires longer. However, if PPCs
have sufficient initial cure, they can reach the strength of OPCs in a reasonable amount of time. In practice, post-curing
does not do much to increase the compressive strength of cast-in-place concrete after 3 days of initial curing.
Keywords—Curing, Hydration of Cement, Initial Curing, Compressive Strength
I. INTRODUCTION
Curing is the action taken to maintain the moisture and temperature conditions in the newly placed cement mix to allow
the hydraulic cement to hydrate and when pozzolans are used, a pozzolanic reaction occurs which develops the latent
properties of the mix and the goal of curing to prevent concrete moisture run off and maintain the proper concrete
temperature for long enough. It is generally accepted that proper curing results in proper hydration of the cementitious
material within the concrete. While all concrete hydrates to varying degrees of maturity over time, how quickly and to what
extent this development occurs depends on the natural environment surrounding the concrete and the actions taken to alter
that environment. Reduce the loss of water, heat, or both concrete; provide moisture and heat externally; or incorporate
specialty materials into hybrid designs (ACI 308, American Concrete Institute).
II. CURING AND HYDRATION OF PORTLAND CEMENT
Hardening of concrete is important for its strength gain and durability (A.S. Al-Gahtani, 2010). Hydration is the chemical
reaction that causes changes when Portland cement reacts with water. Whether at depth or near the surface, curing has a
significant effect on the properties of hardened concrete such as strength, permeability, abrasion resistance, volume
stability, early cracking tendency, and resistance to freeze-thaw and de-icing chemicals. During the hydration process, the
chemical formation of the gel product requires water and fills the micropores formed between and within the gel product
as the gel product is formed. The rate and extent of hydration depending on the availability of water (ACI
308, American Concrete Institute). The continuation of hydration reactions in Portland cement is essential to improve the
potential strength and durability of concrete. This continuation depends on the type and fineness of cement, the type and
the amount of supplementary material present, the water/cement ratio, and the curing conditions, especially at early ages
(V. Bonavetti, et.al 2000). American Concrete Institute (ACI 308) mentioned that the objective of curing is to provide an
appropriate environmental condition within a concrete structure (temperature and humidity) to ensure the progress of
hydration reactions causing the filling and segmentation of capillary voids by hydrated compounds. many studies have
shown that the Hydration of cement continues for years at a decreasing rate if the mixture contains water, and the
temperature conditions are favorable. Once water is lost, hydration stops. To the best of the authors' knowledge, cement
hydration can be completely stopped when the internal moisture content of the hardened cement paste is below 80%.
Generally, with sufficient humidity and temperature, the increase in strength will last for more than 28 days. Curing is
more important in high-performance concrete (HPC) than in normal concrete because most HPC has a water/binder (W/B)
ratio well below 0.42 (A. Bentur and C. Jaegermann, 1991). In addition to the hydration process (Benjamin E. Byard, S.M.

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Volume 13, No. 3, 2022, p. 2289 - 2292
https://publishoa.com
ISSN: 1309-3452

ASCE, 2012) it was suggested that increasing the amount of internal curing water available in lightweight aggregates would
increase the degree of hydration.
III. THE RIGHT TIME FOR CURING CONCRETE
ACI 308 Recommended Practice recommends a 7-day moisture cure for most structural concrete. However, when the
cement contains additional cementitious materials such as slag, natural pozzolan, and fly ash, the setting time should be
extended to 14 days due to the slow hydration reaction between the additional cementitious material and calcium hydroxide.
(Baris Ozer, M. Hulusi Ozkul, 2003) showed that pozzolanic cement concrete requires at least 7 days of initial water curing
to show pozzolanic activity. Pozzolanic cement concrete that has been water cured for at least 14 days can reach the strength
levels of OPC concrete that has been water cured for less than 2 months. However, the former concrete never achieves the
strength of the latter concrete for continuous storage in water after an initial moisture cure of 3 days or less.
A. Factors Affecting Initial Curing
ACI 308, American Concrete Institute suggests that for a given condition, curing duration to achieve adequate hydration
of Portland cement concrete depends mainly on the type (chemical and mineralogical composition) and the fineness of the
cement. (A.S. Al-Gahtani, 2010) evaluated that Proper curing becomes very difficult under hot weather conditions as low
humidity and high ambient temperature greatly assist in the evaporation of the mix-water. In general, curing ensures that
the mixed water is available for cement hydration, According to Powers [6], a minimum of 80% humidity is required for
hydration of cement. High wind and temperature increase the drying of concrete skin. Therefore, the recommendations of
ACI Committee 305 regarding minimizing the rate of water evaporation, such as lowering the concreting temperature,
increasing the humidity by water spraying, and erecting wind barriers, should be adopted.
B. Strength Vs Moisture Loss of Concrete
The water consumed in the formation of the gel products is known as the chemically bound water, or hydrate water. A
mass fraction of between 0.21 to 0.28 of chemically bound water is required to completely hydrate a unit mass of cement
depending on its phase composition. The more effective way to achieve a high degree of pore filling is to minimize initial
paste porosity with a low w/cm and then to foster hydration by preventing loss of the internal mixing water, or externally
applying curing water to promote the maximum possible degree of hydration. The maximum degree of hydration
achievable is a function of both w/cm and the availability of water. the continued pore filling that accompanies sustained
moist curing leads to a denser, stronger, less-permeable concrete (ACI 308, American Concrete Institute). (Baris Ozer, M.
Hulusi Ozkul, 2003) indicated that the strength-gaining rates of the OPC concrete under varying initial water-curing periods
are lower than those of the PPC concretes. The OPC concretes, except 14-day or continuously water-cured ones, show
strength losses between 90 and 180 days. On the other hand, the pozzolanic cement concretes continue increasing strength
beyond 90 days. (V. Bonavetti, et.al. 2000) proved that Curing cessation at 1-day results in a 14% to 22% of potential
strength loss by these cements while this curing condition increases the loss of potential strength for plain concrete by
about 32%. (A.S. Al-Gahtani, 2010) Results indicated that the strength development in the concrete specimens cured by
covering with wet burlap was more than that in the specimens cured by applying water–based and acrylic-based curing
compounds, also study indicated that curing compounds could be utilized in situations where curing with water is difficult.
(Mateusz Radlinski, et.al. 2008) shown that Air drying lack of curing at an early age may result in reduced late exposure
scaling resistance even if some remedial curing actions i.e., intermittent moisture supply are taken. (Benjamin E. Byard,
S.M. ASCE,2012) suggested that the use of prewetted lightweight aggregates to provide internal curing in concrete can
reduce or eliminate the stress development caused by autogenous shrinkage and also shown that Lower water-cement ratio
concretes have increased autogenous shrinkage stress development due to the reduced capillary void size and increased
capillary stress. According to (Javier Castro1; Robert Spragg,2012) Internal curing has emerged over the last decade as a
method to improve the performance of low water-to-cement ratio (w/c) mixtures.
C. The Necessity and Sufficiency of Initial Curing for Concrete
(A.E. Abalaka, O. G. Okoli, 2013) results have shown that when concrete is subjected to limited early water curing, cement
hydration would continue even when it is stopped. This would increase in compressive strength of the concrete and
improved microstructure of the concrete compared to uncured concrete and has shown that the first six days of water curing
were very significant in compressive strength development of concrete. (M. Maslehuddin, et.al. 2013) results indicated that
the selected curing compounds were effective in decreasing the shrinkage strain and enhancing the corrosion resistance of
both OPC and silica fume cement concretes. It was also noted that 3 days of wet burlap curing prior to the application of a
curing compound was necessary for the OPC concrete while 7 days of wet burlap curing is required for the silica fume
cement concrete.
D. Nature of Hardened Concrete Strength
The most important concrete property in structural design is compressive strength. If there is doubt as to whether the
concrete in the existing structure has sufficient strength, the structural integrity and compressive strength of the concrete
must be checked for quality (Ozyildirim & Carino, 2006). In practice, the compressive strength of concrete is first tested
by casting cubes/cylinders from a batch of concrete used for the structure. These test samples were allowed to cure under

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Volume 13, No. 3, 2022, p. 2289 - 2292
https://publishoa.com
ISSN: 1309-3452

favorable conditions until the test date. The results obtained from these tests can provide concrete-trained consultants with
an indication of material properties, such as B. Estimation of porosity, density, compressive strength, etc., but general
practitioners only have the latter. These standard tests are called control and compliance tests. If the strength of the standard
tests fails, supplementary tests must be performed on the hardened concrete to confirm the in-situ concrete strength. The
most common and reliable method to assess in-situ concrete is by testing concrete cores that are removed from the structure.
The core testing of hardened concrete plays an important role in establishing the structural integrity and compressive
strength of the concrete in existing structures. To ensure that concrete in an existing structure has sufficient strength for
which it has been designed a great deal of time and effort should be put into the testing of concrete core specimens to
establish whether the structural integrity is satisfactory (Bungey et al., 2006). The outcome of such tests is often used as
the basis to decide on the quality of the concrete, as insufficient core strength may result in partial or full demolition of the
structure or its members. Therefore, it is authoritative that the core specimen removal and testing for compressive strength
follow set standards and rules so that the results are non-ambiguous and reliable.
(Neville, 2001; Ozyildirim & Carino, 2006) noted that, in some cases, standard strength compressive strength results after
28 days indicated non-compliance. This raised doubts about the reliability and quality of the concrete used in the structure.
In this case, an on-site inspection of the concrete structure is performed to determine whether the supplied concrete meets
specifications and whether the structure has sufficient strength to support the loads for which it was designed (Bungey et
al., 2006). One of the field tests that can be used to determine the compressive strength of an existing structure is the
procedure of drilling a core sample and removing it from the cured concrete and sending it to a laboratory for compressive
strength testing. The drilling, preparation, and testing of concrete cores taken from in-situ concrete should be done by
experts in this field as the testing and interpretation of results may require a great deal of time and expense (Bungey et al.,
2006). The outcome of such tests is often used as a basis to decide whether the existing concrete conforms to specifications,
additionally can be used to identify which party is at fault. It can also determine whether the structural integrity of the
concrete is sufficient, and if not, will determine whether the structure requires partial or full demolition based on the core.
Therefore, the preparation and testing of concrete cores must follow established standards for the results to be unambiguous
and reliable (Smith, 2014). Although these tests need to be performed and interpreted by experienced experts, many
difficulties arise during both the planning and interpretation phases due to a lack of common sense (Bungey et al., 2006).
Poorly skilled workers responsible for preparing and testing concrete cores may produce misleading results due to a lack
of skills in preparing, testing, and interpreting core samples (Bungey et al., 2006).
IV. EFFECT OF DELAY CURING ON COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH
(Baris Ozer, and M. Hulusi Ozkul, 2003), the results show that curing conditions can affect the strength of OPC concrete
and pozzolanic cement concrete. However, poor curing has a greater impact on the strength properties of pozzolan cement
concrete than OPC. (V. Bonavetti, et.al. 2000) showed that the mechanical properties (compressive strength, tensile
strength and elastic modulus) of concrete containing limestone cement are less sensitive to premature interruption of
moisture curing. (K.N. Rahal, 2016) Experimental results show that the performance of outdoor poured and cured concrete
generally deteriorates, especially for concrete that has not received adequate wet curing. The compressive strength of cores
drilled from outdoor cast non-moisture-cured panels was 39% lower than that of lab-cured control panels. (Baris Ozer and
M. Hulusi Ozkul, 2017) assessed that 7-day delayed water hardening had a greater effect on strength than adsorption
compared to continuous hardening. Although the retarded samples exhibited strength in the samples that were initially
water cured for 3 to 7 days, the adsorption capacities of the retarded samples were all equal to or slightly better or slightly
lower than those of the continuously water cured concrete cement types tested. (Benjamin E. Byard, 2012) suggested that
increasing the amount of internal curing water available in lightweight aggregates would increase the degree of hydration.
After 7 and 28 days, the compressive and tensile splitting strengths of internally cured concrete were equal to or slightly
greater than those of non-internally cured concrete. (Gaston Espinoza-Hijazin1, 2012) stated that the use of pre-wetted
LWA as an IC agent does not reduce the strength of concrete nor increase its chloride ion permeability, and thus can be
used to reduce autogenous shrinkage without negatively affecting other properties. The fact that internal curing favors
autogenous shrinkage, but not compressive strength or chloride ion permeability, can be explained by ideal external curing
conditions. It was also observed that autogenous shrinkage increased with increasing NP content. Since natural pozzolans
undergo pozzolanic reactions at a later stage and require water to solidify, effective solidification strategies such as IC
become critical. In addition, NP reduces the permeability of concrete, making external water supply (external curing) less
efficient. (A. Bentur and C. Jaegermann, 1991) studies have demonstrated that in hot, dry environments, insufficient water
hardening has only a slight adverse effect on skin strength, but a significant negative effect on skin performance, as
demonstrated by the carbonation test. As estimated. Concrete with and without fly ash but with the same nominal strength
showed similar strength changes when subjected to different water hardening treatments in mild and hot dry environments.
Therefore, from a strength perspective, they can be considered comparable in terms of field performance.

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

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ISSN: 1309-3452

i. Initial curing is more effective for concrete with higher cement content; a minimum curing time of 3 days is
sufficient for concentrated mixes in hot weather, and a minimum curing time of 7 days for thinner mixes (lower
cement content) Will suffice.
ii. After the curing is stopped, a large amount of water evaporates in the concrete in a short time, so it is necessary
to protect the concrete from rapid water loss and temperature changes with burlap or other effective curing
methods.
iii. Due to a large amount of water loss in a short period of time after stopping hardening, rapid shrinkage occurs, but
the degree of shrinkage in the later stage is not greatly affected by hardening.
iv. Delaying concrete hardening in hot weather adversely affects the compressive strength of all mixes, with the
greatest impact on the first day of delay.
v. Increasing the curing time after delayed curing from 3 to 7 days increased the compressive strength of the concrete,
but did not compensate for the decrease in strength caused by the delayed curing.
vi. Delaying, curing, and stopping curing results in significant changes in concrete length (shrinkage, expansion, then
shrinkage); this behavior is undesirable because it increases the tendency to crack, especially at early age.

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