High Strength Concrete: Effects of Materials, Curing and Test Procedures on Short- Term Compressive Strength Catherine W. French, Ph.D. Associate Professor Department of Civil and Mineral Engineering University of Minnesota Minneapolis, Minnesota Alireza Mokhtarzadeh Graduate Research Assistant Department of Civil and Mineral Engineering University of Minnesota Minneapolis, Minnesota 76 As part of a multiyear study on applications of high strength concrete to the precast, prestressed concrete industry, a laboratory investigation was conducted to determine the effect of various parameters on uniaxial compressive strength. Parameters investigated includec;J mold size, mold m?terial, aggregate type, type of curing, age and specimen end condition. More than 650 specimens for strength evaluation were cast from 10 high strength concrete mixes having 28-day compressive strengths ranging from 9000 to 15,000 psi (62 to 103 MPa). In this study, Type Ill Portland cement concrete as well as Type Ill Portland cement concrete incorporating fly ash, microsilica and their combination were used. H igh strength concrete is com- monly available in metropolitan areas throughout the United States. Because of the superior me- chanical properties and the significant economic savings offered by high strength concrete, the use of it has ac- celerated far beyond the current status of research on the material. Up to now, the major application of high strength concrete has been for cast-in- place columns in tall buildings. How- ever, the use of high strength concrete in the precast, prestressed concrete in- dustry can offer several benefits. For instance, the use of high strength concrete, in general, can shorten turnover times of casting beds and speed up construction time. Also, the increased concrete strength would allow for the use of more slender members, thus reducing the dead load of sections. It would also a ll ow for an increase in the length of members , limited only by stabil ity and trans- portation concerns. Although relatively little research has been conducted on the application of high strength concrete in precast, prestressed concrete construction, an ongoing analytical and experimental research activity at the Department of Civil and Mineral Engineering of the University of Minnesota is focused on the application of high strength con- crete to the precast, prestressed con- crete industry. A major portion of the research constitutes material tests on what is considered to be representa- tive of materials and procedures used PCI JOURNAL
High Strength Concrete: Effects of Materials, Curing and Test Procedures on Short-Term Compressive Strength
Apr 22, 2023
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