Microcrete Structure Of Concrete

799 Words2 Pages

Concrete is a composite material, which is made of three components water aggregate and Portland cement. Concrete is strong in resisting compression. It can also absorb tension in use where tensile stress has to be accommodated. The ingredients in the concrete are so that the concrete has strength and is durable (parrot, L 2002). According to (p. Mehta 2006)) concrete has a complex microstructure and is heterogeneous. For this reason it is difficult to constitute realistic models of its microstructure. Concrete behaviour under stress is explained only when the cement paste aggregate interfaces is treated as a 3rd phase of the concrete microstructure.

Fig. 1 on the left side is a polished section of concrete specimen and on the right it’s the microstructure of a hydrated cement paste.

Sulphate attack is described as the deterioration of concrete over a period of time; this affects the strength as well as …show more content…

On ground floor slabs sulphate attack can cause structural damage to the main walls of the building. This happens when the materials underneath the slabs contain sulphate and it moves on to the concrete and this will result in it expanding. When the slab heaves the internal walls, which are built off the slab, will be lifted and this may likely cause damage to the whole structure above. If delayed ettringtite formation occurs it can cause existing structure to crack and spall. The concrete in the north east is in contact with pyrites- containing red shale colliery waste backfill, this means the Silverlink site has more potential of getting thaumasite sulphate attack (TSA), however when site investigations were conducted it was found that the A19 site had no contaminations therefore unlikely to get sulphate attack. In addition it has been proven that there isn’t any serious damage that can be done to concrete or masonry due to thaumasite attack even in cool or damp

Open Document