Strength
The characteristic strength of concrete is defined as the compressive strength of 150 mm size cubes after 28 days of curing below which not more than 5 per cent of the test results are expected to fail. The unit of stress used is N/mm2. IS 456 grades the concrete based on its characteristic
strength as shown in Table 3.3.
Till year 2000, M15 concrete was permitted to be used for reinforced concrete works. But IS 4562000 specifies minimum grade of M20 to be used for reinforced concrete works.
Strength of concrete depends upon the amount of cement content, quality and grading of aggregates, water cement ratio, compaction and curing. Strength of concrete is gained in the initial stages. In 7 days the strength gained is as much as 60 to 65 per cent of 28 days strength. It is customary to assume the 28 days strength as the full strength of concrete. However concrete gains strength after 28 days also. The characteristic strength may be increased by the as factor given in Table 3.4.
Dimensional Change
Concrete shrinks with age. The total shrinkage depends upon the constituents of concrete, size of the member and the environmental conditions. Total shrinkage is approximately 0.0003 of original dimension.
The permanent dimension change due to loading over a long period is termed as creep. Its value depends upon the stress in concrete, the age of the concrete at the time of loading and the duration of the loading. The ultimate creep strain may be estimated from the values of creep coefficient. The creep coefficient is defined as ultimate creep strain divided by the elastic strain at the age of loading. These values are listed in Table 3.5.
The size of concrete may change due to thermal expansion also. The coefficient of thermal expansion depends upon the nature of cement, the type of aggregates, cement content, relative humidity and the size of the sections of the structural elements. Table 3.6 shows the coefficient of thermal expansion of concrete with different types of aggregates.
Durability
Environmental forces such as weathering, chemical attack, heat, freezing and thawing try to destroy concrete. The period of existance of concrete without getting adversely affected by these forces is known as durability. Generally dense and strong concretes have better durability. The cube crushing strength alone is not a reliable guide to the durability. Concrete should have an adequate cement content and should have low water cement ratio.
Impermeability
This is the resistance of concrete to the flow of water through its pores. Excess water during concreting leaves a large number of continuous pores leading to the permeability.
Since the permeability reduces the durability of concrete, it should be kept very low by using low water cement ratio, dense and well graded aggregates, good compaction and continuous curing at low temperature conditions. The cement content used should be sufficient to provide adequate workability with low water cement ratio and the available compaction method.