Lecture 2 Properties of Concrete

Properties of Concrete
Plain concrete is prepared by mixing cement, sand

(also known as fine aggregate), gravel (also known
as coarse aggregate) and water with specific
proportions. Mineral admixtures may also be added
to improve certain properties of concrete.
Thus, the properties of concrete regarding its

strength and deformations depend on the individual
properties of cement, sand, gravel, water and
admixtures.
Clauses 5 and 6 of IS 456:2000 stipulate the

standards and requirements of the individual
material and concrete, respectively.
Plain concrete after preparation and
placement needs curing to attain strength.
The strength and deformation characteristics
of concrete thus depend on the grade and type
of cement, aggregates, admixtures,
environmental conditions and curing.
Compressive strength
As per IS 456 (Table 2), concrete has three

groups as (i) ordinary concrete (M 10 to M 20),
(ii) standard concrete (M 25 to M 55) and (iii) high
strength concrete (M 60 to M 80).
Concrete is graded on the basis of its
characteristic compressive strength of 150
mm size cube at 28 days and expressed in
N/mm2.
The grades are designated by one letter M

(for mix) and a number from 10 to 80
indicating the characteristic compressive
strength (fck) in N/mm2
Tensile strength
The flexural and splitting tensile strengths are
obtained as described in IS 516 and IS 5816,
respectively.
Cl 6.2.2 gives an estimation of flexural
strength (fcr) of concrete from its characteristic
compressive strength
EXAMPLE: For M25 Grade Concrete
fck = 25 N/mm^2
fcr = 0.7 x 5 = 3.5 N/mm^2
Plain concrete is strong in compression but weak in

tension. Tensile strength is approximately 1/8 to 1/12
of compressive strength
That is why steel is used as reinforcing material to

make the concrete sustainable in tension also.
Plain concrete, thus when reinforced with steel bars

in appropriate locations (TENSION ZONES) is known
as reinforced concrete.
Elastic Deformation of Concrete
Stress Strain Curve for Concrete in Compression

Ec is much higher than Et
AS PER CL 6.2.3.1
Ec in N/mm2 is estimated from
Ec is also known as short term

static modulus of elasticity of
concrete and is used to
calculate the elastic deflections.
Shrinkage of concrete
Shrinkage is the time dependent deformation, generally
compressive in nature.
The total shrinkage of concrete depends on

•the constituents of concrete
•size of the member and
•environmental conditions
However, the total shrinkage of concrete is most influenced by

the total amount of water present in the concrete at the time of
mixing for a given humidity and temperature.
The cement content, however, influences the total shrinkage of

concrete to a lesser extent.
AS PER CL. 6.2.4.1
The approximate value of the total shrinkage

strain for design is taken as 0.0003 in the
absence of test data
Creep of concrete
Creep is another time dependent deformation of
concrete by which it continues to deform, usually
under compressive stress.
The creep of concrete is influenced by
• Properties of concrete
• Water/cement ratio
• Humidity and temperature of curing
• Humidity during the period of use
• Age of concrete at first loading
• Magnitude of stress and its duration
• Surface-volume ratio of the member
AS PER CL 6.2.5.1
Effective Modulus of Elasticity (Ece)
Thermal expansion of concrete
depends on
the nature of cement, aggregate,
cement content,
relative humidity and size of the section.
AS PER CL 6.2.6
the values of coefficient of thermal expansion for

concrete / oC for different types of aggregate are
given
Workability of Concrete
It is the property which determines the ease and homogeneity
with which concrete can be mixed, placed, compacted and
finished.
A workable concrete will not have any segregation or bleeding.
Segregation causes large voids and hence concrete becomes
less durable.
Bleeding results in several small pores on the surface due to
excess water coming up. Bleeding also makes concrete less
durable.
The degree of workability of concrete is classified from very low
to very high with the corresponding value of slump in mm
Ref: CL. 7 of IS 456

Durability of Concrete
A durable concrete performs satisfactorily in the
working environment during its anticipated exposure
conditions during service.
The durable concrete should have low permeability
with adequate cement content, sufficient low free
water/cement ratio and ensured complete compaction
of concrete by adequate curing.
For more information.
Ref: CL. 8 of IS 456
Design mix and nominal mix concrete
In design mix, the proportions of cement, aggregates

(sand and gravel), water and mineral admixtures, if
any, are actually designed, while in nominal mix, the
proportions are nominally adopted.
The design mix concrete is preferred to the nominal

mix as the former results in the grade of concrete
having the specified workability and characteristic
strength
REF : CL. 9 of IS 456

Properties of Steel
• Steel is used as the reinforcing material in concrete
to make it good in tension.
• Steel as such is good compression. Hence Steel
can be used in Compression zone of concrete also
to improve the load carrying capacity, resulting in
reduced concrete section dimensions.
• EX: Doubly Reinforced Beams, Columns
• Unlike concrete, steel reinforcement rods are
produced in steel plants.
• Moreover, the reinforcing bars or rods are
commercially available in some specific diameters.
• 8,10,12,16,20,25,28,32 mm dia
The four types of steel used in concrete structures
as specified in Cl. 5.6 of IS 456 are
• (i) Mild steel and medium tensile steel bars
conforming to IS 432 (Part 1)
• (ii) High yield strength deformed (HYSD) steel
bars conforming to IS 1786
• (iii) Hard-drawn steel wire fabric conforming to IS
1566
• (iv) Structural steel conforming to Grade A of IS
2062.
• Mild steel bars had been progressively replaced
by HYSD bars and subsequently TMT (Thermo
Mechanically Treated) bars
Representative Stress-strain
curves for reinforcement
(Fig 23 of IS 456)
• Figures 23A and 23 B of IS 456- 2000show the
representative stress-strain curves for steel not having
definite yield point(CTD BARS) and for steel having definite
yield point (MS), respectively.
• The characteristic yield strength fy of steel is assumed as the

minimum yield stress or 0.2 per cent of proof stress for steel
having no definite yield point. The modulus of elasticity of
steel is taken to be 200000 N/mm2.
• For mild steel the stress is proportional to the strain up to the

yield point. Thereafter, post yield strain increases faster while
the stress is assumed to remain at constant value of fy.
• For cold-worked bars ,the stress is proportional to the strain

up to a stress of 0.8 fy. Thereafter, the inelastic curve is
defined as given below:
The two grades of cold-worked bars used as steel
reinforcement are Fe 415 and Fe 500 with the
values of fy as 415 N/mm2 and 500 N/mm2,
respectively.
Mechanics of RC
Members
Composite Action
• The reinforcement in a RC
structure, has to undergo the
same strain or deformation as
the surrounding concrete in
order to prevent discontinuity,
slip or separation of the two
materials under load.
• Maintaining composite action
requires transfer of load
between the concrete and
steel.
• The direct stress is transferred
from the concrete to the bar
interface so as to change the This load transfer is achieved by
tensile stress in the reinforcing means of BOND and is idealized
bar along its length. as a continuous stress field that
develops in the vicinity of the
steel-concrete interface.
• Thermomechanically treated also known in short as TMT
is a new generation high strength steel having
extraordinary superior properties like weldabilty, strength
, ductility and bendability conforming to the highest
international standards . Under thermomechanical
treatment the steel bars are made to pass through a
specially designed water quenching and self cooling
system. Where in the bars are kept for such a period of
time that the outer surface of the bars become colder
while the core remain hot. This creates a temperature
gradient the bars are then removed and placed on the
cooling bed, the heat flows from the core to the outer
surface causing further tempering of steel bars thereby
resulting in higher strength of the steel. This is known as
TMT.

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Lecture 2 Properties of Concrete

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Properties of Concrete

Plain concrete is prepared by mixing cement, sand

Thus, the properties of concrete regarding its

Clauses 5 and 6 of IS 456:2000 stipulate the

As per IS 456 (Table 2), concrete has three

The grades are designated by one letter M

Plain concrete is strong in compression but weak in

That is why steel is used as reinforcing material to

Plain concrete, thus when reinforced with steel bars

Stress Strain Curve for Concrete in Compression

Ec is also known as short term

The total shrinkage of concrete depends on

However, the total shrinkage of concrete is most influenced by

The cement content, however, influences the total shrinkage of

The approximate value of the total shrinkage

the values of coefficient of thermal expansion for

Ref: CL. 7 of IS 456

In design mix, the proportions of cement, aggregates

The design mix concrete is preferred to the nominal

REF : CL. 9 of IS 456

• The characteristic yield strength fy of steel is assumed as the

• For mild steel the stress is proportional to the strain up to the

• For cold-worked bars ,the stress is proportional to the strain

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