THE HISTORY OF CONCRETE
AND ITS RECENT DEVELOPMENT
SIDDHARTH SHANKAR
LECTURER
IOE,PULCHOWK CAMPUS
CHIEF,CMTL
Concrete is composed mainly of cement (commonly Portland cement), aggregate,
water, and chemical admixtures.
Portland Cement
Fine Aggregate
Coarse Aggregate
Chemical Admixtures
Concrete has deep roots in history:
Wall at Palestrina, Italy, 1st Century BC
Roman Aqueduct & Pantheon
Concrete
• The word “concrete” originates from the
Latin verb “concretus”, which means to
grow together.
• Concrete is most widly use construction
material and it is mixture of
cement,sand,aggregate and water.
Advantage of Concrete
• We have the ability to cast desired shapes
– Arches, piers, columns, shells
• Properties can be tailored according to need (strength, durability, etc.)
• Ability to resist high temperatures
– Will maintain structural integrity far longer than structural steel
• Does not require protective coatings
• Can be an architectural & structural member at the same time
3000 BC—Egyptian Pyramids
The Egyptians were using early forms of
concrete over 5000 years ago to build
pyramids. They mixed mud and straw to
form bricks and used gypsum and lime to
make mortars.
300 BC - 476 AD—Roman Architecture
The ancient Romans used a material that is
remarkably close to modern cement to build
many of their architectural marvels, such as the
Colosseum, and the Pantheon. The Romans also
used animal products in their cement as an early
form of admixtures.
1824—Portland Cement Invented
Joseph Aspdin of England is credited with
the invention of modern portland cement.
He named his cement portland, after a rock
quary that produced very strong stone.
Photo courtesy of Concrete Thinking.
1836—Cement Testing
The first test of tensile and compressive
strength took place in Germany.
Photo courtesy of Portland Cement Association.
1889— Alvord Lake Bridge
The first concrete reinforced bridge
was built in San Francisco. The
bridge still exists today.
Photo coutesy of Portland Cement Association.
1891— Concrete Street
The first American concrete street was built in
Bellefontaine, Ohio.
Photo courtesy of www.waymarking.com.
1903—The Ingalls Building
The first concrete high rise was built in
Cincinnati, Ohio. This building has
sixteen stories and was a great
engineering feat of its time.
Photo courtesy of Emporis Buildings.
1908—Concrete Homes
Thomas Edison designed and built the
first concrete homes in Union, New
Jersey.
Photo courtesy of flyingmoose.org.
1913—Ready Mix
The first load of ready mix was
delivered in Baltimore, Maryland.
Photo courtesy of Kuhlman Corp.
1915—Colored Concrete
Lynn Mason Scofield founded L.M.
Scofield, the first company to produce color
for concrete.
Photo courtesy of www.concreteconstruction.net.
1930—Air Entraining Agents
Air entraining agents were used for the first
time in cement to resist against damage
from freezing and thawing.
1936—Hoover Dam
The Hoover Dam was built along the
Colorado River, bordering Arizona and
Nevada. It was the largest scale concrete
project ever completed.
1938—Concrete Overlay
John Crossfield added latex to portland cement,
aggregate, and other materials to make coverings for
ship decks.
Photo on right of modern concrete overlay, courtesy of Milagro Custom
Flooring Solutions, LLC.
1950's—Decorative Concrete Developed
Brad Bowman developed the Bomanite
process in the mid 1950's in Monterey,
California. (Courtesy of bomanite.com).
1967—Concrete Sports Dome
The first concrete domed sports arena,
known as the Assembly Hall, was built at
the University of Illinois.
1970's—Fiber Reinforcement
Fiber reinforcement was introduced as a
way to strengthen concrete.
1980's—Concrete Countertops
Buddy Rhodes, the father of the concrete
countertop, cast his first countertop in the mid
'80s.
(Photo courtesy of Cheng Design.)
1990—Concrete Engraving
Darrel Adamson designed the Engrave-ACrete ® System.
1992—Tallest Concrete Building
The tallest reinforced concrete building was
built in Chicago, Illinois. The 65-story
building is known only by its street address.
1999—Polished Concrete
The first installation of a polished concrete
floor in the US was a 40,000-square-foot
warehouse floor for the Bellagio in Las
Vegas.
(Photo courtesy of HTC-America.)
Placing and Finishing
Concrete
The
Cement
and
Concrete
Cement and Concrete manufacturing
Industry
Sand
Clay
Lime
Gypsum
Kiln
Iron
Slide 35 - 26.05.2009
Research and
Clinker
Additions
Gravel
Mill
Cement
Admixtures
Water
Mixer
Types of Concrete:
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There are various types of concrete for different applications that are created by changing the proportions of the main
ingredients.
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The mix design depends on the type of structure being built, how the concrete will be mixed and delivered, and how it will be
placed to form the structure.
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Examples include:
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Regular concrete
Pre-Mixed concrete
High-strength concrete
Stamped concrete
High-Performance concrete
UHPC (Ultra-High Performance Concrete)
Self-consolidating concretes
Vacuum concretes
Shotcrete
Cellular concrete
Roller-compacted concrete
Glass concrete
Asphalt concrete
Rapid strength concrete
Rubberized concrete
Polymer concrete
Geopolymer or Green concrete
Limecrete
Gypsum concrete
Light-Transmitting Concrete
LATEST TREND IN CONCRETE
•ROLLER COMPACTED CONCRETE
•ULTRA HIGH PERFORMANCE
CONCRETE
•FIBER REINFORCED CONCRETE
•CELLULAR CONCRETE
•SHOTCRETE
•SELF COMPACTING CONCRETE
•FLOWABLE CONCRETE
Admixtures and Properties
Polypropylene
Fibers
Background
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Polypropylene is a recent additive to cement as of the 1960s, whereas
other fibers are underway of being tested strength wise for concrete.
Properties
•When regular concrete is under a great amount of compression it will spilt and deform on the spot into separate pieces once
it reaches its greatest tensile load. Mixing sporadically polypropylene fibers into the cement will balance this effect by
attaching to the other piece that wants to spilt away and maintain both sides for a longer duration.
Benefits
•With the addition of polypropylene fiber in the mixture of concrete it enhances the toughness and tensile strength. When concrete is by
itself it has the tendency to be very brittle especially in the area of a tensile test which is where the fibers come into play to build in
where regular concrete lags, which can increase the compressive strength to a dramatic level.
•In coastal areas there is a high concentration of chloride ions from the salty air, this creates corrosion with the steel product which
produces rust as a result. This rust has the capacity to expand four to ten times larger than the iron causing a large expansion which
makes crakes and voids. Polypropylene fibers now are underway in replacing the reinforcing steel in concrete, which has a much
greater strength and can reach up to 20k psi.
Nanotechnology in Concrete
• Nano-catalysts to reduce clinkering
temperature in cement production
• Silicon dioxide nano-particles
(nanosilica) for ultra-high strength
concrete
• Incorporation of carbon nano-tubes into
cement matrix would result in stronger,
ductile, more energy absorbing concrete
• Eco-binders (MgO, geopolymers, etc)
modified by nano-particles with
substantially reduced volume of
portland cement
Sequential Steps of Concrete Work
a) Material Preparation
b) Reinforcement Preparation
c) Formwork Preparation
d) Batching of Concrete
Ingredients
e) Mixing of Concrete
f) Transportation of Concrete
g) Placing of Concrete
h) Compaction of Concrete
i) Curing of Concrete
j) Standards and Tests
Sample collected
Cone Removed and Concrete
Allowed to ‘Slump’
Slump Cone Filled
Slump Measured
Transit Mix Truck (ReadyMix Truck)
HIGH STRENGTH CONCRETE USED IN NEPAL
•HAMA BUILDING-KAMALADI**M60
•BHOTEKOSHI HYDROELECTIC PROJECT**M80
•KALI GANDAKI-HYDROELECTRIC PROJECT**M120
•CHAMELIYA HYDROELECTRIC PROJECT**M80
•PULCHOWK CAMPUS,MSC THESIS***M128
•WORLDWIDE
•USA IN BRIDGE***M150
•EGYPT***M180-250
•INDIA***M180
•MALAYSIA***M80,M120
•PHD,ENGLAND,2004***M800(HIGHEST)
References and Bibliography
www.encyclopedia,concrete,com
www.concretehistory.com
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Ambuja Technical Literature Series -66; Commentary and Guidelines for application of IS 456:
2000,Section-2.
Austin CK; Formwork Planning;3rd edition,1981
Dhir R K & Jones M R ; Innovation in concrete structure; 4 th edition, 2002.
Gambhir M L ; Concrete Technology, 2 nd edition ; Tata Mc Graw-Hill Publishing Company Ltd.
New Delhi, 8th Reprint 2001
IS 456: 2000; IS Code of Practice for Plain and Reinforced Concrete, fourth revision;Bureau of
Indian Standards, Manak Bhawan,New Delhi.
IS 456:2000; Explanatory Hand-book for Plain and Reinforced Concrete, fourth revision; Bureau of
Indian Standards,Manak Bhawan,New Delhi.
Neville A M ; Properties of Concrete; 4 th and Final edition; Pearson Edition Asia,2006.
P. kumar Mehta and Paulo J.M. Monteiro; CONCRETE: Microstructure, properties and Material,
Indian Edition(p.n-17-39)
SHETTY M.S.; CONCRETE TECHNOLOGY: Theory and Practice,S.Chand and Company Ltd.
1998.
Shrestha K M ; Production of very high Strength Concrete in Nepal; M.Sc. Thesis, I O E Pulchowk
Campus, Decc. 2005.
Taylor W H ; Concrete Technology and Practice
www.concreteworld.com