Reducing Cracking in Concrete Structures by

Using Internal Curing with High Volumes of Fly Ash

T. J. Barrett1, I. De la Varga2 and W.J. Weiss3
1

Graduate Research Assistant, Purdue University, School of Civil Engineering, 550

Stadium Mall Drive, West Lafayette, IN 47907; PH (765) 494-7999; email:
barrett1@purdue.edu
2
Graduate Research Assistant, Purdue University, School of Civil Engineering, 550
Stadium Mall Drive, West Lafayette, IN 47907; PH (765) 494-7999; email:
idelavar@purdue.edu
3
Professor and Director of Pankow Materials Laboratory, Purdue University, School
of Civil Engineering, 550 Stadium Mall Drive, West Lafayette, IN 47907; PH (765)
494-2215; email: wjweiss@purdue.edu
ABSTRACT
High volume fly ash (HVFA) concretes have been used in the past; however
HVFA has been primarily advocated for use in mass construction applications.
Recent interest in developing more sustainable construction materials has led to an
increased interest in utilizing these HVFA mixtures in transportation structures such
as pavements and bridges. These mixtures have a reduced carbon footprint, in
addition to other improvements in the material performance. This paper presents a
study utilizing the dual ring test to assess the benefits of the HVFA mortar mixtures
with respect to reducing early age cracking. Three mortar mixtures were prepared
with a water-to-cement ratio of 0.30. The first mixture is a plain cement mortar, the
second mixture is a mortar where 40 % of the cement (by volume) was replaced with
C class fly ash, and the third mixture is a mortar where 40 % of the cement (by
volume) was replaced with C class fly ash and prewetted lightweight aggregate
(LWA) to provide internal curing (IC). The cracking potential due to thermal and
autogenous shrinkage was assessed. Results show a lower risk of shrinkage cracking
in the HVFA mixture with internal curing. The IC mixture made using HVFA is
more robust for construction at early ages.

INTRODUCTION
Fly ash is by-product from coal-powered plants that is broadly used in
concrete applications to replace cement (ACAA, 2003; CANMET/ACI, 2007). In
practice, a large portion of concrete mixture designs used in the United States contain
fly ash. Recently, interest has developed in increasing the volume that fly ash is used
to replace cement in concrete (Atis, 2003; Kumar et al., 2007; Mehta, 1999), leading
to the production of high volume fly ash (HVFA) concretes.
One of the main challenges of using fly ash in concrete is the slower strength
development at early ages. A portion of fly ash can react hydraulically like portland
cement (depending on its composition) (Diamond, 1983), however the reaction of the
fly ash is slower than portland cement. In addition to reacting on its own, fly ash can
participate in a secondary reaction known as the pozzolanic reaction. The pozzolanic
reaction takes place at later ages. Due to this delayed reaction, replacing part of the
cement with fly ash may compromise the early-age strength. This can be a concern if
the strength development is slow enough such that it alters construction operations.
One way to counteract this low early-age strength development is by reducing the
water-to-cement (w/c) or water-to-cementitious materials (w/cm) ratio in concrete (De
la Varga et al., 2012). This reduction in w/c is beneficial since it results in a lower
porosity system which can substantially reduce the ingress of fluids containing
aggressive ionic species (e.g., salt water or deicing salt). However, this lower w/c
comes with other drawbacks including higher self-desiccation (i.e. internal drying)
(Bentz et al., 1999; Weiss et al., 1997) and higher temperature rise in the material
(cement hydration is an exothermic chemical reaction and in lower w/c systems there
is typically a larger volume of cement per cubic yard). This can be problematic since
the concrete can set at a relatively high temperature and then as the concrete cools,
tensile stresses can be built into the concrete if it is restrained from shrinking. Since
fly ash reacts more slowly and there is less cement, it aides in dissipating part of the
temperature rise in concrete.
Low w/c (or w/cm) concretes are typically known as high performance
concretes (HPC) (Gagne et al., 1989). While HPC is generally considered to be more
durable due to the reduction of porosity in the system, the use of the low w/c (or
w/cm) may make the concrete more susceptible to early age cracking. It may also be
difficult to properly cure the concrete since the low porosity of the system can result
in pore depercolation (i.e., disconnection of capillary porosity) and curing water may
not be able to penetrate past the top layer of the concrete (in a percolated system the
absorption of water may be limited to a depth on the order of centimeters thick).
Internal curing (IC) is one alternative to conventional curing which uses water filled
inclusions (typically prewetted lightweight aggregate (LWA)) to distribute curing
water across the sample cross section (Bentz et al., 2006; Bentz et al., 1999; Bentz et
al., 2011). IC not only provides more well distributed curing water in the concrete
structure (eliminating the self-desiccation or internal drying mentioned above), but
also helps to increase the degree of reaction of the cement and other supplemental
cementitious materials since more water is provided into the system (De la Varga et

al., 2012). This effect further tightens the pore microstructure, thereby reducing
permeability and further improving durability.
HVFA replacement is a strategy that engineers normally use in mass concrete
applications, but the push for more sustainable concrete has caused people to question
whether HFVA concrete can be used in pavements and the transportation
infrastructure. The benefits of using fly ash in terms of reduced heat of hydration
(Mehta, 1999) may have a positive impact in reducing early age cracking in bridges
or buildings. The importance of evaluating these properties in a proper manner is
vital.
In this research, the dual ring test (DRT) was used for evaluating the early age
cracking potential of sealed concrete undergoing a temperature reduction. The DRT is
an improvement upon the conventional single ring rest that is used for the
determination of the cracking age and the evaluation of the internal tensile stresses
induced in restrained concrete structures (ASTM, 2004). The DRT was specifically
designed to account for expansion at early ages and to provide appropriate restraint
during temperature changes (Schlitter et al., 2010). This allows for the quantification
and study of restrained shrinkage behavior due to thermal effects and autogenous
deformations.
RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
The DRT was used to quantify the thermal and autogenous deformations in
three low w/cm (0.30) mixtures: plain, 40 % fly ash (by volume), and 40 % fly ash
(by volume) with prewetted LWA. These mortar mixtures have been designated as
FA0, FA40, and FA40-LWA100, respectively. With these material variations, it was
possible to evaluate the differences that these mixtures have on the risk of cracking.
MATERIALS AND TESTING PROCEDURE
Materials. An ordinary portland cement (OPC) (ASTM C150-09 Type I/II) was used
in this study, with a Blaine fineness of 476 m2/kg, a specific gravity of 3.17, an
estimated Bogue composition of 52 % C3S, 18 % C2S, 8 % C3A, 9 % C4AF, and a
Na2O equivalent of 0.5. A class C fly ash (ASTM C618-08a) was also used. The fly
ash had a specific gravity of 2.63.
The fine aggregate consisted of regular river sand with a fineness modulus of
2.71 and an apparent specific gravity of 2.58. Rotary kiln expanded shale (i.e., a fine
lightweight aggregate) was used for providing IC. The specific gravity (oven dry) of
the LWA is 1.38. The LWA was measured to have a 24 hour water absorption of 15.9
% by mass. A high-range water-reducing admixture (HRWRA) was added at variable
dosage by mass of cement in order to maintain the same slump in all mortars.
Mixing Procedure. The mixing procedure was carried out in accordance with ASTM
C192 (ASTM, 2007). The fine aggregate, LWA (if used), and a small portion of the

mixing water was first added to a buttered 7.0 liter (0.25 ft3) mixer and mixed until
the aggregate was damp. The cementitious materials were then added and blended
with the sand. Lastly, the water and HRWRA were added and the mixing began. The
mortar was mixed for three minutes, rested for three minutes while the bottom of the
bowl was scraped with a spoon, then mixed for an additional two minutes. When
LWA was utilized, prior to mixing, the LWA was oven dried, air cooled, then
submerged in water for 24 1 hour. The LWA was submerged in water that included
the mixing water necessary for cement hydration and the water that would be
absorbed by the LWA itself in 24 hours. The excess water (water not absorbed into
the LWA during the 24 hours) was then decanted and used as the mixing water.
Testing Procedure. The DRT was used to quantify the thermal and autogenous
shrinkage deformations of the mortar mixtures (Schlitter et al., 2010). This test is
performed by casting an annulus of mortar between two invar restraining rings. The
sample is cast in two lifts, being vibrated with a handheld vibrator after each lift then
trowel finished upon completion. The sample is placed in an insulated chamber and a
copper tubing coil is placed on top of the specimen. The copper tubing coil is
connected to an external ethylene-glycol water circulating system to control the
temperature throughout the test. Each ring (inner and outer) is instrumented with four
equally spaced invar strain gages to measure the strains developed from the sample
expanding and contracting. Thermocouples are attached to the rings and the
temperature coil to monitor the temperature change of the sample. A data acquisition
system was set up to record strain and temperature readings every five minutes
(Schlitter et al., 2010).

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Isothermal Comparison. The residual stress that develops when the autogenous
shrinkage is restrained over the first four days of age was quantified at an isothermal
temperature history of 23 0.2C as shown in Figure 1. To quantify the susceptibility
to cracking, the temperature of the sample was decreased at an age of four days at a
rate of 2C/hr. Cracking in a sample can be seen by the instantaneous stress release,
shown by vertical lines on the plot. The reserve stress of the mixture (stress that had
to be added by reducing the temperature) is then computed by subtracting the stress
before temperature drop from the peak stress the sample was able to hold. The results
of the tests show that the FA0 mixture had a reserve capacity of 3.0 MPa and resulted
in cracking after a temperature change of 12C. Similarly, the FA40 mixture had a
reserve capacity of 2.9 MPa and also resulted in cracking after a temperature change
of 14C, however, an approximate reduction in autogenous shrinkage of 30% was
observed in comparison to the FA0 mixture. The FA40-LWA100 mixture showed a
reserve capacity of 4.4 MPa and did not result in any autogenous shrinkage or
cracking after a temperature change of -32C.

FA0 - 4 Day
FA40 - 4 Day
FA40 LWA100 - 4 Day

Residual Stress (MPa)

-2
0

24
48
72
96
120
Age of Specimen (hours)

144

Figure 1. Residual stress development

under isothermal conditions up to four
days of age
Temperature Profiles. In structures the temperatures are never maintained at
isothermal conditions. In reality, a concrete mixture will typically experience a
temperature rise at early ages due to the heat of hydration, followed by a gradual
reduction in temperature as the mixture equilibrates with its surroundings. In mass
concrete, the interior concrete is insulated well and the temperature decrease occurs
over long periods of time. This behavior is characterized as being close to that of the
adiabatic temperature rise, in which no heat is lost from the material to its
surroundings. In many structures, the concrete temperature rises then decreases over
the next few days to reach equilibrium with its surroundings. This study assumes that
the material is allowed to reach high temperatures at early ages; however, the sample
is allowed to cool. Figure 2 shows each of the temperature profiles that the mortar
mixtures for this study were exposed to. It should be noted that the temperature drops
seen at later ages were done intentionally in attempts to induce cracking in the
samples so that the susceptibility for cracking could be observed.

FA0 - Isothermal
FA0 - Semi-Adiabatic
FA0 - Adiabatic
FA40 - Semi-Adiabatic
FA40 LWA100 - Semi-Adiabatic

Temperature (C)

80

60

40

20

0
0

24

48

72

96

120

144

Age (Hours)

Figure 2. Temperature history profiles for dual ring test

mixtures
Possible Temperature Variations. The results from exposing the FA0 mixture to
each of the potential temperature profiles discussed previously can be seen in Figure
3. This was done to elicit the differences in stress development between the three
idealized conditions. It can be seen that the performance of the material in the
isothermal and adiabatic conditions closely resemble one another, with the adiabatic
sample showing earlier expansion due to its temperature rise. The semi-adiabatic
sample is exposed to both autogenous shrinkage and thermal shrinkage. It can be seen
that the sample undergoing a temperature swing follows the same trend until the 2436hr period, at which point the temperature of the sample begins to decline (see
Figure 2) resulting in thermal shrinkage stresses and hence a deviation from the bestcase autogenous shrinkage boundary. It is clear that the time and rate of this deviation
is dependent on the time which the temperature is reduced and the rate of temperature
reduction. The net effect of the additional thermal shrinkage is an earlier cracking age
and an apparent higher ultimate tensile stress capacity (i.e. tensile strength). The
higher ultimate strength is likely due to the reduction in damage that results from
sustaining restrained shrinkage for longer periods of time as is the case with the
isothermal and adiabatic tests.
Semi-Adiabatic Comparison. The results of using the semi-adiabatic temperature
profiles for the temperature in the dual ring test for all three test mixtures can be seen
in Figure 4. Figure 4 shows that the FA0 and FA40 mixtures have similar behavior,
with the mixture containing 40% fly ash cracking at a slightly earlier age and lower
stress level. When internal curing is included, the stress due to autogenous shrinkage
is essentially eliminated. As such, the response for the FA40 LWA100 mixture is
mainly that of the thermal component of the shrinkage. This mixture was able to
withstand a total temperature drop of -67.5C and resulted in no cracking. It seems
that the compressive stresses at early ages (i.e., expansion) were beneficial to the

mixture since it provided a slight compression in the sample prior to any shrinkage.
As the temperature was reduced at later ages this compressive stress was reduced
while no significant shrinkage stresses developed. This observed behavior may also
be attributed to the more compliant nature of the material due to the lower stiffness
obtained with lightweight aggregate. At the end of the test when the temperature was
reduced at a faster rate in attempts to induce cracking, the shrinkage stress was also
lower in the internally cured mixture.

Residual Stress (MPa)

FA0 - Isothermal
FA0 - Adiabatic
FA0 - Semi-Adiabatic

-2
0

24
48
72
96
Age of Specimen (hours)

120

Figure 3. Isothermal, Adiabatic, and SemiAdiabatic residual stress development of

the FA0 mixture

FA0 - Semi-Adiabatic
FA40 - Semi-Adiabatic
FA40 LWA100 - Semi-Adiabatic

Residual Stress (MPa)

-2
0

24
48
72
96
120
Age of Specimen (hours)

144

Figure 4. Semi-Adiabatic residual stress

development comparison of test mixtures

CONCLUSIONS
This investigation focused on combining internal curing with high volume fly
ash to create more sustainable mixtures with improved early age cracking resistance.
The results of this study confirm that the dual ring test is a way of quantifying the
cracking potential of concrete materials. Results of the semi-adiabatic tests show that
while plain concrete may be susceptible to cracking, the use of fly ash as a cement
replacement combined with internal curing provides sufficient resistance to shrinkage
cracking, thereby improving the sustainability and durability of structures. While
promising, future research is needed to correlate the small geometry of the dual ring
test to large scale structures.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors of this work acknowledge the Federal Highway Administration
for partially supporting this project together with Purdue University. The contents of
this paper reflect the views of the authors, who are responsible for the facts and the
accuracy of the data presented herein, and do not necessarily reflect the official views
or policies of the Federal Highway Administration, nor do the contents constitute a
standard, specification, or regulation. The experiments reported in this paper were
conducted in the Pankow Materials Laboratories at Purdue University. The authors
acknowledge the support that has made this laboratory and its operation possible.
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