CEMENT and CONCRETE RESEARCH. Vol. 24, pp. 159-164, 1994. Printed in the USA.

0008-8846/94. $6.00+00. Copyright 1993 Pergamon Press Ltd.

A STUDY ON T H E A P P L I C A T I O N OF VACUUM M I C R O W A V E C O M P O S I T E
D E W A T E R I N G T E C H N N I Q U E IN C O N C R E T E E N G I N E E R I N G

Li Dongxu and Wu Xuequan

Department of Silicate Engineering
Nanjing Institute of Chemical Technology
Nanjing, 210009, P.R. China

(Refereed)
(R~ceived Oct. 28, 1992; in final form Oct. 4, 1993)

ABSTRACT
In this paper, the application of a vacuum microwave composite dewatering technique in
concrete engineering is studied. The final w/c ratio of concrete is decreased to about 0.38.
The plastic contraction of concrete occuring due to the decrease of the free water and the
hydration rate of cement is increased during the microwave curing process. As a result, the
concrete is densified, and the compressive strength as well as the fiexural strength of concrete
are increased at all ages. Meanwhile, the total porosity, especially the volume of large pores,
and the electric conductivity of concrete are decreased.

Although the investment in the cost of microwave equipment must be considered, the cost
could be compensated as the improvement of the properties of concrete or the reduction of the
amount of cement used.

Introduction

The amount of water needed to meet the requirement for a completely hydrated cement is about
25% of cement in weight. But, in practical engineering, in order to enable concrete to have better
workability and be suitable for moulding more water is required. In general, the real water to
cement ratio (w/c) is about 0.4 to 0.6. A part of water called compound water, exists in the lattice
of the hydrates, the second part of water called gel water, exists in the gel pores of the hydrates,
and the remaining evaporable water resides in the pores of the hardened concrete. When the latter
evaporates, concrete contracts and pores or microcracks (ranging from several nanometers to
micrometers in size) are formed, resulting in the decrease of the mechanical strength and durability
of concrete. The porosity of concrete mainly depends on the w/c ratio, and the relation (1) between
the compressive strength (S) and w/c is as shown in equation (1)

lg S = A - B (w/c) (1)

where A and B axe experimental constants.

Equation (1) shows that the compressive strength of concrete can be reduced by increasing the
w/c ratio. In order to resolve the conflict between better workability (more water needed) and
higher strength (less water needed), a vacuum dewatering technique (VDT) has been developed in
China and widely applied in road, airport and other engineerings, which is characterized by:

159
160 D. Li and X. Wu Vol. 24, No. 1

1. The strength of concrete at early age is increased by 50 - 60%. The curing time is
shortened by 1/3. The formwork is reduced by 40%.
2. The concretes have better durability, and the abrasion resistance, impermeability, and
coherence force with reinforcing steel bar are increased by 50%, 30% and 50%, respectively. In
general, the final w/c of concrete by VDT is restricted to less than 0.45.

According to T.C. Power's theory,(2) the optimum w/c of concrete is 0.38. Cement can be
hydrated completely in this case, all water is composed of chemically combined water and gel
water, and there is no free water in the concrete. It is supposed that if the w/c ratio could be
decreased to 0.38 by other method following VDT, the porosity of concrete should be decreased
and the strength increased. The application of microwave curing technique (MCT) can reach the
above goal.

Microwave is a kind of electromagnetic radiation with the wavelength of lmm - l m . In other

words, it is an ultra high frequency radio. MCT is characterized by fast heating rate, even
dewatering and high energy efficiency. It has been widely used in many industries, such as food,
tobacco, timber, paper, medicine, chemicals and ceramics, etc. In our previous work,(3) it was
shown that MCT could be used in concrete manufacture and achieve good results. In order to
improve the properties of concrete as much as possible, the purpose of this study is to develop a
new composite techniqe by combining VDT with MCT.

Experimental
1. Equipment

A 2450MHZ, 1250W automatic cooking microwave oven (model ER-692) was used. The
full microwave output was fixed at 650w, while the operating power can be regulated in a range of
level 1-9 step by step. As a metal mold cannot be used in a microwave oven, a polyethylene mold
containing three specimen cavities with internal dimension of 4x4x16 cm for each specimen was
used.

2. Materials

The starting materials were portland cement (grade 425) from the Long-Tan cement factory,
fine silica sand from Ping-Tan beach, and coarse aggregate from the Nanjing dolomite mine
(8-10ram in size).

3. Experiment

The composition of concrete was 1:1.5:3.0 and the w/c was 0.60. After mixing and molding,
the w/c was reduced to 0.45 by VDT and the mold was then immediately placed in the microwave
oven, which was operated on level 1 for the desired time. The mold was then cured in a fog room.
After 24 hours, the concrete bars were removed from the mold and cured in water at 20C until the
desired date. The compressive strength and flexural strength are shown in Figures 1 and 2.

Figures 1 and 2 show that both compressive and flexural strength at all ages increase after
microwave curing and the strength increase with curing time up to a maximum and then decreased.
The optimum curing time is 45 minutes. In comparision with the control sample (i.e. the
microwave curing time is zero), the growth rates of compressive strength after 1, 3, 7, 28 and 90
days are 60.2, 43.0, 36.5, 17.9 and 6.1% respectively; while it is 59.9, 33.2, 34.1, 13.6 and
3.4% for flexural strength. It is clear that the increment of early strength is higher than that for
strength at later age.

The longer the mivrowave curing time, the higher is the percentage of water evaporated, and
the lower is the final w/c. (see Table 1)
Vol. 24, No. 1 VACUUM MICROWAVE, DEWATERING 161

90

"7,

,n 70

z
Z 50
r~

20 ~ l
,a

30
10

10 I I i I a t L

0 15 39 45 60 75 90 0 15 30 45 60 75 90
CURING TIME MIN. CURING TIME MIN.
Fig. 1: Compressive Strength of Fig. 2: Flexural Strength of Concrete
Concrete Vs. Curing Time Vs. Curing Time

Table 1
W/C Ratio vs. Microwave Curing Time

Curing Time 0 15 30 45 60 75 90
(min)

w/c 0.45 0.442 0.419 0.390 0.36 0.340 0.256

It is noted that the w/c ratio is 0.39 when the curing time is 45 minutes and the compressive
strength is the highest. This result is in good agreement with T.C. Power's theory. When w/c is
less than 0.38, the amount of water is not enough and the strength decreases.

In order to enhance economical efficiency, the amount of cement could be reduced when MCT
is used.

Table 2 shows that although the amount of cement is reduced by 15% in sample B, the
strengths of concrete are higher than those in sample A (0 minutes) and even slightly higher than
those in sample A (45 minutes) at 7 days.

Figure 3 shows that the porosities of concrete sample A at 7 days vary with different
microwave curing time. It is obvious that the total porosity (3.5 n m - 7000 nm) is the smallest at
45 minutes. This result is close to that in the strength tests (see Figure 1 - 2). In general, the
porosity should be decreased as the w/c is decreased by increasing the microwave curing time. If
the pore volume is divided into two parts, the volume of large pores (>100nm) is greatly increased
as microwave curing time is more than 45 minutes, while it is slowly decreased for small pores
(<100nm). Therefore, there is a net increase in the total porosity.
162 D. Li and X. Wu Vol. 24, No. 1

Table 2
Cement Amount vs. Strength of Concrete

Sample Flexural Strength (MPa) Compressive Strength (MPa)

(curing time) ld 3d 7d ld 3d 7d

A (0 minutes) 1.96 3.90 5.17 12.34 20.41 27.37

A (45 minutes) 3.13 5.20 6.93 19.78 29.17 37.36

(59.9) (33.2) (34.1) (60.2) (43.0) (36.5)

B (45 minutes) 3.04 4.76 6.95 17.30 24.97 38.37

(52.1) (21.9) (34.3) (49.9) (22.1) (40.2)

Note 1: Sample B contains 15% less cement compared to sample A.

Note 2: The data in brackets are the increment of strength in comparision with sample A (0
minutes).

(-q

4~
"~ 6

+ (R): 7~t - 3.5 nm

I 4 o (R): 100 nm- 3.5 nm

* (R): 7 l - t - ~ Fig.3: Pore Volume Vs.

2 Microwave Curing Time

dl
0 I I I i ~.~

0 15 30 45 60
CURING TIME MIN. (HYDRATING 7 DAYS)

Table 3
Hydration Time vs. Porosity (cm3/g)

A (45 minutes) A (0 minutes)

Porosity
ld 3d 7d 28d ld 3d 7d 28d

3.5- 7000nm 0.105 0.1075 0.065 0.044 0.123 0.094 0.075 0.064
>100nm 0.0272 0.0270 0.0064 0.0049 0.0733 0.0462 0.011 0.0080
<100nm 0.0778 0.0805 0.0586 0.0391 0.0497 0.0497 0.064 0.0570

Table 3 shows that the porosites (total, large pores and small pores) decrease with increasing
hydration time for both two samples, and the porosities of sample A (45 minutes) are much lower
Vol. 24, No. 1 VACUUMMICROWAVE,DEWATERING 163

than those of the control one. The reduction of porosity is consistent with the improvement of
strength and durability of concrete.

Table 4
Hydration Time vs. Electric conductivity (cm/ohm X 10)

Conductivity 2d 3d 4d 5d 7d

A (0 minutes) 5.470 4.321 3.925 3.808 3.596

A (45 minutes) 2.869 2.435 1.968 1.705 1.363

The results of Table 4 shows that the electrical conductivity of sample A (45 minutes) is much
lower than that of sample A (0 minutes); therefore, the microstructure of the former is more dense.

Discussion

From the above experimental results, the mechanism of MCT is discussed as follows. In
addition to evaporating the free water, the temperature of concrete is enhanced due to the vibration
of molecules of all materials in microwave field, and the heat of the vapor is also transfered to all
materials. In this study the temperature of concrete after 45 minutes curing is about 333K.
Therefore, the hydration of cement is promoted. But the situation is different from normal thermal
curing. For example, the evaporation of water is caused by the vibration of water molecules, and
the direction of transmission for both heat and vapor flux is the same (from inside to outside of
concrete), so that the evaporation is even, rapid and processed in the whole body of concrete. The
temperature is moderate and of no great influence t o t h e hydration of cement at later age as in
thermal curing. The most important factor is that the desiccation process is finished before the
setting of the cement occurs, as the microwave curing time is limited; this enables the concrete to
undergo plastic shrinkage. As a result, the concrete is densified, and the strength at later age is still
increased, unlike that in the case of normal thermal curing.

It is noted that there is an optimum curing time. In this study, the optimum curing time was
found to be 45 minutes, and the related final w]c was 0.38. When the curing time is more than 45
minutes, the resistance of vapor escaping is increased due to the contraction of capillary pores and
the formation of hydrates blocking the pathway of the vapor. This would cause an increased
volume of larger pores.

It is also noted that the optimum time of microwave curing is related to the size and shape of
the specimen as well as the function and power of the microwave oven, which should be
determined by experiment.

Conclusion

1. A composite dewatering technique has been developed and is able to enhance the strength and
durability of concrete, save expense for repair, prolong the life of construction and shorten the
engineering time, which is especially suitable to applications such as highway and airport
engineering.

2. The combination of microwave curing and vacuum dewatering can save more than 15% of
cement with no great effect on the properties of concrete.

3. The determination of the optimum time of microwave curing should be based on the following
principles: the curing process is finished before setting, and the final w/c ratio is about 0.38.

4. The mechanism of microwave curing is that the free water is desiccated rapidly and evenly,
164 D. Li and X. Wu Vol.24, No. 1

producing plastic shrinkage, and densified concrete. Simultaneously the temperature of concrete is
enhanced, promoting hydration of the cement.

References

1. A.M. Neville, Properties of Concrete. 3rd edition. Pitman Publishing, Ltd., London, 1981.
2. T.C. Powers, Th~ Prooerties of Fresh Concrete. John Wiley and Sons, New York, 1968.
3. Wu Xuequan and Li I3ongxu. "Microwave Curing Technique in Concrete Manufacture," Cem.
Concr. Res. 17,205-210 (1987)