Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Ken W. Day
James Aldred
Barry Hudson
Fourth Edition
Concrete Mix Design,
Quality Control and
Specification
Fourth Edition
Ken W. Day
James Aldred
Barry Hudson
This book contains information obtained from authentic and highly regarded sources. Reasonable efforts
have been made to publish reliable data and information, but the author and publisher cannot assume
responsibility for the validity of all materials or the consequences of their use. The authors and publishers
have attempted to trace the copyright holders of all material reproduced in this publication and apologize to
copyright holders if permission to publish in this form has not been obtained. If any copyright material has
not been acknowledged please write and let us know so we may rectify in any future reprint.
Except as permitted under U.S. Copyright Law, no part of this book may be reprinted, reproduced, transmit-
ted, or utilized in any form by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented,
including photocopying, microfilming, and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system,
without written permission from the publishers.
For permission to photocopy or use material electronically from this work, please access www.copyright.
com (http://www.copyright.com/) or contact the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc. (CCC), 222 Rosewood
Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, 978-750-8400. CCC is a not-for-profit organization that provides licenses and
registration for a variety of users. For organizations that have been granted a photocopy license by the CCC,
a separate system of payment has been arranged.
Trademark Notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used
only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.
Visit the Taylor & Francis Web site at
http://www.taylorandfrancis.com
Acknowledgements xiii
Introduction xvii
About the Authors xix
1 Advice to specifiers 1
1.1 Mix selection 1
1.2 Specifying durability 2
1.3 Specifying thermal limits 4
1.4 Specifying rheology 4
1.5 Specifying drying shrinkage 4
2 Cementitious materials 7
2.1 Portland cement 7
2.1.1 Introduction 7
2.1.2 Significant test results 8
2.1.3 Types of cement 11
2.2 Fly ash (or pulverised fuel ash [PFA]) 12
2.2.1 General characteristics 12
2.2.2 Composition of fly ash 14
2.2.3 Effects of fly ash 15
2.2.3.1 Physical effects 15
2.2.3.2 Chemical effects 15
2.2.3.3 Surface chemistry effects 16
2.2.4 Advantages of fly ash 17
2.2.5 Dangers to avoid with fly ash 18
2.2.6 Summary 19
2.3 Superfine fly ash 19
2.4 Ground-granulated blast-furnace slag (GGBS) 20
2.4.1 Properties of GGBS 20
4 Chemical admixtures 65
4.1 Specifying admixture usage 71
4.2 Possible reasons for using an admixture 72
5 Properties of concrete 87
5.1 Durability 87
5.1.1 Corrosion of reinforcement 87
5.1.2 Alkali–aggregate reaction 89
5.1.3 Sulfate attack 89
5.1.4 Delayed ettringite formation 90
5.1.5 Thaumasite 90
5.1.6 Physical salt attack 91
5.1.7 Chemical attack 91
5.1.8 Freeze–thaw attack 92
5.2 Mechanical properties 92
5.2.1 Compressive strength 92
5.2.2 Tensile strength 94
5.2.3 Flexural strength 94
5.2.4 Modulus of elasticity 94
5.3 Transport properties 95
5.3.1 Porosity 96
5.3.2 Permeability 96
5.3.3 Sorptivity 99
5.3.4 Desorptivity 99
5.3.5 Water vapour diffusion 99
5.3.6 Wick action 100
5.3.7 Chloride diffusion 101
5.3.8 Chloride migration 103
5.3.9 Resistivity 103
6 Specification 109
6.1 Temperature rise 111
6.2 Alkali–silica reaction 114
6.3 Air content 114
6.4 Early-age strength 119
6.5 Drying shrinkage 119
6.6 Rheology and self-consolidating concrete 120
6.7 Durability 121
6.8 Crack width 125
6.9 Development of standard mixes 126
6.10 Batch plant equipment 127
6.11 Proposal–approval specifications 127
6.12 Should mixes be submitted? 128
6.13 Cash penalties 129
7 Testing 131
7.1 Philosophy of testing 131
7.2 Range of tests 132
7.3 Compression testing 134
7.3.1 Testing machines 135
7.3.2 Testing machine technology 136
7.3.3 Bad concrete or bad testing? 137
7.3.4 Rounding results 140
7.3.5 Cubes versus cylinders 141
7.4 Maturity/equivalent age concept 145
7.4.1 Limitations of the equivalent age concept 152
7.4.2 Temperature effects 153
7.4.3 Update on maturity/early age 155
12 Troubleshooting 267
12.1 Strength, pumpability, and appearance 268
12.1.1 Inadequate strength 268
12.1.2 Poor workability/pumpability 270
12.1.3 Unsatisfactory appearance 271
12.1.4 Excessive variability 272
12.2 Causes of cracking in concrete slabs 273
13.1.1 Introduction 275
13.1.2 Environmental policy 275
13.1.3 Risk aversion 276
13.1.4 Specifications 278
13.1.5 Regulations 282
13.1.6 Standards 283
13.1.7 Construction practices 284
13.1.8 Conclusions 284
13.2 Sustainability 285
BOUDEWIJN M. PISCAER
13.2.1 Binders 286
13.2.2 From prescription to performance 286
13.2.3 Participation 287
13.2.4 Opportunities 287
13.2.5 Water/cement and binder ratios 289
13.2.6 Plan of action 289
13.3 Magnesium-based cements 291
13.4 Is geopolymer concrete a suitable
alternative to traditional concrete? 291
JAMES ALDRED AND JOHN DAY
My third edition builds upon the shoulders of the work done for the first
two, and I do not wish those I thanked then to be forgotten now. Therefore
the acknowledgements in the second edition are reprinted in full following
those for the current edition.
My company, Concrete Advice Pty Ltd, was sold in 2001 to Maricopa
Readymix, my first U.S. client, at the instigation of Dave Hudder, at that time
managing director of Maricopa. I have him to thank for his r ecognition of
the value of ConAd in the United States and for providing me with the means
to enjoy my semiretirement and to travel the world preaching my concepts.
Upon Dave leaving Maricopa, Concrete Advice was on-sold to Command
Alkon. I was very pleased about this because ConAd is a perfect fit for a
major, worldwide batching-system provider. I thank them for continuing
my part-time consultancy until the end of 2004, even though I have had
little influence on the new version of ConAd.
I will never forget the part played by Don Bain, technical manager of
Maricopa, in all of this. It was he who recommended the initial purchase
of the ConAd system to Dave Hudder back in early 2000, he who used
ConAd to enable the expansion of Maricopa and build the U.S. reputa-
tion of ConAd, and he who left Maricopa for a time to help Command
Alkon with initial marketing of ConAd. His written contribution to this
text is appreciated, but it is negligible compared to his contribution to the
reputation of the ConAd system.
Andrew Travers continues to labor prodigiously as CEO of ConAd. Its
future now depends on him as he rushes around the world promoting and
installing it. Unfortunately he has been far too busy to write a section of this
book, much as he wanted to, and much as it would have been appreciated.
Perhaps he will write the next edition.
Two other stalwarts, having contributed greatly, are no longer able to
do so. Dan Leacy, the Australian equivalent of Don Bain, unfortunately
passed away at an early age, and Michael Shallard retired at an even ear-
lier age after a severe illness, depriving the system of its major source of
computer expertise. I shall remember them.
My e-mail directory overflows with large numbers of people substituting
for my lack of field experience in recent years. Several names appear as con-
tributing sections of the text: Dr Alex Leshchinsky and his father Dr Marat
Lesinskij, Mark Mackenzie, Dr Norwood Harrison, Dr Grant Lukey, John
Harrison, Tracy Goldsworthy, and Dr Joe Dewar, whose contribution to
the previous edition is repeated here.
Contributions not so acknowledged, but nevertheless real, include Aulis
Kappi, Charles Allen, James Aldred, Kevin Galvin, Lawrence Roberts,
Richard Hall, Dr Celik Ozylidirim, Jay Lukkarila, Dr Steve Trost, also
Barry and Tania Hudson for their magnificent forum on the website http://
www.aggregateresearch.com. It should be emphasised that several of these
do not agree with all that I have written, so any credit for the work is
shared with them, but any blame is mine alone.
Justin Smyth (delphian@smythconsulting.net) operates my website
(http://www.kenday.id.au) and has amended the free programs on that site.
There are three individuals without whom this book could not have hap-
pened and four more without whom it may have been very different. The first
group comprises: O. Jan Masterman, technical director, Unit Construction
Co., London in the 1950s, who somehow inspired and guided me to origi-
nate in my first two years of employment the greater part of the philosophy
and concepts herein recorded; John J. Peyton, John Connell & Associates
(now Connell Wagner), Melbourne, without whose encouragement I never
would have started my company Concrete Advice Pty Ltd in 1973 and
so the nascent control techniques never would have d eveloped to fruition;
John Wallis, formerly Singapore director of Raymond International (of
Houston, Texas), without whom my Singapore venture would have foun-
dered in 1980, leaving me without computerisation and without the broad
international proving grounds for the mix design system.
The second group comprises John Fowler, who wrote the first com-
puter program using my mix design methods, at a time when I had a firm
opinion that mix design was partly an art and could never be computer-
ised; D. A. Stewart, whose book The Design and Placing of High Quality
Concrete (Spon, 1951) was a first major influence; David C. Teychenne, who
led where I have followed in specific surface mix design; and my son Peter,
who transformed “ConAd” from an amateur spreadsheet into a professional
computer program.
A third kind of indebtedness is to those who assisted in the actual
production of the book. They have become too numerous to list all of them
by name but Hasan Ay and Andrew Travers are especially thanked for their
work on figures and tables.
Harold Vivian, Bryant Mather, Dr Alex Leshchinsky, and Dr Francois
de Larrard are especially thanked for invaluable advice and contributions;
Sandor Popovics for his published works and thought-provoking discussions;
Joe Dewar, Bryant Mather, and John Peyton for their kind forewords; also
Vincent Wallis on whom I have relied for an (often brutally) honest opinion
over more than 30 years; and of course my wife, who has endured a great
deal in the cause of concrete technology.
A new kind of indebtedness is to those individuals in my major client
companies who have not only enabled my company (Concrete Advice Pty
Ltd) to survive and prosper but have also contributed in no small measure
to improvements in the system. They include Peter Denham and Dan Leacy
of CSR Readymix, Paul Moses of Boral, and Mark Mackenzie of Alpha,
South Africa.
The ConAd computer program has come a long way since the first edi-
tion and thanks are due to my staff at Concrete Advice. Michael Shallard
and Lloyd Smiley wrote the latest program and Andrew Travers, now man-
ager of the company, knows how to use it better than I.
Finally I must thank my younger son, John Day, now technical manager
of Pioneer Malaysia, for using these techniques so effectively as to make
the world’s tallest building, Petronas Towers, the best example yet of low
variability, high strength concrete.
Ken W. Day
Nunawading, Australia
Ken W. Day is well known as the author of the first three editions of this book.
He has worked continuously in concrete mix design and quality control since
graduating in 1952, except for a short period in the 1960s as associate part-
ner of Harris & Sutherland in the United Kingdom where he worked on bat-
tery precasting of concrete housing. His two most important developments
have been multigrade, multivariable, cusum quality control and specific sur-
face mix design. He worked initially in the United Kingdom, then Australia,
before starting his own company, Concrete Advice Pty Ltd, in 1973. Day
has lectured in 23 countries, leading to international use of his concepts,
and received multiple international awards for his work, details of which can
be read on his website, http://www.kenday.id.au. His company was sold to
Command Alkon via Maricopa RMC in 2002 and his quality control (QC)
program is now marketed as CommandQC, and is no longer under his con-
trol. However, a small program, “KensQC”, is available on his website and
enables new users to experience his techniques on their own data.
Advice to specifiers
The old adage that no one is more difficult to teach than those who are
convinced they already know it all is nowhere more apparent than in the
specification and control of concrete quality. It explains why two of the
world’s most respected sources of knowledge about concrete—American
Concrete Institute (ACI) and United Kingdom/Europe—are lagging almost
30 years behind developments in Australia.1
Structural designers in concrete are certainly expected and entitled to
specify the properties they have assumed in their design, including such
items as strength, shrinkage, and resistance to anticipated sources of dete-
rioration. Unfortunately few structural designers are also expert concrete
technologists and may be reluctant to admit this. There is a tendency to
assume that if you do not have much detailed knowledge of a subject, then
there is not much to know about it.
1 Have yet to adopt performance-based measures adopted in Australia almost 30 years ago.
Ann, K.Y., Jung, H.S., Kim, H.S., Kim, S.S., and Moon, H.Y. 2006. Effect of calcium
nitrite-based corrosion inhibitor in preventing corrosion of embedded steel in
concrete. Cement and Concrete Research, 36, 530–535.
ASTM International. 2010. ASTM C595/C595M—10 standard specification for
blended hydraulic cements. ASTM, 04.01, September.
Arrhenius, S. 1896. On the influence of carbonic acid in the air upon the temperature
of the ground. Philosophical Magazine and Journal of Science Series, 5, 41,
237–276.
Audenaert, K., Yuan, Q. and De Schutter, G. 2010. On the time dependency of
the chloride migration coefficient in concrete. Construction and Building
Materials, 24(3), 396–402.
Bamforth, P.B. 1980. In situ measurement of the effect of partial Portland cement
replacement using either fly ash or GGBS on the performance of mass concrete.
In Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers, 2, 69, 777–800.
Bamforth, P.B. 2007. Early-age thermal crack control in concrete. CIRIA C660.
Bamforth, P.B. and Price, W.F. 1993. Factors influencing chloride ingress into marine
structures. Proceedings of Concrete 2000, Dundee. London: E & FN Spon,
1105–1118.
Baroghel-Bouny, V., Mainguy, M. and Coussy, O. 2001. Isothermal drying process in
weakly permeable cementitious materials – assessment of water permeability.
In Materials Science of Concrete: Ion and Mass Transport in Cement-Based
Materials (R.D. Hooten, M.D.A. Thomas, J. Marchand, and J.J. Beaudoin,
eds.). Special Volume, American Ceramic Society, October.
Bentz, D.P, and Hansen, K.K. 2000. Preliminary observations of water movement
in cement pastes during curing using X-ray absorption. Cement & Concrete
Research V.30, 1157–1168.
Bentz, D.P, Geiker, M.R., and Hansen, K.K. 2001. Shrinkage-reducing admixtures
and early-age desiccation in cement pastes and mortars. Cement and Concrete
Research, 31, 1075–1085.
Bertrandy, R. 1982. Sands used in construction concrete—The influence of fines
on their properties. Unpublished paper translated and presented by K. Day.
Singapore, November.
Bilodeau, A., and Malhotra, V.M. 1994. High-performance concrete incorporating
large volumes of ASTM Class F fly ash. ACI Special Publication, vol. 149–10.
Blick, R. L., Petersen, C. F., and Winter, M. E. 1974. Proportioning and Controlling
High Strength Concrete, Proportioning Concrete Mixes, AC! Special
Publication 46–9.
Bolomey, J. 1947. The grading of aggregate and its influence on the characteristics of
concrete. Revue Mater Construction, Travaux Publiques.
Bouley, C., and de Larrard, F. 1993. The sand box test. Concrete International:
Design and Construction, April.
BRE Special Digest 1. 2005. Concrete in aggressive ground, 3rd edition. BRE
Bookshop.
Buenfeld, N.R., and Okundi, E. 1998. Effect of cement content on transport in con-
crete. Magazine of Concrete Research, 50, 4, 339–351.
Buenfeld, N.R., Shurafa-Daoudi, M.T., and McLoughlin, I.M. 1997. Chloride trans-
port due to wick action in concrete. In Chloride Penetration into Concrete
(L.O. Nilsson and J. P. Ollivier, eds.). RILEM, Paris, pp. 315–324.
Buhler, E.R. 2007. Two decades of ready-mixed high performance silica fume
Concrete—A U.S. project review. Dallas, TX: NRMCA Presentation.
Building Research Advisory Board. 1958. Effectiveness of concrete admixtures in
controlling the transmission of moisture through slabs-on-ground. Publication
No. 596. Washington, DC: N. R. C.
Bungey, J.H. 1993. Non-Destructive Testing in Civil Engineering.
Butler, W.B. 1994. Superfine fly ash in high strength concrete. Dundee, Scotland:
Concrete 2000.
Calder, A.J.J., and Thomson, D.M. 1988. Repair of cracked reinforced concrete:
assessment of corrosion protection. TRL – RR150. United Kingdom.
Cao, T. H.T., Meck, E. and Morris, H. 1996. A review of the ASTM C1202 Standard
Test and its applicability in the assessment of concrete’s resistance to chloride
ion penetration. Concrete in Australia, 23–36.
Carino, N. J. 1984. Maturity method: Theory and application, cement, concrete, and
aggregates. ASTM, 6, 2.
Carrasquillo, P.M., and Carrasquillo, R.L. 1988. Effect of using unbonded cap-
ping system on the compressive strength of concrete cylinders. ACI Materials
Journal, 85(3), 141–147.
Cement: Composition, specifications, and conformity criteria for low heat common
cements. 2000. BS EN, 197–1.
Chung, H. W. 1978. How good is good enough? A dilemma in acceptance testing of
concrete. ACI Journal, Proceedings, 75, 8, 374–380, August.
Clelland, J. 1968. Sand for concrete—A new test method. New Zealand Standards
Bulletin, 22–26.
Concrete Institute of Australia. 2011. Recommended Practice—Geopolymer
Concrete Z16.
Concrete Society CS-163. 2008. Guide to the design of concrete structures in the
Arabian Peninsula.
Concrete Society. 2008. Permeability testing of site concrete—A review of methods
and experience. Technical Report 31.
Cordon, W.A., and Merrill, D. 1963. Requirements for freezing and thawing durabil-
ity for concrete. Proceedings of ASTM, 63, 1026–1036.
Dalhuisen, P. et al. 1996. Fourth International Symposium on Utilisation of High
Strength/High Performance Concrete. Paris: Presses Ponts et Chausees.
Davidovits, J. 1991. Geopolymers: Inorganic polymeric new materials. Journal of
Thermal Analysis, 37, 1633–1656.
Day, K. W. 1959. Mathematical methods of proportioning aggregates. Concrete and
Constructional Engineering. London, February.
Day, K. W. 1961. The Specification of concrete. Constructional Review (Australia),
34, 7, 45–58, July.
Day, K. W. 1981. Quality control of 55 MPa concrete for Collins Place Project,
Melbourne, Australia. Concrete International: Design and Construction, 3, 3,
1724. (Presented at ACI Milwaukee Convention, March 1979.)
Day, K. W. 1982a. What is economical concrete? Concrete International: Design and
Construction, September.
Day, K. W. 1989. Bad concrete or bad testing? Unpublished paper to ACT San Diego
Convention, November.
Day, K.W. 1987. Marginal sands. San Antonio, TX: ACI Convention.
Khatri, R. P., Hirschausen, D., and Sirivivatnanon, V. 1998. Broadening the use of fly
ash concretes within current specifications. CSIRO Report BRE045.
Kerrigan, B.M. 1972. Sand flow test. Humes report, RC.4243.
Kluge, F. 1949. Prediction of the mixing water of concrete. Der Bauingenuier, 24, 6.
[In German.]
Lagerblad, B., and Utkin, P. 1993. Silica granules in concrete—dispersion and dura-
bility aspects. Swedish Cement and Concrete Research Institute. CBI Report
3:93.
Leshchinsky, A. 2004. Slag sand in ready-mixed concrete. Concrete, 38(3), 38–39.
Lessard, M., Chaallal, O., and Aitcin, P.-C. 1993. Testing high-strength concrete
compressive strength. ACI Materials Journal, 90(4), 303–308.
Leviant, I. 1966. A graphical method of concrete proportioning. In Civil Engineering
and Public Works Review. London: Lomax, Erskine, and Company.
Malier, Y., and Moranville-Regourd, M. 1995. High performance concrete, the
French national project. Durability of High Performance Concrete (H. Sommer,
ed.). Paris: RILEM, 78–88.
Malhotra, V.M. 1964. Correlation between particle shape and surface texture of
fine aggregate and their water requirement. Materials Research & Standards,
656–658.
Malhotra, V.M., and Ramezanianpour, A.A. 1994. Fly Ash in Concrete, 2nd edition.
CANMET.
Marchand, J., Bentz, D., Samson, E., and Maltais, Y. 2001. Influence of calcium
hydroxide dissolution on the transport properties of hydrated cement systems.
In Calcium Hydroxide in Concrete (J. Skalny, J. Gebauer, and I. Odler, eds.).
Westerville, OH: American Ceramic Society.
Maslehuddin, M., Shameem, M., Ibrahim, M., and Khan N.U. 1999. Performance
of steel aggregate concretes, exploiting waste in concrete. Proceedings of
International Conference Creating with Concrete. Dundee, Scotland: Thomas
Telford Ltd., pp. 109–119.
Mather, B. 1987. The warmer the concrete, the faster the cement hydrates. Concrete
International: Design and Construction, August.
Mehta, P.K. 1987. Natural pozzolans. In Supplementary Cementing Materials
for Concrete (V.M. Malhotra, ed.). CANMET-SP-86-8E. Ottawa, Canada:
Canadian Government, pp. 1–33.
Mielenz, R. C., Greene, K. T., and Schieltz, N. C. 1951. Natural pozzolans for con-
crete. Economic Geology, 46, 3, 311–328.
Mitsuki, Y.et al, 1992. An enhancement in the nature of concrete with a multiplica-
tive cement crystal type concrete material. 46th Annual Meeting of the Civil
Engineering Society, September.
Mohammed, T.U., and Hamada, H. 2003. Corrosion of steel bars in concrete at
joints under tidal environment. ACI Materials Journal Title no. 100-M31,
265–273.
Montes, P., Bremner, T.W., and Lister, D.H. 2004. Influence of calcium nitrite inhibi-
tor and crack width on corrosion of steel in high performance concrete sub-
jected to a simulated marine environment. Cement & Concrete Composites,
26, 243–253.
Murdock, L. J. 1960. The workability of concrete. Magazine of Concrete Research,
12, 36, 135–144.
Trinder, P.W. 2000. Review of the use of Xypex waterproofing and concentrate for
CC300 Tsuen Wan Station and Approach Tunnels. Taywood Technical Report
No. 1303/00/11129.
Trinder, P.W., Chalmers, C., Peek, A., and Green, W. 1999. Resistance for concrete to
harsh environment –Ammonium sulphate. Concrete in Australia.
Turner, L., and Collins, F. 2012. Geopolymers: A greener alternative to Portland
cement? Concrete in Australia, 38, 1, 49–56.
Vallini, D. and Aldred, J.M. 2003. Durability assessment of concrete specimens in
the tidal and splash zones in Fremantle port. Coasts & Ports Australasian
Conference, Auckland, New Zealand.
Vennesland, O. 1981. Report 3: Corrosion properties. FBC/SINTEF. Trondheim,
Norway: Norwegian Institute of Technology, Report STF65 A81033.
VicRoads. 2010. Section 703: General concrete paving.
Vuorinen, J. 1985. Application of diffusion theory to permeability tests on concrete—
Parts I and II. Magazine of Concrete Research, 37, 132 145–152, 153–161.
Walker, S., and Bartel, F. F. 1947. Discussion of a paper by M. A. Swayze and
A. Gruenwald, Concrete Mix Design—A Modification of the Fineness Modulus
Methods, Proceedings AI, 43, 2.
Whiting, D. 1988. Permeability of selected concretes. ACI Special Publication, SP
108–11, 195–222.
Xu, H., Provis, J.L., van Deventer, J.S.J., and Krivenko, P.V. 2008. Characterization
of slag concretes. ACI Materials Journal, 105, 2, 131–139.
Yiannos, P.N. 1962. Molecular reorientation of some fatty acids when in contact
with water. Journal of Colloid Science, 17, 334–347
Yodmalai, D., Sahamitmongkol, R., and Tangtermsirikul, S. 2009. Chloride resistance
of cement paste with crystalline materials. Annual Concrete Conference 6,
Thailand.