Professional English

Engineering

Cambridge English for

UNIT 2
Part 1

CASE STUDY
Concrete research

In pairs, discuss the following questions about reinforced concrete. Be prepared to sum up your answers using your notes. 1 What are the main applications of reinforced concrete? 2 What specific materials does it consist of? 3 What different categories of material do reinforced concrete and the materials it is made of belong to? 4 What are some of the properties of reinforced concrete? The following sections from Unit 2 of Cambridge English for Engineering may be useful. Categorising materials (pages 16 and 17) Specifying and describing properties (pages 18 and 19)

Part 2
Read the following extract from an engineering journal.

Recylability in Engineering
In the environmentally-conscious world we live in today, recyclability is an important issue with all engineering materials. But reinforced concrete is especially attractive in this respect, for three key reasons (see next page). Consequently, identifying recycled materials that are suitable for putting into concrete is currently a major area of research, and the race is on to find alternative aggregates and reinforcing materials. However, recycled ingredients that are suitable for use in concrete must satisfy a number of technical requirements. In pairs, come up with some suggested answers to the following questions.
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Why is reinforced concrete especially attractive as a way of using recycled materials? What might the three key reasons mentioned in the article be? What technical requirements would reinforcing materials, such as aggregates, need to have?

Part 3
You and your partner are researchers at a recycling firm looking into recycled materials, such as coarse aggregates, fine aggregates and reinforcing fibres for use in reinforced concrete. In pairs, use the following steps and make notes of your ideas.
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think of some possible recycled materials - theres no need to analyse them technically at this stage assess each material in your list and make a shortlist of the most promising possibilities

Give a short presentation to the group including an explanation of the most promising materials, together with reasons for your suggestions, as well as some examples of materials you considered but rejected for technical reasons. 1 Cambridge English for Engineering Cambridge University Press 2009 www.cambridge.org/elt/englishforengineering
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UNIT 2 Case study: Concrete research

Recylability in Engineering
Suggested answers to Part 2 The potential for using recycled materials in reinforced concrete is especially attractive for the following reasons.
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as the worlds most extensively used engineering material, it has the potential to use enormous quantities of recycled material its composite construction coarse aggregate + fine aggregate + reinforcement allows a range of different types of recycled material to be used aggregate and reinforcement are hidden inside the concrete, meaning that colour and appearance often problem issues with recycled materials are not important.

However, there are many technical requirements that reinforced concrete needs to satisfy. These include:
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Strength materials must be able to carry the required loads. Chemical stability materials must not react aggressively with cement, or attack steel reinforcement and cause it to corrode. And since most concrete structures are designed to last several decades, engineers must be sure that materials remain chemically stable for long periods something which can be difficult to test in a laboratory. Thermal stability as most concrete is located outside, it is exposed to significant variations in temperature. These variations cause it to expand and contract. Consequently, all the materials used in reinforced concrete must have the same coefficient of thermal expansion, so that the concrete does not break apart due to thermal movement. Workability wet concrete requires good plasticity to allow it to be fed through the pipes of concrete pumps, and to be placed and compacted. Any materials mixed in with concrete must therefore allow it to be moved and placed.

Cambridge English for Engineering Cambridge University Press 2009 www.cambridge.org/elt/englishforengineering

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UNIT 2 Case study: Concrete research Teachers Notes

Unit 2 Case study: Concrete research Teachers Notes

Before you begin... Ask students what is meant by reinforced concrete and recycling. Tell the students that these two key terms will be the basis of this case study. Ask them to think about what the interesting link between reinforced concrete and recycling might be.

Part 1
Students discuss the questions in pairs and feed back their ideas to the group. Suggested answers and useful vocabulary 1 Reinforced concrete is used widely in construction for structural members of concrete frame buildings. For example, beams (horizontal members), columns (vertical members), slabs (floors), walls. It is also used for foundations (which support structures, including piles see Cambridge English for Engineering pages 12 and 13. It is also used in large civil engineering structures, such as bridges and dams. 2 Cement, fine aggregate (sand), coarse aggregate(gravel), and steel reinforcing bars. 3 Reinforced concrete is a composite material. Concrete is a ceramic - although it isnt formed by heat, it hardens due to a chemical reaction triggered in the cement after water is added and is therefore classed as a ceramic . The concrete excluding the reinforcement is non-metallic. The steel reinforcement is metallic, and is a ferrous metal. Steel is an alloyof iron and carbon. 4 Reinforced concrete is a very strong/tough material. It is reasonably hard, with reasonable abrasion resistance. It has very low elasticity/modulus (modulus of elasticity). It has fairly good thermal stability. A key property of concrete is that its very strong in compression, but weak in tension see Cambridge English for Engineering page 80 for more on compression and tension. Concretes weakness in tension is the main reason for adding steel reinforcement, as steel is very strong in tension. Concrete is also very durable and it is thought to be capable of lasting hundreds of years.

Part 2
Students read the journal extract and then discuss the questions in pairs, making notes of their suggestions. Each pair then feeds back their suggestions to the group for collective comparison and discussion. Page 2 has suggested answers to the questions that students have discussed in Part 2. Give each student a copy of these and ask them to compare them with their predicted answers.

Part 3
Students work in pairs to brainstorm ideas and prepare notes for their presentation. When each pair has presented their ideas, finish with a group discussion to assess the best proposals. Note One of the main recycled materials currently used in reinforced concrete is recycled concrete itself, i.e. old concrete that has been crushed to be reused as aggregate. A promising material being researched is crushed glass though there are problems with chemical reactions between glass and cement. Recycled carpets are another possibility, potentially useful as reinforcing fibres. You could look at the following sites for further information and reading material for discussion. http://www.civil.columbia.edu/meyer/ www.concreterecycling.org 3 Cambridge English for Engineering Cambridge University Press 2009 www.cambridge.org/elt/englishforengineering
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