Concrete Testing
WHY Test Concrete? Concrete testing is carried out for many reasons: Evaluation new materials or products Check compliance before, during or after construction Assess condition for change of use or service life prediction Failure investigation WHAT Can Be Tested? Concrete testing means more than cubes or cores: Component materials ; cement, pfa, ggbs, admixtures, coarse and fine aggregates, fibres, reinforcement, water Fresh Concrete , mortar and grout Hardened Concrete ; cast specimens : cubes , cylinders, prisms Existing structures ; drilled core or dust samples, sawn specimens, insitu non-destructive testing of structural members WHICH Tests? Concrete testing is loosely covered by four main headings: Physical/Mechanical Workability/Consistency Compressive/flexural/tensile strength Modulus of elasticity Density/water absorption/permeability Moisture/thermal movement Chemical Composition (cement content, w/c ratio) Presence of contaminants, e