Reducing Concrete Cure Times for Bridge Substructure Components and Box Culverts

Project Details
STATE

IL

SOURCE

Research Gate

START DATE

08/16/20

END DATE

09/30/23

RESEARCHERS

Nishant Garg, Faisal Qadri

SPONSORS

Illinois Department of Transportation

KEYWORDS

Acceleration, C-S-H Seeds, Compressive strength, Concrete, Electrical resistivity, Fly ash, Formation Factor, Open Porosity

LINKS

Link

Project description

This report investigated pathways to reduce concrete curing time while maintaining mechanical and durability performance. Among several options such as admixtures, supplementary cementitious materials, and low water-to-cement ratio, researchers explored two mix designs in a field demonstration project. For Stage I of the project, a low water-to-cement ratio concrete mixture was used. For Stage II, the use of calcium-silicate-hydrate (C-S-H) based seeds was explored. Concrete laboratory mixtures containing C-S-H seeds X1 and X2 exhibited increased early-age strength and reduced permeability. Based on these findings and the Illinois Department of Transportation acceptance of X2 as a Type S admixture, a field demonstration project was conducted on a box culvert near Armstrong, Illinois. The X2 concrete mix design was compared to a low water-to-cement ratio concrete mix design. Results showed that the X2 mixture with C-S-H seeds consistently demonstrated higher strength than the low water-to-cement concrete mixture, suggesting that seed-based admixtures can provide additional benefits for reducing curing times. The recommended dosage of X2 is 5 fl oz/cwt for optimal performance in reducing cure time.
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