Volume Concrete – READY MIX CONCRETE PRODUCTS

Tag: air entrainment

  • Chemical Admixtures for Ready Mix Concrete

    Chemical Admixtures for Ready Mix Concrete

    Chemical admixtures are used in ready mix concrete to enhance its properties and performance. Here are some common types of chemical admixtures and their uses:

    1. Water-Reducing Admixtures:

    • Purpose: Reduce the amount of water needed for a given workability, increasing strength and reducing permeability.
    • Common Chemicals: Lignosulfonates, polycarboxylate ethers.

    2. Retarding Admixtures:

    • Purpose: Delay the setting time of concrete, useful in hot weather conditions or for large pours to prevent cold joints.
    • Common Chemicals: Calcium sulfate, sugars.

    3. Accelerating Admixtures:

    • Purpose: Speed up the setting time and early strength development, beneficial in cold weather or for fast-track construction.
    • Common Chemicals: Calcium chloride, triethanolamine.

    4. Superplasticizers (High-Range Water Reducers):

    • Purpose: Provide significant increase in workability without adding extra water, ideal for high-strength concrete and complex formwork.
    • Common Chemicals: Polycarboxylate ethers, sulfonated naphthalene formaldehyde.

    5. Air-Entraining Admixtures:

    • Purpose: Introduce and stabilize microscopic air bubbles in concrete, improving its resistance to freeze-thaw cycles.
    • Common Chemicals: Vinsol resin, fatty acids.

    6. Corrosion Inhibitors:

    • Purpose: Protect reinforcing steel from corrosion, enhancing the durability of concrete structures exposed to chlorides.
    • Common Chemicals: Calcium nitrite, sodium nitrite.

    7. Shrinkage-Reducing Admixtures:

    • Purpose: Minimize shrinkage and reduce the risk of cracking in concrete.
    • Common Chemicals: Polyoxyalkylene alkyl ether.

    8. Alkali-Silica Reactivity (ASR) Inhibitors:

    • Purpose: Prevent the reaction between alkalis in cement and reactive silica in aggregates, which can cause expansion and cracking.
    • Common Chemicals: Lithium nitrate.

    9. Waterproofing Admixtures:

    • Purpose: Reduce the permeability of concrete, making it more resistant to water penetration.
    • Common Chemicals: Silicones, stearates.

    10. Bonding Admixtures:

    • Purpose: Improve the bond between old and new concrete surfaces.
    • Common Chemicals: Synthetic latexes (like styrene-butadiene).

    Benefits of Using Chemical Admixtures:

    • Enhanced Workability: Improves the ease of placing and finishing concrete.
    • Increased Durability: Enhances resistance to environmental factors.
    • Optimized Setting Time: Adjusts setting time for different construction needs.
    • Cost Efficiency: Reduces the overall cost by improving performance and reducing the need for additional materials.

    Considerations:

    • Compatibility: Ensure admixtures are compatible with other materials used in the concrete mix.
    • Dosage: Proper dosage is crucial to achieve the desired effect without compromising the concrete quality.
    • Environmental Conditions: Select admixtures based on the specific environmental conditions and project requirements.

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  • Why use Air Entrainment in freshly poured concrete?

    Volume Concrete LLC., Certificate of Compliance MasterAir®+AE+200 BASF

    The key to a high quality concrete in addition to high quality cement is the admixtures. Today’s chemicals for concrete and the construction industry are suited for a variety of applications. This particular chemical is Air Entrainment from BASF.

    In the process of making concrete the agitation causes a certain amount of air bubbles to be generated within the freshly mixed concrete. This amount of naturally occurring air bubbles is roughly 2% on average. The necessity to have air bubbles in concrete is due to the frost and freeze cycles we generate in Oregon.

    The more air bubbles (up to a certain point), helps the concrete withstand the severity of the frost/freeze. The cold weather will cause the moisture that can be trapped within the cellular structure of concrete to freeze causing the surface to “pop off” or spalling. More air bubbles from the Air Entrainment Admix = less moisture to freeze.

    Spalling concrete is bad, causes more problems down the road and thus can be avoided by adding more Air to the concrete during the mixing process. Volume Concrete LLC., uses the finest quality chemicals sourced from BASF. All the admixtures we use are compatible with themselves.

    Thanks to the Crew at Roadmaster, our mixer trucks have robust measuring and calculating capabilities for correct dosage of all admixtures we carry.