Parameters Influencing the Stability of Foamed Concrete
Publication: Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 30, Issue 6
Abstract
Foamed concrete is a versatile lightweight concrete that is finding increasing use in various application areas. A major concern with foamed concrete is its stability. Air voids can become unstable during production and placement or after placement of foamed concrete during the time when it is plastic and setting has not occurred. Because of the scarcity of information on foamed concrete stability, an experimental study was carried out to yield further information in this regard. Mixtures with foam contents from 20 to 90% were studied. The effects of using varying amounts of a plasticizing admixture in increasing the workability of the base mixture and its influence on stability were also studied. Although it was possible to produce and cast mixtures with up to 90% foam content, it was found that mixtures with foam contents of approximately 65% and higher became unstable some time after casting. Increasing the workability of the base mixture by using a plasticizer significantly improved the stability of foamed concrete mixtures and allowed achieving stability even at very high foam contents.
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Acknowledgments
The financial support for the work described was provided by the civil engineering department of K.N. Toosi University of Technology. The supply of foam concentrate and plasticizing admixture used in the reported study by Azarkavin company is acknowledged.
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Information & Authors
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Published In
Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 30 • Issue 6 • June 2018
Copyright
©2018 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jul 22, 2017
Accepted: Nov 22, 2017
Published online: Mar 28, 2018
Published in print: Jun 1, 2018
Discussion open until: Aug 28, 2018
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