Effect of Sand-to-Cement Ratio on Mechanical Properties of Foam Concrete
Foam concrete, as an important construction and building material, mainly consists of small inner pores (produced by preformed foam) and foam walls (i.e., the concrete surrounding the small inner pores). The effect of density and air volume quantity on compressive strength has been investigated in m...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2022-11-01
|
| Series: | Buildings |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/12/11/1969 |
| _version_ | 1797465815208951808 |
|---|---|
| author | Jian Liu Tiange Ge Yuedong Wu Rui Chen |
| author_facet | Jian Liu Tiange Ge Yuedong Wu Rui Chen |
| author_sort | Jian Liu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Foam concrete, as an important construction and building material, mainly consists of small inner pores (produced by preformed foam) and foam walls (i.e., the concrete surrounding the small inner pores). The effect of density and air volume quantity on compressive strength has been investigated in many previous studies. However, the findings on the relationship between compressive strength and water-to-cement ratio (<i>R<sub>wc</sub></i>) are controversial from different studies. The possible reason may be the effect of sand-to-cement ratio (<i>R<sub>sc</sub></i>), which has not been considered in pervious studies. In this study, a series of compressive tests on foam concrete with various <i>R<sub>wc</sub></i> and <i>R<sub>sc</sub></i> were conducted at a fixed air volume quantity. The results show that when <i>R<sub>wc</sub></i> was 0.5–1.0, the compressive strength increased along <i>R<sub>wc</sub></i>, different from the change of the concrete without foam. The enhance effect from the foam walls was dominant. When <i>R<sub>wc</sub></i> was larger than 1, the slurry was too thin to preserve the bubble for the <i>R<sub>sc</sub></i> of 2. However, for the <i>R<sub>sc</sub></i> of 5, the slurry performed well and its compressive strength remained constant, which was different from the increase stage with <i>R<sub>wc</sub></i> of 0.5–1.0. It was because of the enhanced effect caused by the decrease in the number of small holes, which almost offset the weakening effect for the <i>R<sub>wc</sub></i> on the strength. The enhance effect due to the decrease in the number of small holes can be normalized by the water-to-solid ratio (<i>R<sub>ws</sub></i>). Except the results in the constant stage, the compressive strength increased with the increase of <i>R<sub>ws</sub></i>, irrelevant to the <i>R<sub>sc</sub></i>. It indicates that the sand and cement had the same function on the decrease in the number of small holes. In order to get the same compressive strength, the cement can be replaced by the sand in the increase stage. The research results are expected to improve the quality control and the engineering efficiency of foam concrete. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T18:26:55Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-f5bad23b3fd74e6288e79cc7af4f65bb |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2075-5309 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T18:26:55Z |
| publishDate | 2022-11-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Buildings |
| spelling | doaj.art-f5bad23b3fd74e6288e79cc7af4f65bb2023-11-24T07:50:40ZengMDPI AGBuildings2075-53092022-11-011211196910.3390/buildings12111969Effect of Sand-to-Cement Ratio on Mechanical Properties of Foam ConcreteJian Liu0Tiange Ge1Yuedong Wu2Rui Chen3Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Geomechanics and Embankment Engineering, Hohai University, Nanjing 210098, ChinaKey Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Geomechanics and Embankment Engineering, Hohai University, Nanjing 210098, ChinaKey Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Geomechanics and Embankment Engineering, Hohai University, Nanjing 210098, ChinaDepartment of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Shenzhen, Harbin Institute of Technology, Shenzhen 518055, ChinaFoam concrete, as an important construction and building material, mainly consists of small inner pores (produced by preformed foam) and foam walls (i.e., the concrete surrounding the small inner pores). The effect of density and air volume quantity on compressive strength has been investigated in many previous studies. However, the findings on the relationship between compressive strength and water-to-cement ratio (<i>R<sub>wc</sub></i>) are controversial from different studies. The possible reason may be the effect of sand-to-cement ratio (<i>R<sub>sc</sub></i>), which has not been considered in pervious studies. In this study, a series of compressive tests on foam concrete with various <i>R<sub>wc</sub></i> and <i>R<sub>sc</sub></i> were conducted at a fixed air volume quantity. The results show that when <i>R<sub>wc</sub></i> was 0.5–1.0, the compressive strength increased along <i>R<sub>wc</sub></i>, different from the change of the concrete without foam. The enhance effect from the foam walls was dominant. When <i>R<sub>wc</sub></i> was larger than 1, the slurry was too thin to preserve the bubble for the <i>R<sub>sc</sub></i> of 2. However, for the <i>R<sub>sc</sub></i> of 5, the slurry performed well and its compressive strength remained constant, which was different from the increase stage with <i>R<sub>wc</sub></i> of 0.5–1.0. It was because of the enhanced effect caused by the decrease in the number of small holes, which almost offset the weakening effect for the <i>R<sub>wc</sub></i> on the strength. The enhance effect due to the decrease in the number of small holes can be normalized by the water-to-solid ratio (<i>R<sub>ws</sub></i>). Except the results in the constant stage, the compressive strength increased with the increase of <i>R<sub>ws</sub></i>, irrelevant to the <i>R<sub>sc</sub></i>. It indicates that the sand and cement had the same function on the decrease in the number of small holes. In order to get the same compressive strength, the cement can be replaced by the sand in the increase stage. The research results are expected to improve the quality control and the engineering efficiency of foam concrete.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/12/11/1969foam concretecompressive strengthwater-to-solid ratiosand-to-cement ratio |
| spellingShingle | Jian Liu Tiange Ge Yuedong Wu Rui Chen Effect of Sand-to-Cement Ratio on Mechanical Properties of Foam Concrete Buildings foam concrete compressive strength water-to-solid ratio sand-to-cement ratio |
| title | Effect of Sand-to-Cement Ratio on Mechanical Properties of Foam Concrete |
| title_full | Effect of Sand-to-Cement Ratio on Mechanical Properties of Foam Concrete |
| title_fullStr | Effect of Sand-to-Cement Ratio on Mechanical Properties of Foam Concrete |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effect of Sand-to-Cement Ratio on Mechanical Properties of Foam Concrete |
| title_short | Effect of Sand-to-Cement Ratio on Mechanical Properties of Foam Concrete |
| title_sort | effect of sand to cement ratio on mechanical properties of foam concrete |
| topic | foam concrete compressive strength water-to-solid ratio sand-to-cement ratio |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/12/11/1969 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT jianliu effectofsandtocementratioonmechanicalpropertiesoffoamconcrete AT tiangege effectofsandtocementratioonmechanicalpropertiesoffoamconcrete AT yuedongwu effectofsandtocementratioonmechanicalpropertiesoffoamconcrete AT ruichen effectofsandtocementratioonmechanicalpropertiesoffoamconcrete |