Magazine of Concrete Research, 1989, 41, No.
147, June, 5 1-61
Water sorptivity of mortars and concretes:
a review
C. Hall*
U N I V E R S I T Y OF M A N C H E S T E RI N S T I T U T E
The sorptivity is an easily measured material property
which characterizes the tendency ofaporous materialto
absorb and transmit waterby capillarity. Its theoretical
basis in unsaturated flow theory is reviewed, together
with methods of measurement suitable for cement-based
materials. Available dataon mortars and concretes are
included.Thedependenceofthesorptivityon initial
water content, temperature andJtuid properties is also
described.Othertestmethods(the initial surface
absorption, the Figg water absorption and the Cover-
crete absorption tests) are discussed in termsof the
sorptivity.
Introduction
Some yearsafter its introductionin soil physics,' the
sorptivity made its first appearance in the literatureof
building materials.* In series
a of paper^,^-'^ the theory
ofunsaturated flow (in whichthesorptivity is an
important and precisely defined quantity) wasthen
appliedsystematically to thephenomenaofwater
movement in porousbuildingmaterials.Themain
immediate application of this theory was to clay brick
andbuildingstone,althoughsorptivitydata were
presented on an aerated concrete block material3 and
on a few typical mortar mixes;4 and water content
distributions in hydrated gypsum plaster and a permeability
hardenedcementmortar were a n a l y ~ e d .However,
~ virtues, among which is thatthe
this work had no subsequent impact on research on
cementitious materials until thefirst of several papers
by Hoand about
At the
same time, the
Authoralso p ~ b l i s h e d ' ~ some
- ' ~ results (originally
obtained in studentprojects in
1983-84) on the
*FormerlyDepartment of BuildingEngineering,University
ManchesterInstitute of ScienceandTechnology PO Box 88,
Manchester M60 IQD, UK. Now Etudes et Fabrication Dowel1
Schlumberger,Saint-Etienne,France,andRobinsonCollege,
Adams Road, Cambridge CB3 9AN, UK.
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O F S C I E N C EA N DT E C H N O L O G Y
sorptivityofmortarsandconcretes.Thesestudies
were not comprehensive but did show that the sorptiv-
ity of mortars and concretes could be measured repro-
ducibly andthat it varied in arational way with
composition and curing history.
Today, there is a strong interest in finding better
ways of assessing the material properties of concretes
which determine durability. The processes of deterio-
ration in concrete are mediated largely by water. It is
generally agreed that itwould be auseful step forward
to find a way of measuring a single material property
which reflects the ability of a material to absorb and
transmit water by capillarity. The sorptivity appears
tobe an especially useful propertyof this kind.
This Paper reviews the sorptivity concept, emphasiz-
ingwherepossibletheapplication to cementitious
materials.
Unsaturated versus saturated flow
For many years, thepermeabilityoccupiedpride
ofplace in characterizingthewatertransmission
property. The studyof permeability in concrete has a
long history, beginning with the outstanding study by
Glanville'8 at theBuildingResearchStation in the
early 1930s. The interest continues
to
this
The
(measured
with
water) has several
physicsofthe
measurement is well understood. Thus, if we measure
asteady flowin response toan imposedpressure
gradientand we acceptDarcy's law, thenthe per-
meability is unambiguously defined theoretically and
it is clear what is beingmeasuredexperimentally.
Furthermore, ifwe generalize Darcy's law to three
of dimensions, we can use thepermeability in math-
ematical modelling of complexflows in porous media,
as is routinelydone in hydrology andpetroleum
reservoir engineering.*'
51
 Hull
However, it is a fact that in construction engineer-
ing our materials are rarely saturated in use and the
permeability is the wrong parameter for modelling of
capillary flowsin building structures. The reason is
clear. At complete saturation, the suction exerted by a
material is reduced to zero; andthe(saturated)
permeability tells us nothing about the driving force
for capillary flows. Recognition of this has motivated
work over many years on the capillary suction proper-
ties of building materials.** Unfortunately, the suction
property is much more difficult to measure than the
permeability; and like the permeability it also tells an
incomplete story.
What is required is a physical theory of capillary
flow in unsaturated materialswhich embodies the idea
of Darcianflow in a porous materialin response to the
capillary force arising from its own pore structure, at
all fractional saturations. Unsaturatedflow theory (as
developed for water transportin soils23) doesprecisely
this. The physicsof the flowis expressed in the
extended Darcy equation
4 = K(8)
in which q is the vector flow velocity, K the hydraulic
conductivity and F, the capillary force. Both K and F,
depend on the water content8. The hydraulic conduc-
tivity atsaturation is theconventionalsaturated
permeability. In addition the capillary force is ident-
ified with the gradient of the capillary potential (or
suction) Y
so that for the one-dimensional case with isotropic
conductivity K(@)we obtaintheextendedDarcy
equation which is at the heart of unsaturated flow
theory
Equation (3) is often written
dd
4 = -D(d) -
dx
where
dY
D(d) = K(8) -
de
is thehydraulic diffusivity. This re-expresses the
unsaturated flow equationasa diffusion equation,
mathematicallyspeaking,althoughitneeds to be
porous material f r o m a.free-water reservoir: ( a ) the hori-
emphasized that we are dealing with capillarity, not
molecular diffusion. For many purposes in connection
with building materials there is no need to know Y flow being the sum of capillary-driven and gravity-driven
and K separately. D is the required material property. flows; (c) the capillary rise case, in which the eflects of
However, in problems involving gravitational effects
(drainage,23the approach tocapillary rise eq~ilibrium~~),water absorption rates measured in the three conjgurations
Y and K need to be known individually.
52
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As noted elsewhere,14this theory marks significant
a
advance in the analysis of water movement in building
materials in several respects. First, the theory(as
equations (1)-(3) show) firmly unites the concepts of
suction and permeability. Second, the dependence of
both permeability and suction on water content 8 is
made explicit. Third, the very extensive work done in
soil physics provides a well-developed mathematical
structure based on the general theory of non-linear
diffusion processes for the analysis of water flow in
building elements.
Sorptivity
Thesorptivity S is obtained by consideringthe
application of equation (4) tothe one-dimensional
case of water absorption into an initially dry porous
solid (see Fig. l ) . Theboundaryconditionatthe
wettedsurface is 8 = 8,. The initial condition is
8 = Bo, where, for a dry material, 8, is close to or
equal to zero. The cumulative water absorption (per
unitarea of theinflow surface) i increases as the
(1) square root of the elapsed time t
S is related mathematically to D (or K , Y) because
solving equation (3) or (4), for example by the method
of Philip,*'gives 8(x, t ) , the watercontent distri-
butions at all times and positions. It is found, for this
one-dimensional case only, that 8 is a function of the
single variable d, = xtr'"*, so thatthe cumulative
absorption at any time t is given by
and hence
Inequation (7), 8, = (8 - d0)/(8, - 8,) is the
normalized water content.
Fig. 1. One-dimensional water absorption into a sample of
zontal case, in which the water absorption rate is indepen-
dent of gravitational effects; ( b ) the infiltration case, total
Capillarity and gravity are opposed-a capillary rise equi-
librium is ultimately attained. For many building materials,
are indistinguishable because capillarity is dominant
Magazine of Concrete Research, 1989, 41, No. 147
 Water sorptivity of mortars and concretes

Water
reservoir

235 mm

x=o

I.Oy x 38min
o 57min
x + m 97min
m + + 208min
0.8 X
o
.
m
+ + o
271 rnin
o m
m + o

6
o‘6 t x 0

x
0

0
m

m
+
+
+
+
o

+
0

0
-1
0.0
I
0.2
I
0.4
0,
I
0.6
I
0.8

Fig. 3. Hydraulic d&sivity D as a function of 0 obtained

I
1.o

from data of Fig. 2: fitted curve has equation D (in mm’/

rnin) = 0.49 exp (6.558,)
0

0.2 + 0 concrete. For example, Fig. 2 shows the water content

x o m
c distributions @,(x) in a long bar of cement mortar
o m 0
I Ig determined at a series of elapsed times after bringing
0.0
0 50 100 150 200
x:mm an end face into contact with a water reservoir. As
(a) required by equation (6), these distributions advance
along the bar as t”2, preserving similarity of shape.
PlottedagainsttheBoltzmannvariable I#I = x t - 1 1 2 ,
o + X
o + m theycollapseontoamastercurve Or(+), thearea
0 +m x
U *
underwhich gives thesorptivity S. Thehydraulic
0
. diffusivity D(8) can be obtained numerically2(‘ from
+m Q(+).The hydraulic diffusivity obtained experimentally5
o *
0-P for the 1 : 3 : 12 ordinaryPortland cement(OPC)
X
-D
mortar is shown in Fig. 3 .
W
+ Equation (7) clearly shows that the sorptivity is a
+ function both of the initial and the final water content:
m thus S(8,, O,), The sorptivity as a material property
xt
m conventionally means‘the sorptivity as measured on a
+
m
material in adefinedinitial state ofdryness by
0.01 I I I I b capillary absorption from a free water reservoir’. For
2 4 6 8 10 12
brick ceramics and building stones, dryingto constant
@: mm/rnin”2
(W weight at 105°C is the usually accepted initialstate e,,.
For cementitious materials, a suitable initial state 8,
Fig. 2. Water content distributions obtained by nuclear
magnetic resonance imaging during water absorption into a needs to be agreed. The final state 8, is determined by
mortar bar ( I :3 : 12 OPCllimelsand by volume; volume the water content imposed as a boundary condition in
fraction porosityf 0.27 approximately; dimensions theexperimentalarrangementformeasuringthe
23Smm x 33mm x 3 3 m m ) : ( a ) watercontents 0 against sorptivity, usually saturationby direct contactwith an
x for various elapsed times t; ( b ) 0 against 4 (= x - “ “ ) , unlimited supply of water. It follows that (8, - 8,) is
showing collapse of data on to a master profile
approximately equal tothe volume fraction porosity$
Thequestion of how thesorptivity varies with
The hydraulic diffusivity D can be regarded as the initial water content is an important one for relating
fundamental water
absorptionand
transmission field and laboratory measurements, and is discussed in
property of the porous material which underlies the more detail below.
sorptivity. While determiningD(8)is a lengthy matter,
the sorptivity S is relatively easy to determine experi-
mentally and is a single number.
Measurement of sorptivity
The theoretical equation (6) has been amply con- Since
the
sorptivity is a well-defined physical
firmed by experiment for many materials’ and it is quantity, more than one way may be used to deter-
beyond question that unsaturated flow theory reason- mine it.4A very simple laboratory method hasbeen in
ably describes the processes of capillary flow inporous use for more than ten years at UMIST, during which
materialssuchasbrick,stone,plaster,mortarand time several thousand tests have been carried out on a
Magazine of Concrete Research, 1989, 41, No. 147 53

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 Hall

1sr

tl/':minl/2

Fig. 5 . Sorptivity plots ( i against t'12) showing systematic

curvature; ( a ) I :7 masonry cementlsand mortar mix; [ b )
/ I :5 masonry cement mix (both ( a ) and ( b ) cured as in
Fig. 4 ) ; ( c ) I :2 : 4 OPC/sand/aggregate concrete, water1
cement ratio 0.6 (data from Hall and Yau14). The lines
through the data points are least-squares best fits of
equation ( 9 )

show some downward curvaturein the i ( t ' : 2 plot.

) The
unsaturated flow theory of capillary r i ~ e ~shows
. ' ~ that
deviation from simple tlS2behaviour is expected when
the capillary potential gradients in the sample are so
low as to be comparable with the gradients of gravi-
tational potential. This is the casel3.I4for extremely
coarseporestructures with little suction. In such
0.01 I I I I I I I
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 cases, data are fitted to the equation
p : mi"1/2
(b) i = A + St1" - Ct (9)
Fig. 4. Sorptivity plots: [ a ) f o r three normal OPClsandl
lime mortars (data from Hall and Tse"; samples were
to obtain thesorptivity S . (A simple estimateof S can
hand mixed, cast as 250mm x 5 0 m m x 50 m m rec- of course alsobe made from thelimiting slope at early
tangular bars, moist curedfor IO days and air-dried at times.)Examples of thisbehaviour in mortars and
50°C for three d a y s ) ; ( 6 ) f o rtwo I : 2 : 4 OPClsandlgravel concretes are shown in Fig. 5.
aggregate concretes [data from Hall and Yat114) A great virtue of the sorptivity test described is its
simplicity and theremarkablequality of the data
wide variety of materials. The procedure is described which can be obtained.
fully in the Appendix. In fact, in practical details, the
method differs littlefromthecapillary rise water
absorption test described by RILEM" and BCRA.'*
Sorptivity of cementitious materials
However,the data analysis is done in terms of Sorptivity data on a variety of cementitious materials
equation (5). In practice, data points are fitted to the are gathered together in Table 1. Some of these data
equation have been published elsewhere; others are taken from
unpublished sources.
i = A + St"2 (8)
The study of sorptivity in concrete reportedby Hall
because a finite (generally small, positive) i intercept is and YauI4 showedhow the sorptivity varies in a set of
usually found. (The origin of this is well understood concrete samplesof different mix and different degrees
-it arises from the filling of open surface porosity on of compaction. The results are summarized in Fig. 6(a).
the inflow surfaceandalongthe sides of adjacent The plot uses the bulk density astheindependent
faces). The very large majority of inorganic building variable: there is a general trend to lower sorptivity for
materialsobeythe t"2 law in capillary absorption higher bulk density in each set of materials. However,
remarkably well. Some data for mortars and concretes the sorptivity depends on a number of composition
are shown in Fig. 4. parametersandalso on the method of sample
A few materials with extremely coarse pore struc- preparation, as might be expected. It is apparent that
tures (poorly compacted concretes for example) may the sorptivity does reflect subtle changes in material
54 Magazine of Concrete Research, 1989, 41, No. 147

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 Water sorptivity of mortars and concretes

Table 1. Sorptivity data for cementitious materials

-
Composition Water/cement Porosity Dry bulk density: Sorptivity C coeff. s/c
ratio kdm' mm/min'J
-
Mortars
-
Cement/sand/lime
1 . 3 : 12 4.50 - - 2.570 0 -

1 : 3 : IO 3.20 0.364 1760 1.940 0 -

1:2:8 2.20 0.346 1860 1.380 0 -

l:l:5 1.55 0,328 1830 1,310 0 -

1 : 0.5 : 4 0.93 0.273 1990 0.560 0 -

1 : 0.25 : 3 0.85 0.265 2020 0.550 0 -
-
Masonry cement/sand
1.7 1.15 0.334 1740 1.180 0.037 32
1:6 1.10 0.326 I820 0.620 0.01 3 47
1.5 0.95 0.29 I 1830 0.5 10 0.002 270
1:3 0.63 0.262 1930 0.340 0.003 120
-
Plasticized cement/sand .
[water: plasticizer]
l : 7 [22: I] 1.15 0,324 1680 0.740 0.033 22
1:5[18:1] 0.90 0.290 1790 0.340 0.011 32
1 : 5 [8.5: l] 0.85 0.373 1710 0.210 0.008 27
1 : 5 [5.3 : l] 0.80 0.361 I680 0.150 0.005 33
1 . 3 [23:1] 0.55 0-262 1960 0,220 0.001 370
-
Concretes
-
Cement/sand/aggregate
1:2:4 0.40 - 2030 0.480 0.027 18
(normal tamping) 0.50 0.1 13 2310 0.250 0.012 21
0.60 - 2340 0,290 0.0 15 19
0.70 0.139 2262 0.290 0.0I5 19
0.80 0.141 227 1 0.350 0.016 22
0.90 0.132 2250 0.360 0.0 16 22
-
Cement/sand/aggregate
1:2:4 0.40 - 2243 0.094 0.003 31
0.50 - 2321 0.120 0.002 60
(prolonged tamping)
0.60 0.1 13 2299 0.170 0.005 34
0.70 0. I29 2303 0.130 0.001 130
0.80 0.133 2180 0.180 0.002 90
0.90 0.138 2195 0.130 - 0.003 - 43
1.oo 0.131 2202 0. I60 0.003 53
-
Cement/sand/aggregate
I :3:4 0.60 - 2241 0,290 0.008 36
0.80 - 2220 0.310 0-006 52
(normal tamping)
-

properties,althoughmuchremainsto be doneto lished3' data on water absorption into 1 : 3 cement/

explore fully the composition dependence of capillary sand mortar bars (water cement ratio 0.5, dry bulk
absorptionphenomena. A particularlyinteresting density 2070 kg/m3and volumefractionporosity
findingwas the sensitivity of thesorptivitytothe 0.167). From these data a sorptivity ( 2 O O C ) of about
compaction of the sample. Fig. 6(b) summarizes the 0.14 mm/min'/2 is calculated.
data obtained by Hall and Tse" on mortars.
The Author has not traced any data onthe sorptivity
Properties of the sorptivity
ofcementpastes.Thereforethelower limit onthe
range of sorptivityforcement-basedmaterials is This section discusses several important properties
uncertain.InTable 1 the lowestvalues (around of the sorptivity.
0.1 mm/min':2) are for 1 : 2 : 4 concretesprepared
with prolonged tamping. Similar valuesare ~alculated'~ Dependence of the sorptivity on initial water content
fromthedata of MacInnisandNathawad"on For applications of unsaturatedflow theory to con-
concretepavingslabs,obtained in thecourseof crete durability and deterioration, it
is recognized that
a study on frost damage. Recently, Daian has pub- buildingelements and surfaces in practicearenot
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 Hall

OPCisandigravel aggregate mix that, as for soils,34D varies exponentially with 8,

0 1 :2:4, varying watericement
ratio
A 1 :2:4, varying watericement D = D, exp (Be,) (10)
ratio, subjected to prolonged
O ,
i
' where 8, is the normalized water content. If 8, rep-
0.4 t ramming during casting
m 1 :3:4
resents the laboratory dry state, then B has a value of
O O

m
between 6 and 8, varyinglittle between materials.
m 0 O While further experimental confirmation is necessary,
0
it appears probable that for engineering calculations,
A
we may regard equation (IO) as universal. If so, the
A A

A 'A
functional dependence of sorptivity on initial water
A content is also universal (and asgiven in reference IO).
For practical purposes (assumingB = 7), this may be
0.0 U I I I written as
2000 2100 2200 2300 2400
Density: kg/m3 S,/So = (1 - 1.088i,)1'2 (1 1 )
(a)
where S, is the sorptivity measured on a dry sample
Mixes
2.0 Cernentilimeisand (8, = 0) and S, the sorptivity measured on the same
m Masonry cementisand samplewith an initial,uniformnormalizedwater
A Vinsol resin Dlasticized OPCisand
content 8, = &.
\ 0
Dependence of sorptivity on temperature
The sorptivity rises slowly with increasing tempera-
ture. It has been shown4 that the sorptivity at any
temperature is proportional to quantity(o/q)"*,where
a is the surface tension andq is the viscosity of water.
This is exactly as predictedtheoretically: (o/q)'!'
A
A A
increasesfrom about7m"2/s1'2at 5°C toabout
I I I l J
0.0
1600 1700 1800 1900 2000 2100
10m"2/sl'2at 35°C.
Density kgirn'
(b)
Sorptivity measured with dzfferent fluids
Fig. 6 . Sorptivity variation in morrurs and concretes: ( a ) A sorptivity measurement can be made with any wet-
concrete sample^;'^ (6) mortar sampIes,13 increasingly rich ting fluid. The sorptivity as conventionally measured
in cement,frorn left t o right
is the water sorptivity (or hydraulic sorptivity),using
pure water as the absorbed fluid. For other wetting
usually dry(although they are rarelycompletely fluids, themeasuredsorptivityagain varies4 asthe
saturated). It follows that a key question is: 'Given quantity (aiq)". The small variation in water absorp-
thatthesorptivityofamaterialmeasuredunder tion ratewith different salt solutions notedby MacInnis
laboratoryconditions is known,what willbe its andNathawad2'probablyarosefrom the
small
sorptivity in situ at other initial water contents?' changes in viscosity and surfacetensionrelative to
For a material of knownD ( 8 ) ,the cumulative water pure water.I4
absorptioncan be foundasafunction oftime by
Philip's method25 for any uniform initial water content Relation between sorptivity and other
8,. Consequentlythesorptivitycanbefoundasa
function of 8,. Hall et al. reported" a study of the
measures of water absorption
dependence of the sorptivity of brick on the initial There has been muchdiscussion35 recently about
water content. This showed excellent agreement with thestrengthsandshortcomingsofanumberof
the predictions of unsaturated flow theory. A number proposed test methods for estimating water absorp-
of approximate expressions are known which relate tionandtransmissionproperties.Much of thedif-
the sorptivity to the diff~sivity~',~* and which would ficulty stemsfromthefactthat these methodsare
allow corrections for different initial water contents to treatedempirically andarenotsupported by any
be made. It should be emphasized that initial the water underlying physical theory of capillary flow. In fact,
content must be uniform; if it is not, the initial con- given suchatheory (even if incomplete)a variety
dition for equation (6) is not met and t"' absorption of methodsshouldprovide estimatesofthesame
behaviour will not be observed.Thecorrectionfor materialproperty.It is interesting,
therefore, to
initial watercontent canonly bemade if the functional analyse the proposed test methodsin terms of unsatu-
dependence of the diffusivity on water content 8 is rated flow theory. From such analyses, data from any
known. While our knowledgeof D forbuilding method can in principle be used to obtain anestimate
materials remains quite limited, there is e ~ i d e n c e ~ , ' ~ofthesorptivity.InfactonlytheISAThas been
56 Magazine of Concrete Research, 1989, 41, No. 147

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 Water sorptivity of mortars and concretes

Fig. 7. Schematic diagram of the initial surface absorption

test-water is absorbedfrom a reservoir clamped to the
surface of the test material: the wetted region which devel-
ops is ellipsoidal and there is marked spreading f r o m the
edge of the reservoir

so analysed*anddiscussed in relation todatafor

clay brick.

Initial surface absorption test ( I S A T )

In the ISAT a square or circular cap supplied with
water is clampedtothe test surfaceandthewater Fig. 8. Comparison of water absorption f r o m a finite source
absorption rate is measured over a period of time. The with true one-dimensional water absorption; ( a ) cumulative
water absorption per unit area i(t1I2) into a clay common
arrangement is shownschematically in Fig. 7. It is brick f r o m a circular source, diameter 51 mm; ( b ) cumu-
immediately clear that the flow is not unidirectional lative water absorption on the same face of the same brick
but that the streamlines of the flow spread laterally as by the standard sorptivity test as described in the Appendix,
the wetting front advances into the material. This has Sorptivity is 1.36mm/min"2
been analysed in more detail in Hall.' Levitt's original
expectatiod6thatthe water absorptionrate would
where S is in millimetres/(minute)'~2 and ISAlois in
decrease as t r ' " is incorrect theoretically, although it
millilitres/(square metre second).
doesrepresentthe limiting behaviour at t = 0. At
The estimate would be improved if it were made
longer times, the index n in t r " decreases progressively
from the slopeofthecumulative absorption,not
and at long times approaches zero, the water absorp-
fromtheabsorption rate measurement at a single
tion rate becoming constant. (Theexistence of a finite
time. Plotting the cumulative absorption enables the
steady rate for three-dimensional water absorption',*'
deviation from tl" behaviour to be clearly seen and
has a direct analogyin heat flow" .) This behaviour is
allows the early timedata to be selected for estimating
discussed a little more fully in the Appendix. Fig. 8
S . Later measurements are increasingly contaminated
showsdataforwaterabsorption fromacircular
by the lateral spreading. For the laboratory, the ISAT
source into brick which illustrate this behaviour very
doesnot seem to offer anyadvantages overthe
clearly. Fig. 9 presents some datawith similar features
sorptivity test. For the field, the problem of theinitial
for a concrete material of much lower sorptivity.
moisture state remains a very serious difficulty for all
The observations of Dhiret al." on ISAT results on
in situ methods. Dhir et al.35have shown that just as
oven-dried concrete also seem consistent. They note
expected the ISA value measuredon a poor but rather
that n was found to lie between 0.3 and 0.4. These
wet concrete surface can be as low as that on ahigh-
authorsalsoremarkthat muchhighervalues are
found when the ISAT is carried out on materialswith
ahighinitialwater content. It is likely thatthe
explanation lies in the fact that these materials are not *'OI

initially dryasthatthere is asteepwatercontent

gradient near the surface. Underthese circumstances,
the water absorption rate is initially high, but falls off
very rapidlyasthe wetting frontencountersthe
increasingly saturated zones below the surface.As has
alreadybeennoted,thesorptivity itself diminishes
with increasing initial water content, so that in such a
case S is itself not constant in equation (4).
As seen in Fig. 8 the ISAT can provide data from
which a good estimate of the sorptivity can be made.
Thesorptivity may be calculated directly fromthe </Z:mi"'/2

1Omin ISAwaterabsorptionrate(ISA,,) by the Fig. 9. Comparison of ISAT and sorptivity test data f o r
formula concrete (1 :2 :4 OPClsandlgravel aggregate; water :cement
ratio 0.7; sorptivity 0.115 mm/min"2); the extremely small
total absorption compared with Fig. 8 should be noted

Magazine oj'Concrefr Research, 1989, 41, No. 147 51

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 Hall
quality material in a dry state. As discussed above, a
sorptivity measured on a partially saturated material
can be corrected if the initial water contentis uniform.
However, if the material is not uniformly wet, there
areinsuperable difficulties. There seems to be no
solution to this, apart from the obvious one: to insist
on preconditioning the sample before measurement.
The problem applies equally to in situ suction or gas
permeability measurements. It is the hydraulic equiv-
alent of the problem of determining thermal properties
in a situation in which one cannot control the initial
temperature distribution of the sample.
Figs water and Covercrete” tests
In these two methods, a cylindrical hole is drilled
into the surface and the water absorption rate from
this hole is measured. The exact geometrical details
differ but neither provides a ‘pure’ cylindrical source
(Fig. IO), so thatthe flow patterns whichdevelop
aroundthesourceduringboth tests are extremely
complicated. In the Appendix the equations aregiven
for the absorption from an ideal cylindrical source.At
early times, onceagain,thecumulativeabsorption
increases as St”’, so that S can be estimated. How-
ever, the source radiusis rather small in both tests and
the effects of radial spreading become very apparent
within a few minutes. In Fig. 11, we show the predicted
water absorption and water absorption rate from a
cylindricalsource as a function of time. The water
absorption rate U (defined by equation (13) of the
Appendix) deviates appreciably from t dependence
- ”’
for T > 0.1 approximately. For amaterial with a
sorptivity of0.5 mm/minl!2 and a porosity of about 0.2
themeasurementmust be completedwithin about
1 min. Since the dimensions of the Covercrete test are
rather smaller than thoseof the ISAT, deviations from
t-”’ behaviour are expected to occur even earlier, the
effect being more severe the more sorptive the material. tional flow) geometries are strongly preferred, for the
This is found by Dhir et al.35who compared 10min
values obtained by the two methods. The Covercrete
results were always higher.
Other tests
The procedure for measuring the sorptivity proposed ment is chosen,it is very desirable to take data of
recently by Kelham39 should produce data consistent
(a) (W
Fig. IO. Schematic diagram of other tests: ( a ) the Figg of building materials showthat the timescales are long
water absorption test; ( b ) the Covercrete test
58
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I I I I I I I I
-4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4
log r
Fig. 11. Predicted U ( T ) for cylindrical source (see text)
with those obtained in the sorptivity test described
here. Kelhamcontinues his test untilthe wet front
reaches the endof the sample and from the total water
absorption heobtainsalsothe ‘effective’ porosity
(here denoted f ) , This can of coursealso be done
with the procedure described in theAppendix. The
procedure’s-’7used by Ho and Lewis is to determine
visually the depth of penetration xwfof the wet front
as a function of time. The slope dx,f/dt”2 which H o
and Lewis report as the sorptivity is larger than sorp-
tivity defined here by a factor (Q, - Q w f ) - ’ , where dWf
is the water contentat the visible wet front. This factor
only very approximately equals the porosity f. This
difference in definition makesdirectcomparison of
data difficult.
The RILEM27 and BCRAZ8 tests are also well suited
to the determination of the sorptivity.
Better tests.?
Could better tests be devised?
For the laboratory, the one-dimensional (unidirec-
simplicity of theoretical description and data analysis.
Whether capillary rise or some horizontal flow
arrangement is chosen is a secondary consideration;as
is thechoice between manual weighing4.I3or some
continuous recording system.39 Whateverarrange-
cumulative absorption overareasonableperiod of
time. The single point measurement wastes the oppor-
tunity to improveprecision by data averaging or curve
fitting. The direct measurement of the water absorp-
tion rate is usually less satisfactorythan using the
cumulative absorption as the primary measurement.
Overall, there seems to be no great need for further
improvement in the laboratory measurement.
For the site measurement, the position is different.
The most severe problem” appears to be the difficulty
of achievingareasonablycontrolled and uniform
state ofinitial dryness. Laboratory data onthe drying
even under fairly favourable conditions. It is charac-
Magazine of Concrete Research, 1989, 41, No. 147

(W
Fig. 12. Surface absorption test arrangements in which
lateral spreading from the source is minimised: ( a ) measure-
ment on an attached core; ( b ) source with guard ring in
which the absorption from the central compartment only is
measured
teristic of capillary d r ~ i n g ' ~ that
. ~ ' steep gradients of
water content develop near the surface of the material
(say the top 10-20mm).
The ISAT could beimproved in some respects.8
Prescribing a circular source of standard radiuswould
eliminate some variability, bearing in mind that the
characteristic time for absorption from the circular
source is ri f ' / S 2 .Again, the slope of the cumulative
absorption i against t'" is a bettermeasureofthe
sorptivity than the single point measurement.
There are also two simple ways of eliminating (or
greatly reducing) the lateral spreading from theTSAT
source. One (Fig. 12(a)) is to drill into the test surface
with a core bit of the same diameter as the source to
isolate a cylindrical prism of material (but without
detaching it). The secondis to use a guard ring on the
source (Fig. 12(b)), measuring water absorption only
from the central circular compartment.
Methods involving water absorption from cylindri-
cal drill holeshave several practicalattractions.
Fig. 13. Sorptivity test-schematic diagram
Magazine of Concrete Research, 1989, 41, No. 147
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Water sorptivity of mortars and concretes
However, simple t"' behaviour will be observed over
elapsed times of, say, 10-30min only if the radius is
considerably larger than is commonly used.
Conclusions
Thetheory of unsaturated flow asdeveloped in
soil-water physics offers agooddescription of the
processesofcapillary flowin porouscementitious
materials.Thefundamentalmaterialpropertiesare
the hydraulic diffusivity D,the moisture potential Y
andthehydraulicconductivity K . Of thesethree
quantities, only two are independent. The hydraulic
sorptivity S is a derived quantity of the theory which
may easily be determined in a simplecapillary absorp-
tion test in the laboratory. The sorptivityis mathemat-
ically related to the hydraulic diffusivity. All simple
water absorption test procedures in principle provide
data fromwhich the sorptivity canbe estimated. How-
ever, the geometrical arrangements in the currentfield
methods are not ideal for this purpose. Furthermore,
the difficulty of bringing the sample to a satisfactory
initial state of dryness presents a major difficulty for
all field methods.
For concretes and mortars, sorptivity data obtained
in the laboratory showreasonablysystematic vari-
ation with mix andcuringhistory. A casecan be
made for including a measurement of the sorptivity
parameter routinely in researchwork onconcrete
materials.
Acknowledgements
The Author gratefully acknowledges the support of
the UK Science and Engineering Research Council,
and the contributions of W. D. Hoff, R. J. Gummer-
son, A. N. Kalimeris, M. Skeldon, T. K. M. Tse and
M. R. Yau to the work described.
Appendix
Procedure for measuring the hydraulic sorptivity4."
Testprocedure. Thesorptivitycan be determined
(Fig. 13) by measurement of the capillaryrise absorp-
tionrateonreasonablyhomogeneousmaterials.
Water is normally used as the test fluid. The material
must be in the form of a prism of constant cross-
section. A typical andconvenientsample sizeis
50 x 50 x 150 mm, although results are not depend-
ent on sample size. In very accurate work, the lower
parts of the sides of the sample adjoining the inflow
face may be sealed with a bituminous paint or other
coating to prevent absorption into the surface pores.
The sample should rest on rods or pins to allow free
access of water to the inflow surface. The water level
should not be more than 5 mm or so above thebase of
thespecimen. Thequantity of absorbed fluid is
59
 Hall

measured at intervals by weighing thespecimen. A
top-pan balance weighing to 0.1 g is suitable, but a
balance weighing to 1 g is adequateunder some
circumstances (for example for whole bricks or other
large specimens). Surfacewater on the specimen
should be mopped off with a dampened tissue. Each
weighing operation should be completed as quickly as
possible (within 30 S ) . The clock should notbe stopped
during weighing. A minimum of five points is necess-
ary to define a good sorptivity plot and a somewhat
largernumber is desirable. The dimensions of the
specimen and the temperature should be noted.
Analysis of results. S is defined as the slope of the i
against t'" line, where i = Aw/AQ*(in which Aw is the
increase in weight, A the cross-sectional area and e*
the density of water). If the i against t"' data are well
represented by a straight line, S should be determined
by a least-squares fit of i on t112.The origin should not
be included as a datum point because an intercept at
t = 0 is frequently found on extrapolation of the best
line to the remaining points. If the i against t"* plot is
not linear but shows some systematic curvature, no
sorptivity can be derived in this simple way (but see
Hall and Tse13 for the use of the equation i = A +
St1'2 - C t ) .
The sorptivity is proportional to (o/r])"',where o is
the surface tension and r] the viscosity of the absorbed
fluid. The sorptivity rises with temperature. Data on
the sorptivityobtainedin thelaboratorywithout
deliberate temperature control can be normalized to a
standard reference temperature of 2OoC by applying a
multiplying factor to the measured sorptivity value.
Fullest details of the test material should be noted,
including the direction of flow in the sorptivity test in
relation, for example, to the brick face or the bedding
plane of a building stone. Useful supplementary data
includethedry bulk density and the vacuumsatu-
ration porosity.
Millimetres/(minutes)'/' are convenientunitsfor
buildingmaterials; for SI, mm/min1'2= 1.291 x
10-~m/sl.~.
Absorption from a circular source
Capillaryabsorption (neglecting gravity)froma
circular source is a difficult case of three-dimensional
unsaturated flow for which no analyticalsolution
exists.
The boundary condition is B = B, on r < r,; zero
flux on the rest of the surface, and initial condition
8 = B, for all z at t = 0. Initially, the flow is normal
to the circular source but at longtimes (when the size
of thewetted region becomes large compared with the
source radius) the flow is radial and the wetted region
tendsto ahemisphere.Usingthe'sharp wet front'
water absorption rate per unit source area eventually
reaches a steady finite value U, = 2S2/(nfr0).How-
ever, no results appear tobe available for intermediate
times, althoughthethree-dimensionalunsaturated
flowcould be modelled numerically, using the full
three-dimensionalunsaturated flow equation which
can be developed from equation (3).
Absorption from a cylindrical source
Two-dimensional radial capillary absorption from
a cylindrical source, radius r,, has been analysed by
Philip." Usingthe sharp wet-frontapproximation
gives expressions for the absorptionrate U" and
cumulative absorption i (per unit area of cylindrical
supply surface) at all times t . Defining dimensionless
variables
and
gives
T = [($ - l ) exp (4/7cU) + l] (14)
and
For small T, U = (zT)-',", sothat U, = ST-1'2/2,
and, at large T, U = 2(ln T)-I
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