M a ss Con cr e t e

Robe r t M ose r
CEE8 8 1 3 A – M a t e r ia l Scie n ce of Con cr e t e

Lecture Overview
{ General Overview
z Definit ions & St andards, Therm al Cracking, and
Tem perat ure Rise
{ Tem perat ure & St ress Predict ion
{ Fact ors Affect ing Tem perat ure Rise
z Cem ent , Aggregat e, Am bient Tem p, SCMs, et c…
{ Placem ent Techniques
{ Post - Placem ent Techniques
z Em bedded Pipe Cooling
z Form work I nsulat ion
{ Therm al Expansion Reinforcem ent

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 General Overview
{ Mass Concret e is defined as:

z “ Any volum e of concret e w it h dim ensions large

enough t o require t hat m easures be t aken t o cope
wit h t he generat ion of heat from hydrat ion of t he
cem ent and at t endant volum e change t o m inim ize
cracking.”
( ACI Manual of Concret e Pract ice)

{ Fundam ent al Papers on Mass Concret e

z “ Engineering Mass Concret e St ruct ures” – PCA Professional
Dev elopm ent Ser ies
z “ Mass Concret e – ACI 207” ACI Manual of Concret e Pr act ice

General Overview
{ Cem ent Hydr at ion is a very exot herm ic process, leading t o
a rise in t em perat ure at t he core of very large pours. ( Ke lly)
{ I f t he surface t em perat ure is allowed t o deviat e great ly
from t hat of t he core, t herm al cracking will develop.
z Most codes require a t em per at ure different ial of less t han 36F
from t he surface t o t he core of t he sect ion. ( Ga j da 1 )
{ When dim ensions are > 1m or 3ft , t em perat ure rise
should be considered. ( Pa n a r e se )
{ Com m on t hought is m ass concret e principles only apply t o
large dam s. But t hey apply t o any large pour:
z Massive foundat ions, bridge pier s, t hick slabs, nuclear plant s,
st ruct ural colum ns, et c…

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Thermal Cracking
{ Cem ent hydrat ion produces a rise in int ernal
t em perat ure.
{ The out er surface cools fast er t han t he core of t he
sect ion.
{ By t herm al expansion/ cont ract ion, t he t em perat ure
different ial induces t herm al ( t ensile) st resses at t he
surface. ( M e ht a )
{ St resses > Tensile St rengt h = > Therm al Cracking!
High cor e t em perat ure
during hydrat ion.

Cooled surface and

t her m al cracking.

High degree of rest r aint

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Temperature Rise
{ Tem perat ure rise varies by m any param et ers:
z Cem ent com posit ion, fineness, and cont ent
z Aggregat e cont ent and CTE ( Coeff. of Ther m al Ex pansion)
z Sect ion geom et ry
z Placem ent & am bient t em perat ures ( M a ss)

{ Most t em p rise occurs in first 1- 3 days aft er placem ent .

For t hick sect ions,

cooling t o am bient
t em ps m ay t ak e year s.

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( M e ht a )
Temperature & Stress Prediction
{ General equat ions can be used t o est im at e t he
t em perat ure rise and t her m al st ress developed.
{ Sim plist ic way t o find t em perat ure rise:
z Find equivalent cem ent cont ent , adding SCMs, PC, et c…
z Equivalent cem ent cont ent ( lb/ yd^ 3 ) * .14 ~ = Tem p Rise ( F)
{ 1 lb/ yd3 of cem ent is count ed as 1 lb/ yd3 cem ent ;

{ 1 lb/ yd3 of class F fly ash is count ed 0.5 lb/ yd3 cem ent

{ 1 lb/ yd3 of class C fly ash is count ed 0.8 lb/ yd3 cem ent

{ 1 lb/ yd3 of slag cem ent ( at 50 percent cem ent

replacem ent ) is count ed as 0.9 lb/ yd3 cem ent
{ 1 lb/ yd3 of slag cem ent ( at 75 percent cem ent
replacem ent ) is count ed as 0.8 lb/ yd3 cem ent . ( Ga j da 2 )
{ Many m et hods are available for t he est im at ion of
t em perat ure rise

Temperature & Stress Prediction

{ Exam ples of a graphical m et hod:

( Cope )

- exam ple for a Type 1 cem ent , 376 lb/ yd^ 3, and 60F
placem ent t em perat ure
- ot her fact or s m ust be exam ined, such as heat flow t o or
from t he envir onm ent

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Temperature & Stress Prediction
{ Ot her predict ion m et hods:

( Sca nlon)

( Cope )

( M e ht a )

( Ga j da 1 ) 9

Temperature & Stress Prediction

{ For pours wit h com plex geom et ries com put er m odels are
used.
{ Genet ic Algorit hm s are also used t o m odel cem ent
hydrat ion t o predict t em perat ure dist ribut ions. ( Riding)
{ Adiabat ic t em perat ure rise can be used for a conservat ive
est im at e.

T r ise < T r ise

a ct ua l a dia ba t ic

-Due t o heat flow t o t he surface

- Adiabat ic: Q= 0

( Tow nse nd)

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 Temperature & Stress Prediction
{ Good art icles on t em perat ure & st ress predict ion:
z “ Mass Concret e – ACI 207” ACI Manual of Concret e Pr act ice
z “ Evaluat ion of Tem per at ur e Predict ion Met hods for Mass
Concr et e Mem ber s” ACI Mat erials Jour nal
z “ Modeling Ther m al St resses at Early Ages in a Concr et e
Monolit h” ACI Mat er ials Jour nal
z “ Est im at ion of Ther m al Crack Resist ance for Mass Concret e
St ruct ures w it h Uncert ain Mat erial Propert ies” – ACI
St ruct ural Jour nal
z “ Ear ly- age heat evolut ion of clink er cem ent s in relat ion t o
m icrost r uct ure and com posit ion: im plicat ion for t em per at ure
developm ent in large concret e elem ent s” – Cem ent &
Concr et e Com posit es

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Temperature & Stress Prediction

{ Finit e Elem ent Analysis can be perform ed t o det erm ine if
t herm al cracking will occur.
z For analy sis, t im e dependent funct ion for t he CTE, E, Tensile
St rengt h et c… m ust be found for early- age effect s! ! ! ( W u)
Ther m al ex pansion of inner core
of t he colum n
Tem per at ur e Different ial
Cooling surface, in t ension
E( t )

Concr e t e Colum n: FE M ode l ( Cook ) 12

( Ayot t e )
Temperature & Stress Prediction
{ Heat of Hydrat ion
z I t is im port ant t o know t he heat of hydr at ion of t he cem ent
being used.
z ASTM C1 8 6 – St andard Test Met hod for Heat of Hydrat ion of
Hydraulic Cem ent
Fr on t Side Different ial
Ther m om et er

Cem ent Past e Mixer

Cem ent Past e Cont ainer

( ASTM )
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Factors Affecting Temp. Rise

{ Geom et ry
z Pour s w it h a large volum e: surface area rat io are m or e
suscept ible t o t her m al cracking!
z Resear ch has been perfor m ed t o produce m ore accurat e
dim ensions for when t em perat ure r ise should be considered.
{ Cem ent Com posit ion ( Ulm )

z Cem ent s used for Mass Concr et e should hav e a low C3 S and
C3 A cont ent t o reduce ex cessive heat during hydrat ion.
z Most Mass Concret e st ruct ur e do not require early st rengt h,
so slower hydr at ion is usually not har m ful t o const r uct ion.

Type I and I I are m ost

prom inent ly used for Mass
Concr et e.

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( Cope )
 Factors Affecting Temp. Rise
{ Cem ent Fineness
z Cem ent wit h a lower fineness wit h slow hy dr at ion, and
reduce t em per at ure r ise. ( M a ss)
{ Cem ent Cont ent
z Mass Concret e m ixt ures should cont ain as low of a cem ent
cont ent as possible t o achiev e t he desired st rengt h. This
lowers t he heat of hydrat ion and subsequent t em perat ure
rise. Can be as low as 170 lb/ yd^ 3 ( M e ht a )
{ Aggregat e Cont ent
z Coarse Aggregat e should be have an MSA of 6in if possible.
z A higher coar se aggregat e cont ent ( 70- 85% ) can be used t o
lower t he cem ent cont ent , reducing t em per at ure r ise. ( M a ss)
Nor m al Concret e

Larger MSA + Bet t er

Pack ing = Less Cem ent ,
and less HEAT! 15

Factors Affecting Temp. Rise

{ Coarse Aggregat e Coefficient of Therm al Expansion
z The CTE of t he coar se aggr egat e is t he m ain influence on t he
CTE of t he concret e. Choosing an aggregat e wit h a low CTE
can cut t her m al st r esses in half. ( M a ss)

Lower CTE will provide

m ore resist ance t o
t her m al cracking.

- Lower CTE aggregat es

t end t o have a higher
t her m al conduct iv it y ;
so heat is released
fast er fr om t he core.
( M e ht a )
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Factors Affecting Temp. Rise
{ Effect of concret e CTE:

Lower CTE allows for a

higher t em perat ure
gradient

( Ga j da 1 )

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Factors Affecting Temp. Rise

{ Supplem ent ary Cem ent icious Mat erials ( SCMs)
z SCMs such as Fly Ash, and Slag can great ly reduce t he heat
of hydrat ion. ( Liw u)
z Pozzolans such as FA ( class F is best > slow er hydr at ion) and
Slag will produce bet ween 15- 50% of t he heat of nor m al
Port land Cem ent . ( At is)
z Highly react ive SCMs such as Silica Fum e and Met ak aolin do
not subst ant ially lower t he heat of hydr at ion. ( Alsha m si)

Lower cem ent

cont ent + pozzolans
great ly reduces
t em perat ure rise!

( Ca r lson)
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 Factors Affecting Temp. Rise
{ Use of SCMs such as FA and GGBFS is com m only up
t o 60- 75% cem ent replacem ent . ( At is)
Norm al Port land Cem ent

50% FA Replacem ent

70% FA Replacem ent

( At is)

Placem ent t em perat ure

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Factors Affecting Temp. Rise

( Alsha m si)
10% SF Replacem ent
10% SF & 50% GGBFS Replacem ent

{ For m ore inform at ion on SCM replacem ent

z “ Heat Ev olut ion of High- Volum e Fly Ash Concr et e” – Cem ent
& Concret e Resear ch
z “ Micr osilica and Ground Granulat e Blast Fur nace Slag Effect s
on Hydrat ion Tem perat ure” – Cem ent & Concret e Research
z “ Dam Const r uct ion – Concret e Tem per at ur e Cont rol
Using Fly Ash” – Concr et e I nt ernat ional
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 Factors Affecting Temp. Rise
{ Placem ent Tem perat ure
z Pour ing at low er t em perat ures will reduce t he t her m al
st resses in t he sect ion. ( Cope )
{ Slow s hydrat ion > lower s heat of hydrat ion

{ Lower s t em per at ure different ial bet w een t he core and t he

out er surface
Low e r a m bie n t t e m ps
pr odu ce le ss t e m pe r a t u r e
r ise !

Low e r volu m e :su r fa ce r a t io

pr odu ce le ss t e m pe r a t u r e
r ise !

( M e ht a )

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Factors Affecting Temp. Rise

{ W/ C has a large effect on t em perat ure rise.
{ Most Mass Concret e m ixt ures have a ~ 0 - 2 in slu m p. ( D ix on)

Decreasing w/ c

- w/ c = .25- .4 is com m on
- WRs or Superplast icizer s m ay
have t o be used t o ret ain
workabilit y .

( Cook )

{ For m ore inform at ion on Mass Concret e m ix design:

z “ Mass Concret e Mix Proport ioning – ACI 211” – ACI Manual
of Concr et e Plact ice

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 Placement Techniques
{ Cooling of aggregat e by flushing wit h cold wat er is
frequent ly done t o reduce placem ent t em perat ures.
{ Replacing m ix wat er wit h flaked/ crushed ice can great ly
reduce t he t em perat ure of t he m ix.
z Cooling t he aggregat e and use ice in m ix wat er can reduce
placem ent t em perat ures up t o 20F
z For heat t ransfer calculat ions, all com ponent s are changed t o
wat er equiv alent s. ( Sca nlon)

Core sam ple fr om a

large colum n wit h
t her m al crack s.
( Ga j da 2 )

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Placement Techniques
Te m p re du ct ion by coolin g
coa r se a ggr e ga t e t o 3 8 F
be for e pla ce m e nt

Te m p re du ct ion by re pla cin g

m ix w a t e r w it h ice
Te m p re du ct ion by
a ddin g m ix w a t e r a t 3 5 F

( Sca nlon)

- The e x a m ple s sh ow n a bove a r e j u st for on e m ix de sign

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Placement Techniques
{ Flushing t he m ix is Liquid Nit rogen can reduce t em ps.
z Cost s ~ $75 t o cool a t ruck load of concret e by 25F
( Be a ve r )

Flu sh in g of t h e m ix w it h LN

( Ga j da 2 )

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Post-Placement Techniques
{ Two schools of t hought exist on post - placem ent
t echniques t o reduce t herm al cracking:
z 1) Cool t he core of t he concret e t o reduce t he
t em perat ure different ial.
z 2) I nsulat e t he out er surface t o reduce t he
t em perat ure different ial. ( Sca nlon)

{ For m ore inform at ion on cooling and insulat ion

t echniques:
z “ Cooling and I nsulat ing sy st em s for Mass Concret e” – ACI
Manual of Concret e Pract ice

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 Post-Cooling
{ Post - Cooling ut ilizes cold wat er flowing t hrough
pipes em bedded int o t he concret e. This helps t o
t ransfer heat from t he core, and reduce t he
t em perat ure different ial. ( Zhu)
Exam ple of em bedded pipe gr id

Area cooled by one pipe

- Pipe spacing is j udged by heat

t ransfer principles. Must be
spaced in a m anner w hich
achieved t he desired t em per at ure
different ial.

( Zhu)

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Post-Cooling
{ I nst rum ent at ion is used t o m onit or t em perat ure, t o
det erm ine flow- rat es t hrough cooling pipes. ( W hit t ie r )

( Ga j da 1 )

( Zhu)
Lowered t em p. from cooling pipes
St eel pipes are t he m ost
effect ive at ext ract ing heat
from t he core.
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Insulation After Placement
{ I nsulat ing form work aft er placem ent is anot her t echnique
t o reduce t he t em perat ure gradient .
z By lim it ing t he heat loss from t he surface, t he difference in
t em perat ure bet ween t he sur face and t he core is m inim ized.
This is especially im port ant in very cold condit ions. ( Sca nlon)
{ Rem oving form work t o soon can cause “ t herm al shock” t o
t he surface, and ext ensive cracking will occur.
{ Met al form work is very conduct ive t o heat , so addit ional
insulat ion m ay be needed t o lim it heat loss. ( W hit t ie r )
{ 1 in wood ~ = 20 in of addit ional concret e!

I nsulat ion around

for m work keeps t he
surface from cooling

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Expansion Reinforcement
{ Expansion Reinforcem ent can be used t o lessen t her m al
cracking.
z Must be designed in addit ion t o loads placed ont o t he
st r uct ure.
z Expansion r einforcem ent dist ribut es t her m al st r esses t o
m inim ize crack w idt hs.
z Expansion r einforcem ent is im pract ical for very large pours.
( Cope )

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Expansion Reinforcement
{ General procedure for ex pansion reinforcem ent design.
z Det er m ine m axim um t em per at ure gradient
z Det er m ine sect ion rest raint charact erist ics ( Kr )
z Det er m ine phy sical propert ies of t he concret e:
{ CTE, E, Tensile St rengt h
z Det er m ine t he allowable crack widt h:
{ Must consider durabilit y and perm eabilit y
z Det er m ine ar ea of st eel required t o lim it cr acking
( Cope )

{ Specs and equat ions for t he design of expansion

reinforcem ent are present ed in:
z “ Effect of Rest r aint , Volum e Change, and Reinfor cem ent on
Crack ing of Mass Concret e” – ACI Manual of Concr et e Pract ice

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Quest ions ???

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