Materials and Structures/Matdriaux et Constructions, Vol.
29, December 1996, pp 616-619
Comparison between high strength concrete and normal
strength concrete subjected to high temperature
Sammy Y. N. Chant, Gai-fei Peng1 andJohn K. W. Chan2
(1) Hong Kong PolytechnicUniversity, Hung Horn, Kowloon,Hong Kong
(2) Hong Kong University, Pokfulam, Hong Kong
A B S T R A C T
Two normal strength concretes and three high
strength concretes, with 28-day compressive strengths of
28, 47, 76, 79 and 94 MPa respectively, were used to
compare the effect of high temperatures on high strength
concrete and normal strength concrete. After being
heated to a series of maximum temperatures at 400, 600,
800, 1000 and 1200~ and maintained for i hour, their
compressive strengths and tensile splitting strengths were
determined. The pore size distribution of hardened
cement paste in high strength concrete and normal
strength concrete was also investigated. Results show
that high strength concrete lost its mechanical strength
in a manner similar to or slightly better than that of
NSC. The range between 400 and 800~ was critical to
the strength loss of concrete with a large percentage of
loss of strength. Microstructural study carried out
revealed that high temperatures have a coarsening effect
on the microstructure of both of high strength concrete
and normal strength concrete.
1. INTRODUCTION
Fire remains one of the serious potential risks to most
buildings and structures. The extensive use of concrete
as a structural material has led to the demand to fully
understand the effect of fire on concrete. Generally,
concrete is thought to have good fire resistance [1-3].
With the further development and use of high strength
concrete (HSC), however, some doubts about its fire
resistance have emerged [4].
Although a great deal of research has been conducted
on the fire resistance of concrete, since HSC is a relatively
new type of concrete, knowledge about the performance
of HSC subjected to fire is limited in comparison with
that of normal strength concrete (NSC). In this body of
research, HSC was found to be prone to spalling under
high temperature in some cases [4, 5, 9]. The possible
reason might be that the dense, hardened cement paste
keeps the moisture vapor from escaping under high tem-
perature. Considerable pore pressure is therefore estab-
0025-5432/96 9 KILEM
RI~SUMI~
On a compar{ l'effet des hautes temperatures sur deux
b~tons de re'sistance ordinaire et trois b~tons de haute r&is-
tance, want des re'sistances a la compression a 28 jours de
28, 47, 76, 79 et 94 MPa, respectivement. Ces b&ons
ont ~t~ chauff~s selon une ser~e"' de temperatures" maximales
de 400, 600, 800, 1 000 et 1 200~ et maintenus
pendant une heure ; ensuite, on a d~termin~ leurs r&is-
tames a la compression et leur r&istance en traction. On a
8galement {tudi~ la r~partition du diamftre des pores des
pdtes de ciment durci des b~tons de haute r&istance et de
re'sistance ordinaire. Les b&ons de haute re'sistance mon-
trent une perte de re'sistance me'canique similaire, ou lSg&e-
ment moindre, aux b&ons de r&istance ordinaire. La
gamme des temperatures entre 400 et 800~ s'est av&{
critique en ce qui concerne les plus forts pourcentages de
perte de re'sistance du b~ton. Une ~tude de la microstructure
a montr~ que les hautes temperatures ont pour effet de
rendre plus grossifre la microstructure des b~tons de haute
r&istance et des b~tons de r&istance ordinaire.
lished. Naturally, the spalling problem led to suspicion
regarding the behavior of HSC under fire conditions.
Apart from spalling, whether HSC suffers in terms of
mechanical strength to a greater degree than NSC in the
presence of fire is also very important to ensuring that
HSC can be used safely in buildings.
Strictly speaking, the term "fire resistance" applies to
the behavior of structural elements rather than to an
individual material forming part of the elements.
However, one of the major factors determining the fire
resistance of a concrete structure is the capacity of the
concrete material to insulate heat from reaching the
embedded reinforcement and to withstand heat and the
subsequent action of water and cooling without unduly
losing strength and without explosive spalling. To inves-
tigate the effect of high temperatures and to obtain nec-
essary information for evaluanng the structural safety and
establishing reparation methods, the residual strength
and properties of HSC that has been exposed to high
temperatures should be deterlmned.
61 6
Y.N Chan, Peng, K.W.Chan

Table I - Mix proportion and compressive strength of five types of concrete

Mix Proportion(kg/m3) W/C CompressiveStrength(MPa)
Concrete Mix Aggregate
Cement Sand Water 28 day 90 day
200mm lOmm
NSC-1 330 806 403 645 219 0.66 28 37
NSC-2 360 806 403 645 205 0.57 47 57
HSC-1 550 785 393 478 190 0.35 76 84
HSC-2 550 834 417 437 173 0.31 79 91
HSC-3 550 872 436 433 152 0.28 94 118

1400
BS476:Part20:1987, are given in Fig. 1.
After the specimens were allowed to cool naturally to
room temperature, the compressive strength and tensile
splitting strength were d e t e r m i n e d according to
G" lOOO ..
BS1881:Part 120:1983 and BS1881:Part117:1983, respec-
g
v
800 tively. Six specimens were prepared for each reported test
result.
600
The pore size distribution was developed by using a
40o mercury intrusion porosimeter (MIP), which has a pres-
sure measurement range from 0.01 MPa (1.5 psi) to 207
200 MPa (30,000 psi). The contact angle was selected at
0 141 ~, so the measurable pore size range is 0.007 to 144
0 120 240 360 480 600 gm. The samples, in the form of pellets of about 5 m m
Timo (rain) in size, were made of hardened cement paste retrieved
Fig. 1 - Experimental temperature-time curve and standard from the specimens by sawing.
curve r e c o m m e n d e d in BS476:Part 20:1987.

In this paper, five concrete specimens including HSC
and NSC were prepared to compare the behaviour of
HSC and NSC under high temperatures. Their compres-
sive strength and tensile splitting strength were deter-
mined, and samples were also selected to identify the pore
size distribution of their hardened cement paste.
2. EXPERIMENTAL DETAILS
Concrete specimens of 100-mm cubes and 100-mm
diameter cylinders were prepared using ordinary
Portland cement (OPC), crushed granite of 10 m m and
20 m m in size, sand and a superplasticizer. The OPC
used in the experiment complied with the requirements
ofBS12:1991. The mix proportion of the concretes and
the 28-day compressive strength are given in Table 1.
After demoulding at one day of age, the specimens
were cured in 20~ water for 27 days and then cured in
an environmental chamber under a controlled condition
of 20~ temperature and 75% R H until testing.
At an age of 90 days, the specimens were heated in an
electrical furnace up to 400, 600, 800, 1000 and 1200~
and the m a x i m u m temperature was maintained for
1 hour. The initial heating rate was set at 5~ per minute,
and the rate was lowered to 2.5~ per minute and then
1.7~ per minute after reaching 600~ and 900~
respectively. The time-temperature curve of the furnace,
as well as the standard curve as r e c o m m e n d e d in
3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The behavior of concrete exposed to high temperatures
is a result of many competing factors. Generally, for con-
crete matured with an increase in exposed temperature,
concrete gradually loses its mechanical strength.
The results of the residual compressive strength of
concrete after exposure at 400, 600, 800, 1000 and
1200~ are shown in Table 2 and Figure 2. The rela-
tionship between compressive strength and exposure
temperature was found to be similar to that reported
previously [5, 6]. From the viewpoint of strength loss,
there were three temperature ranges, 20 to 400~ 400
to 800~ and 800 to 1200~ where the strength loss of
concrete was markedly different. Up to 400~ only a
small part of the original strength was lost, between 1%
and 10% for HSC and about 15% for NSC. The severe
compressive strength loss occurred mainly within the
400 to 800~ range. This may be regarded as a common
feature for OPC concrete, because the hardened cement
paste, which is the main source of the concrete's strength,
undergoes the dehydration of C-S-H gel and loses its
cementing ability under these conditions [2, 7, 8]. For
the temperature range between 400 and 600~ HSC
performed better, since it maintained a higher percent-
age value of its residual strength, as shown in Table 2.
Above 800~ only a small part of the original com-
pressive strength was left, about 9 to 20%. In this case,
both the HSC and NSC were structurally damaged.

617
 Materials and Structures/Mat~riaux et Constructions, Vol. 29, December 1996

Table 2 - Residual compressive strength

of concrete exposed to different temperatures
Residual CompressiveStrength (MPa)
Concrete Mix Maximum Temperature
20oc 400oC 600oC 800~ 1000~ 1200~
NSC-1 38 (100%)* 28 (75%)* 15 (39%)* 5.6 (15%)* 3.2 (9.0%)* 5.8 (16%)*
NSC-2 57 (100%)* 52 (92%)* 39 (69%)* 29 (52%)* 13 (24%)* 6.8 (12%)*
HSC-1 84 (100%)* 84 (100%)* 46 (55%)* 24 (24%)* 8.1 (9.6%)* 10 (12%)*
HSC-2 91 (100%)* 83 (91%)* 46 (51%)* 27 (30%)* 8.9 (9.8%)* 9.1 (10%)*
*: Percentage residual
HSC-3 118 (100%)* 117 (99%)* 61 (52%)* 29 (25%)* 12 (11%)* 13(11%)* strength.

120 0.2
A 20 Deg C
100
0.15
80 ~ = ~ ~ ~ HSC-1
o 0.1
m
60
0.05
"~ 40

20 0
8 100 10 I 0.1 0.01
0 Pore diameter (gin)
20 400 600 800 1000 1200
Temperature (Deg C)
(A) Pore size distribution of HCP in NSC-I
Fig. 2 - Compressive strength o f five types o f concrete subjected
to a variety o f temperatures. 0.06
0.05 ~20 DcgC
v
o 0.04 ----D---600 DegC
7
-~ 0.03
.~_ 0.02
5 --0---20 C ~_ 0.01
4 ~600 C D o
r --I----1200 C 100 10 1 0.1 0.01

Pore diameter (gm)

1 .__.-----'4k" - ' - ' - - ~ A
(B) Pore size distribution of HCP in HSC-1
0 37 5'7 84
NSC-I NSC-2 HSC-1 HSC.-2 HSC.3
Concrete strength (MPa) and type
0.04
Fig. 3 - Tensile splitting strength o f five types o f concrete ~ 20 Deg C
subjected to a variety o f temperatures. .~ 0.03 ----IN---600
DegC
3
0.02

Some products of sintering reaction between hardened o.01

cement paste and aggregates reported [10, 111 were
found in the present experimental study within some o 0-
100 10 1 0.1 0.01
specimens of HSC and NSC, but the concrete strength
as shown in Fig. 2 was only slightly increased by such Pore diameter (gin)
sintering reaction after exposure to 1200~ temperature.
(C) Pore size distribution of HCP in HSC-3
The results of the tensile splitting strength are shown
in Fig. 3. The sharp loss of tensile splitting strength for Fig. 4 - Pore size distribution o f hardened c e m e n t paste ( H C P )
both HSC and NSC subjected to high temperatures is before and after exposure to 600~ tempertaure.
clearly different from the more gradual loss of compres-
sive strength. This is because many micro- and macro-
cracks were produced in the specimens due to the ther- In this experimental investigation, some specimens of
mal incompatibility [2, 12, 13] within the concrete. HSC and NSC encountered spalling damage during
Generally, tensile strength is more sensitive to such heating even at a lower temperature, such as 400 or
cracks than is compressive strength. 500~ But there was no evidence that HSC was more

618
Y.N Chan, Peng, K.W.Chan
prone to spalling than NSC. Research on the topic of
spalling is in progress and will be reported later.
The pore size distribution of hardened cement paste
of concretes NSC-1, HSC-1 and HSC-3 was deter-
mined using a mercury porosimeter. The results, given
in Fig. 4(A), (B) and (C), confirm the coarsening effect
of high temperatures on the pore structure reported pre-
viously [8, 12, 14]. The coarsening effect increased the
porosity of hardened cement paste, as shown in Fig.
5(A). The increased porosity or the increased cumula-
tive volume of pores larger than 0.1 gm, which influ-
enced the strength of hardened cement paste [14], was
one of the factors besides the cracking and dehydration
of C-S-H gel within the concrete that have contributed
to the strength loss of concrete. It is apparent from this
figure that the cumulative pore volume of hardened
cement paste in concrete subjected to an elevated tem-
perature increases with decreasing concrete strength.
Meanwhile, the cumulative volume of pores in the
range greater than 1.3 gm, which should be responsible
for the permeability of hardened cement paste [15], was
also increased after exposure to 600~ as shown in Fig.
5(B). Therefore, high temperatures have reduced the
permeability-related durability of HSC and NSC as well
as their mechanical strength. This deterioration was
more severe for NSC.
4. CONCLUSIONS
The mechanical strength of HSC decreased in a simi-
lar manner to that of NSC when subjected to high tem-
peratures of up to 1200~ Under the condition of elec-
trical heating, there was no special danger of spalling for
HSC although the hardened cement paste within it was
much denser than in NSC.
High temperatures can be divided into three ranges
in terms of effect on concrete strength loss, namely 20 to
400~ 400 to 800~ and above 800~ In the range of
20 to 400~ HSC maintained its original strength while
NSC lost its strength slightly. In the range of 400 to
800~ both HSC and NSC lost most of their original
strength, especially at temperatures above 600~ This
range, within which the unavoidable dehydration of C-
S-H gel in OPC paste occurred to a greater degree than
that within 20 to 400~ may be regarded as critical to
the strength loss of concrete. Above 800~ only a small
portion of the original strength was left for both HSC
and NSC. Therefore, it is only within the range of 400
to 800~ that research efforts can be carried out to
reduce the strength loss and improve the thermal behav-
ior of concrete. Like NSC, HSC lost its tensile splitting
strength more sharply than its compressive strength,
even at temperatures below 600~
Under high temperatures, HSC and NSC experi-
enced a change in pore size distribution, called the
"coarsening effect". This effect is believed to be one of
the reasons for the strength loss at temperatures below
600~ This effect also reduced the permeability and
hence the durability of concrete which has been exposed
to high temperatures.
619
Fig. 5 - Cumulative pore volume of HCP in concrete before and
after exposure to 600~ temperature.
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