Identification Of Compliance Testing Method For Curing Effectiveness

1. INTRODUCTION1.1 RESEARCH BACKGROUNDHydraulic cement requires adequate moisture and temperature to develop cementhydration for a sufficient period of time. If the moisture content in concrete is not sufficient orthe temperature is too low, hydration will not proceed and the concrete may not have desiredstrength and durability. Proper curing of concrete is crucial to obtain design strength andmaximum durability, especially for concrete exposed to extreme environmental conditions atearly age. The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) has recently experienced cases ofspalling and delamination failure that may be related to high evaporation rate under extreme fieldconditions, such as high temperature, low humidity, and strong wind.It is not easy to evaluate whether the current requirements in curing (quality andapplication rate of curing compounds and timing of compounds application) are met in the field.In most of the projects, the importance of curing has not been recognized and strictly enforced.This problem is partly due to a lack of any compliance testing for the evaluation of curingeffectiveness. Therefore, it is necessary to identify a simple test procedure that can evaluate theeffectiveness of various curing compounds and eventually the compliance with the specificationrequirements.1.2 OBJECTIVE OF THE RESEARCHThere is no acceptable compliance testing method that could be used for the evaluation ofcuring effectiveness. Because of the unavailability of compliance testing, most of the statedepartments of transportation (DOTs) utilize method specifications for curing. TxDOT is not anexception. As state DOTs are moving towards performance-related specification, an accurate andreliable compliance testing for curing effectiveness is needed.The primary objective of this research is to identify appropriate compliance testing forcuring effectiveness. There are a number of potential compliance testing devices. In thisresearch, those potential devices were evaluated and limitations were discussed.1.3 SCOPE OF THE RESEARCHThis research focuses on identifying a suitable evaluation method for measuring thecuring effectiveness on the pavement at construction. Curing effectiveness material parametersand relevant devices were investigated in the developed experimental program. Investigated aresuch parameters as penetration resistance, surface temperature, initial surface adsorption,reflectance, relative humidity, and dielectric constant. Different curing conditions as well asapplication time and rate of curing compound were covered in the program. Based on measureddata, the applicability of each material parameter and relevant devices was discussed.This research project is a joint research project and The University of Texas at Austin’sCenter for Transportation Research’s (CTR) main task is to develop a field testing program;conduct field measurement; and identify appropriate compliance testing for curing effectiveness.1

Different tasks on the development of laboratory test protocol and relevant rankingsystem were conducted by Texas A&M University’s Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) and theresults were discussed in a separate report.2

2. FIELD COMPLIANCE TESTING2.1 INTRODUCTIONAs described earlier, the current TxDOT specifications on curing in Item 360 are basedon vague scientific evidence and there is no compliance testing included in the specifications.The curing in Item 360 is purely a method-type specification and thus the quality of the curingoperation is not quantitatively measured. Furthermore, it is not easy to evaluate whether thecurrent requirements in curing are met in the field. Therefore, it is necessary to identify a fieldcompliance testing for curing effectiveness that is related to performance-type specification.Because the ultimate goal of proper curing is to develop appropriate concrete properties,the adequacy of curing is most readily observed in the properties at the curing-affected zone(CAZ) (Cather, 1992). The curing-affected zone will vary in thickness depending on theproperties of the concrete, the severity of the ambient conditions, and the curing time involved.Regardless of the shallowness of the zone, the concrete properties in this zone are mostfrequently those that determine the durability and serviceability of concrete. Given theshallowness of the curing-affected zone, test methods that evaluate the properties of the concreteat depth, such as measuring the compressive strength of drilled cores, have limited sensitivity tothe effectiveness of curing. Table 2.1 shows the concrete characteristics that are likely to be moresensitive to curing effectiveness in the curing-affected zone (ACI 308R-01).Table 2.1: Concrete characteristics in the curing-affected zone (ACI 308R-01)Properties near surface affected by curingDegree of hydrationPore size distributionOxygen or air permeabilityInitial surface absorptionSurface permeability/absorptionInternal moisture contentTension strength of pull-off testingDepth of carbonationAbrasion resistanceBased on Table 2.1, the applicability of various material properties that monitor thecuring effectiveness was identified. A field testing program was developed and potentialcompliance testing devices were investigated. Included are such parameters as penetrationresistance, initial surface adsorption, evaporation heat, reflectance, relative humidity, anddielectric constant. Different curing conditions, which include sealing, no curing and curingcompound were simulated in the field test. Additionally, different coating of curing compoundthat covers application rate and time was also covered. Measured results and the limitation foreach material parameter and relevant device are discussed in this chapter.3

2.2 PENETRATION RESISTANCE2.2.1 IntroductionThe strength of concrete has a close relationship with the curing effectiveness, especiallynear the surface exposed to environmental conditions. Good curing condition maintains themoisture content which is used in the hydration process of concrete. The different curingeffectiveness may make a difference of strength of concrete near the surface.A device called Windsor, which uses a powder-activated driver to fire a hardened allyprobe into the concrete, can measure the penetration resistance of concrete (Fig. 2.1). Thepenetrated or exposed length of the probe has a close correlation with the compressive strengthof concrete. This approach is currently applied to nondestructive testing methods on concretestrength and durability (Neville, 1995). Fig. 2.2 indicates that the Windsor probe penetratesdeeper as the strength of the concrete decreases (ACI 228.1R-03).The Windsor probe system was applied to measure the penetration resistance, which hasa close relationship with the strength of concrete. Different curing conditions were simulated.The correlation between penetration depth and curing effectiveness was measured and its resultsare discussed in this section.Figure 2.1: Windsor probe system4

Figure 2.2: Compressive strength as a function of exposed probe length (ACI 228.1R-03)2.2.2 Field TestingIn order to identify the relationship between curing effectiveness and penetration depth,five different curing conditions were simulated on the surface of pavement at construction. Eachtesting area had 4ft-width and 4ft-length. As shown in Fig. 2.3, the application rate of the curingcompound was controlled by placing a plastic sheet when the paver passed the testing section.Normal white pigmented curing compound from W.R. Meadow was used in the test. Threedifferent rates of curing compound, i.e., one coating, two coating, and three coating of 180ft2/gal,were sprayed on each testing area. Additionally, no curing condition and sealing curing conditionwere also simulated. Table 2.2 summarizes five different curing conditions at the field test.Three probes were fired on each testing surface of the concrete at the age of 1 day, andFig. 2.4 shows the probes that penetrated the concrete pavement. The average penetration depthwas calculated from three probesTable 2.2: Five different curing methods at the field testNumberCuring methodCondition 1Curing compound with 45ft2/gal and plastic sheetCondition 2Curing compound with 45ft2/galCondition 3Curing compound with 90ft2/galCondition 4Curing compound with 180ft2/galCondition 5No curing5

Figure 2.3: Control of application of curing compound with plastic sheetFigure 2.4: Field application of the Windsor probe system6

2.2.3 Results and discussion-3Penetration depth [ 10 in]Fig. 2.5 shows the average of penetration depth of three probes according to differentcuring conditions. As shown in Fig. 2.5, the penetration depth did not show a good correlationwith the curing method. The application of the plastic sheet with three coatings of curingcompound is considered the most favorable curing condition and thus is expected to have theminimum penetration depth. However, the minimum penetration depth occurred in the concretewith one coating of compound even though the curing condition was relatively poor.1200100080060040020003X180 P.S180X3180X2180X1No CuringCuring method(Note: 3 180 P.S - three coatings of 180ft2/gal and plastic sheeting; 180 3- three coating of 180ft2/gal;180 2 – two coatings of 180ft2/gal; 180 1- one coating of 180ft2/gal)Figure 2.5: Penetration depth vs. curing methodThis is because of aggregate in the concrete near the probe. The size of the probe isrelatively small and thus the penetration depth is affected by the distance between the probe andaggregate. For example, the depth would be decreased significantly when the probe penetratesand hits the aggregate in concrete. Therefore, aggregate may have more effect on the penetrationresistance depth rather than the difference of compressive strength caused by curing method.Because of the small volume of probe under testing, the Windsor probe system is known to havea higher variation compared with the variation in standard compressive strength tests oncompanion specimens. Furthermore, it was very hard to make a perpendicular penetration of theprobe to the surface of the concrete pavement. The deviation from the perpendicularity maycause another error. Therefore, penetration resistance technique and the Windsor probe systemmay not be a practical method to measure the curing effectiveness in the field. More study isneeded to implement this technique in the field.7

2.3 SURFACE TEMPERATURE2.3.1 IntroductionAccording to ACI nomograph (ACI 308R-01), the evaporation rate of concrete at surfacedepends on the air temperature, air relative humidity, concrete temperature, and wind velocity.Concrete exposed to environmental conditions also has different evaporation rates at the surfacedepending on the curing effectiveness. Evaporation accompanies the consumption of heat energywhich results in temperature drop in concrete. Therefore, the difference of surface temperaturemay identify the different evaporation rate and the corresponding curing effectiveness.2.3.2 Field TestingAs described in section 2.2.2, five different curing conditions were applied to the testingareas. Three different rates of curing compound, i.e., one coating, two coating, and three coatingof 180ft2/gal, were sprayed on each testing area. Additionally, no curing condition and sealingcuring condition were also applied. Infrared camera was adopted in the surface temperaturemeasurement. Fig. 2.6 shows the measurement of surface temperature by infrared camera.Figure 2.6: Surface temperature measurement by infrared cameraFig. 2.7 represents the variation of surface temperature by infrared camera. Infraredcamera can plot the temperature contour, which shows the maximum and minimum temperaturein the shot. Because the concrete exposed directly to environmental conditions (no curing) hasthe highest evaporation rate, the surface temperature is expected to be lowest. However, thehighest temperature was recorded in no curing condition at 2 hours after the placement. This isdue to the color difference between fresh concrete with curing compound and concrete withoutcuring compound. The color of fresh concrete without curing compound is close to black. On theother hand, the curing compound has a white pigment. Therefore, more solar radiation energywas absorbed in the concrete without curing compound and this resulted in the highesttemperature among specimens with different curing conditions.8

Maximum Surface TemperatureMinimum Surface Temperature85Surface Temperature [ F]Surface Temperature [ F]953X180 P.S90180X3180X285180No Curing80753X180 P.S80180X3180X218075No Curing700123450Time after Application of Curing Compound [Hr]12345Time after Application of Curing Compound [Hr](a) Maximum surface temperature(b) Minimum surface temperature(Note: 3 180 P.S - three coatings of 180ft2/gal and plastic sheeting; 180 3- three coating of 180ft2/gal;180 2 – two coatings of 180ft2/gal; 180 1- one coating of 180ft2/gal)Figure 2.7: Surface temperature variations with different curing methodsTo exclude the effect of solar radiation on the surface temperature of concrete pavement,sun screen was placed on the surface of concrete pavement and the temperature with the screenwas measured (Fig. 2.8). Two different curing conditions were applied to testing areas. In thefirst condition, curing compound was sprayed two times at the rate of 180ft2/gal. No curingcompound was applied and the top surface of the concrete was directly exposed to air in thesecond condition. Infrared camera was adopted in the surface temperature measurement.Fig. 2.9 shows the measured temperature variations. Contrary to the surface temperaturewithout sun screen, the surface temperature of the concrete covered with curing compound hadthe higher temperature than that of the concrete without curing compound. More evaporationenergy and corresponding temperature drop was measured under the condition in which thedirect solar radiation was excluded.9

Figure 2.8: Surface temperature measurement within sun screenMaximum Surface TemperatureMinimum Surface Temperature72.5CuringSurf

that appear to have potential for compliance testing for curing were evaluated in the field. The test methods evaluated include penetration resistance, initial surface adsorption, surface temperature, reflectance, relative humidity, and dielectric constant. A factorial experiment was set up for field testing, and the test methods were