International Journal of Applied Engineering Research ISSN 0973-4562 Volume 11, Number 4 (2016) pp 2854-2858

Research India Publications. http://www.ripublication.com

Experimental Study on the Strength and Durability of Nano Concrete

Rajkumar R.
Associate professor, Department of Civil Engineering,
Sri Sivasubramaniya Nadar College of Engineering,
Kalavakkam, Tamil Nadu, India.

Akkineni Surya Teja

UG student, Department of Civil Engineering,
Sri Sivasubramaniya Nadar College of Engineering,
Kalavakkam, Tamil Nadu, India.

Ramya Sajeevan
UG student, Department of Civil Engineering,
Sri Sivasubramaniya Nadar College of Engineering,
Kalavakkam, Tamil Nadu, India.

understanding and precise engineering of an extremely

complex structure of cement-based materials at the nano-level
will apparently result in a new generation of concrete that is
stronger and more durable, with desired stressstrain behavior
and possibly possessing a range of newly introduced
properties, such as electrical conductivity as well as
temperature, moisture and stress-sensing abilities.
The overall grading of the mix-containing particles from 300
nm to 32 mm-determines the mix properties of the concrete.
The properties in fresh state (flow properties and workability)
are for instance governed by the particle size distribution
(PSD), but the properties of the concrete in hardened state,
such as strength and durability, are affected by the mix
grading and resulting particle packing. One way to further
improve the packing is to increase the solid size range, i.e.by
including particles with sizes below 300 nm. Possible
materials which are currently available are limestone and
silica fines like silica fume (SF) and nanosilica (nS).
Although cement is a man-madebuilding material, its main
hydrate CSH gel is a natural nano-structured material. The
mechanical and durability properties of concrete are mainly
dependent on the gradually refining structure of hardened
cement paste and the gradually improving pasteaggregate
interface. Microsilica (silica fume) belongs to the category of
highly pozzolanic materials because it consists essentially of
silica in non-crystalline form with high specific surface and
thus exhibits great pozzolanic activity. A new pozzolanic
material produced synthetically, in the form of water emulsion
of ultra-fine amorphous colloidal silica (UFACS), is available
in the market and it appears to be potentially better than silica
fume because of the higher content of amorphous silica (>
99%) and the reduced size of its spherical particles (1-50 nm).
Water permeability resistance and 28-days compressive
strength of concrete were improved by using nS. Addition of
nS into high-strength concrete leads to an increase of both
short-term strength and long-term strength.

Abstract
Concrete is one of the building materials widely used in civil
engineering construction and their design consumes almost
the total cement production in the world. When concrete
structures are exposed to severe environment, its performance
becomes inferior, thereby leading to damage. It has become a
recent topic of study in civil engineering to improve the
mechanical and durability properties of concrete.
Better understanding and precise engineering of an extremely
complex structure of cement-based materials at the nano-level
will apparently result in a new generation of concrete that is
stronger and more durable, with desired stressstrain behavior
and possibly possessing a range of newly introduced
properties, such as electrical conductivity, temperature,
moisture and stress-sensing abilities. Novel properties of
materials manufactured on the Nano-scale can be utilized for
the benefit of construction infrastructure. Application of Nano
materials in concrete technology can potentially change the
service life and life-cycle cost of construction infrastructure.
In this paper an attempt has been made to improve the
strength characteristics of concrete with the addition of Nanosilica which not only acts as a filter to improve the
microstructure but also as an activator to promote pozzolanic
reaction there by resulting in the enhancement of the
mechanical properties of the concrete mix. It is also cost
effective when compared to the life cycle cost of concrete
structures.
Keywords: Cement concrete, durability, Nano materials and
Nano silica powder (Sio2).

Introduction
Concrete is one of the building materials widely used in civil
engineering construction and their design consumes almost
the total cement production in the world. Portland cement, one
of the largest commodities consumed worldwide. Better

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International Journal of Applied Engineering Research ISSN 0973-4562 Volume 11, Number 4 (2016) pp 2854-2858
Research India Publications. http://www.ripublication.com
dispersion (20 to 40% solid content) suitable for use in
concrete industry. An alternative production method is based
on vaporization of silica between 1500 to 2000 C by
reducing quartz (SiO2) in an electric arc furnace.

At the same time, this new concrete should be sustainable as

well as cost-and-energy effective, exhibiting qualities that
modern society demands. These developments will
revolutionalise the construction industry. One of the newest
technologies to break into the concrete design arena is the use
of nS in the concrete matrix. By using nS, the development of
the strength bearing crystals of cement paste can be increased
or controlled.
Recent major achievements include the ability to observe the
structure at its atomic level and measure the strength and
hardness of microscopic and nanoscopic phases of composite
materials. More-specific achievements are the discovery of a
highly ordered crystal nanostructure of amorphous C-S-H gel.
Hydration of nano-SiO2 in cement paste was studied using
SEM and EDAX.

Mix proportions:
Crushed granite coarse aggregate of 20mm size and specific
gravity of 2.86 confirming to IS 383-1987 was used.

Table 1: Design mix

Grade of Concrete
Type of Cement
Specific Gravity of Cement
Standard Deviation as per Table
1 of IS 10262
Target Mean Strength
K assumed to be
Target Mean Strength
Water Cement Ratio
Total Cement Content
Water Content
Total Fine Aggregate Content
Total
Coarse
Aggregate
Content

Materials
nS-Amorphous Silicon Dioxide:
Silicon Dioxide Nanopowder (Hydrophilic SiO2) M.W. 60.08

20 MPa
OPC 43 Grade
3.15
4.6
Fck + KS
1.65
20+(1.65X4.6) = 27.6 MPa
0.5
383 kg/cum
191.6 kg/cum
546 kg/cum
1187 kg/cum

Table 2: Mix design (M20 proportion)

Water
0.50

Figure 1: Silicon Dioxide Nanopowder

Cement
1.00

Fine Aggregate
1.42

Coarse Aggregate
3.09

Table 3: Quantity of test materials

Amorphous silicon dioxide [ASD] as shown in figure 1 is a

bright white (refractive index 1.46) powder with a very low
moisture content of 0.3% maximum. It is amorphous and not
crystalline, non-porous, free flowing but not like fumed silica
(specific gravity 2.1 g/cc, bulk density 15.5 LBS/CFT), in that
it is not "fly away" and is very easy to incorporate. The ASD
is produced through high-temperature hydrolysis in a
hydrogen oxygen flame. The individual particles are largely
spherical, and the material specifications are extremely
consistent. We know that in UV-cured resins it is transparent,
requires less loading, keeps in suspension and improves
viscosity.
Nowadays, there are different methods to produce nS
products. One production method is based on a sol-gel
process (organic or water route) at room temperature. In this
process, the starting materials (mainly Na2SiO4 and
organometallics like TMOS/TEOS) are added in a solvent,
and then the pH of the solution is changed, reaching the
precipitation of silica gel.
The produced gel is aged and filtered to become a xerogel.
This xerogel is dried and burned or dispersed again with
stabilized agent (Na, K, NH3, etc.) to produce a concentrated

Cube
Cylind
er

Wate
r [l]

Ceme
nt [kg]

0.736
1.161

1.483
2.334

Fine
Aggrega
te [kg]
2.116
3.323

Coarse
Aggrega
te [kg]
4.6
7.233

Figure 2: nS concrete test specimen

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nS[1.5
%] [g]
22.245
35.01

International Journal of Applied Engineering Research ISSN 0973-4562 Volume 11, Number 4 (2016) pp 2854-2858
Research India Publications. http://www.ripublication.com
removed and test specimens are put in water for curing. The
top surface of this specimen should be made even and smooth.
This is done by putting cement paste and spreading smoothly
on whole area of specimen. These specimens are tested by
compression testing machine after 3, 7 days and 28 days of
curing. Load should be applied gradually at the rate of 140
kg/cm2 per minute till the Specimen fails. Load at the failure
divided by area of specimen gives the compressive strength of
concrete. The results thus obtained are tabulated as shown in
table 4 and the comparison of the compressive strength of the
nano concrete with conventional concrete is presented in
figure 3.

Experimental Procedure
Three trial mixes of M20 grade were used. Sieve analysis was
carried out for both fine and coarse aggregates.
Curing:
The most intricate part is High performance concrete (HPC)
which has very low w/binder ratio and better particle
distribution due to the use of mineral admixtures, which
results significantly in less pore per unit volume of
cementations materials in the mixture than the CCC. Filling of
the voids by hydration product in HPC is much faster than that
of CCC as smaller pores needs lesser hydration products to
fill. Therefore, moisture loss due to capillary action stops
earlier in case of HPC compared to CCC under the same
curing conditions. The moisture loss from HPC has been
found rapid up to the first 24 hours. Owing to very low
water/binder ratio and use of super plasticizer, the early stage
hydration rate of HPC is higher than CCC leaving less long
term hydration potential. Curing duration after the initial
moisture protection has been found to have little effect on
long term chloride permeability of HPC containing microsilica or fly-ash. Method of curing has similar effect on HPC
both for creep and shrinkage of concrete, which are again
influenced by the type and duration of curing.

Table 4: Comparative compression test

Day Conventional Concrete
[MPa]

nS Concrete
[MPa]
2

%
Increase

15.55

16

15.33

25.55 24.67 24.89 60.18

17.78

17.33

17.11

24.22 25.33 24.89 42.60

28 33.33

34.22

32.66

44.44 45.55 45.11 34.83

Initial curing:
Curing compounds have not been found to be very effective
for initial curing. Immediately after the placement of fresh
concrete, water sheen (bleed water) appears on the top of the
concrete surface. If curing compound is spread before this
water sheen dries, local ponding of the curing compound
mixed with the water sheen occurs on the concrete surface.
Again, allowing the water sheen to be completely evaporated
may be harmful for the long-term properties of concrete
especially in dry and hot climate.
Final curing (wet curing):
For final curing, wet curing as adopted for conventional
concretes, such as ponding water on the exposed surface or
covering the exposed surface by wet burlap and keeping it wet
by continuous sprinkling of water has been found to be
effective.

Figure 3: Compressive strength comparison

Splitting tensile strength of cylindrical concrete specimen:
This method covers the determination of the splitting tensile
strength of cylindrical concrete specimens. This method
consists of applying a diametral compressive force along the
length of a cylindrical specimen. This loading induces tensile
stresses on the plane containing the applied load. Tensile
failure occurs rather than compressive failure. Plywood strips
are used so that the load is applied uniformly along the length
of the cylinder. The maximum load is divided by appropriate
geometrical factors to obtain the splitting tensile strength. The
splitting tensile strength is calculated using (1).

Tests:
The high strength behavior of concrete and the durability
enhancement of the concrete have been studied by performing
the following tests:
1. Compression strength test
2. Splitting tensile strength of cylindrical concrete specimen
3. Water absorption test

f st'
Result and Discussion
Compressive strength test:
For cube test two types of specimens either cubes of 15 cm X
15 cm X 15 cm or 10cm X 10 cm x 10 cm depending upon the
size of aggregate used. For most of the works cubical moulds
of size 15 cm x 15cm x 15 cm are commonly used. This
concrete is poured in the mould and tempered properly so as
not to have any voids. After 24 hours these moulds are

2P
ld

(1)

Where, P is the maximum load at failure in newton, and l and

d are the length and diameter of the cylindrical specimen,
respectively, in meters. The results thus obtained are tabulated
as shown in table 5 and the comparison of the splitting tensile
strength of the nano concrete with conventional concrete is
presented in figure 4.

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International Journal of Applied Engineering Research ISSN 0973-4562 Volume 11, Number 4 (2016) pp 2854-2858
Research India Publications. http://www.ripublication.com
Table 5: Comparative split tensile test
Day Conventional
[MPa]
1
2
3 0.93
0.98
7 1.18
1.30
28 1.97
2.12

Concrete nS
Concrete %
[MPa]
Increase
3
1
2
3
1.01
2.34 2.40 2.51 149.48
1.38
2.61 2.75 2.96 114.73
2.33
3.04 3.18 3.11 45.33
Figure 5: Water absorption comparison

Conclusions
The study concludes that the addition of nS in the concrete
mixture behaves not only as a filler to improve the
microstructure, but also as an activator to promote pozzolanic
reaction thereby resulting in the enhancement of the durability
and mechanical properties of the mix. It is very cost effective
when considering the expenditure for the repair and
renovation of conventional concrete structures.
From the study, the following were concluded
1. With the addition of nS in concrete, several unexplored
potential in the field of concrete technology can be
achieved. However, the technology in the conventional
concrete has remained rather empirical and there are yet
various aspects of concrete behavior that are beyond our
comprehension.
2. Several new techniques are being incorporated in the field
of nano science for the effective integration of
nanotechnology in construction.
3. Mix design of nS concrete should take into account the
specific field requirements of workability retention this
is by far the most important parameter for the design.
4. When the percentage by weight of nS exceeds 1.5% of the
total weight of cement, it results in agglomeration.
5. Another important parameter to be included in the design
mix is the determination of specific gravities of the
aggregates, as they may affect the yield of the concrete,
particularly in a project which involves huge quantity of
concrete.
6. Skilled labour and adequate construction technique should
be available on site to handle the proper proportioning of
nS in the concrete mix.
7. It is also concluded that concrete containing nS offers
better workability with optimum usage of water, compared
to the conventional concrete.
8. ThenS concrete is also a green concrete as the addition of
nS instigates C-S-H reaction which results in the reduction
of carbon-dioxide emission thus making it eco-friendly.
9. The results obtained from 3rd day and 28th day
compressive and tensile strength tests prove that the nS
concrete attains high initial and final strength compared to
the conventional concrete. The percentage increase in
strength of nS concrete after 28 days was found out to be
35 for compression and 45 for tensile.
10. The high initial and final strength values indicate that the
nS concrete has a faster initial and final setting time.
11. The results obtained from water absorption test suggest
that nS concrete is more durable than conventional

Figure 4: Splitting tensile strength comparison

Water absorption test:

For water absorption test, the specimen was weighed before
and after immersion in water for predetermined duration of
time. Water absorption was then determined as the difference
in the weight of the specimen before and after immersion in
water relative to the weight of specimen before immersion in
water, expressed in percentage. The standard method is to
cure the specimens in an oven for three days, at a temperature
of 50C and relative humidity of 80%. The water absorption,
also designated as open porosity, is determined using (2).
A = Wsat /Wdry x100

(2)

Where, A-water absorption, in percentage, Wsat-weigh of the

saturated sample and Wdry-weight of the dry sample. The
results thus obtained are tabulated as shown in table 6 and the
comparison of the water absorption of the nano concrete with
conventional concrete is presented in figure 5.
Table 6: Comparative water absorption test
Duration

Conventional
Concrete [kg]
0
8.310
30 minutes 8.320
60 minutes 8.330
1 day
8.344
2 days
8.347
3 days
8.347
7 days
8.348

%
nS Concrete
Increase [kg]
0
8.614
0.12
8.619
0.24
8.619
0.40
8.623
0.44
8.624
0.44
8.624
0.45
8.625

%
Increase
0
0.06
0.06
0.10
0.11
0.11
0.12

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International Journal of Applied Engineering Research ISSN 0973-4562 Volume 11, Number 4 (2016) pp 2854-2858
Research India Publications. http://www.ripublication.com
concrete. This was concluded by comparing the water
absorbing property of conventional and nS concrete, which
showed a percentage decrease of considerable variation.

[17] SwapnaKutcharlapati, Sarkar A.K and Rajamane N.P;

Nanosilica Improves Recycled Concrete Aggregates.
URL:http://www.nbmcw.com/articles/ concrete/wastematerial-by-product/20960-nanosilica-improvesrecycled-concrete-aggregates.html

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Biographies:
Dr. R. Rajkumar is employed as Associate
Professor in the Department of Civil
Engineering at SSN College of Engineering,
Chennai. He completed his post-graduation
in the year 1996 with Structural Engineering
as his field of specialization. Further he
completed his Doctoral degree at Anna University, Chennai in
the year 2010 in the field of Structural Engineering and his
area of interest is Soil-Structure interaction Studies. He has 19
years of experience in Teaching, Research and Consultancy
and has held various responsibilities during his career.
He has guided a number of U.G and P.G projects and
published papers in National and International conferences
and Journals. Currently two research scholars are pursuing
their doctoral degrees under his supervision. Dr. R. Rajkumar
is a life member of various professional bodies like Indian
Concrete Institute, Indian Geotechnical Society, Institution of
Architects and Engineers. He is an Executive Committee
member of the Institution of Infrastructure Engineers and
Technocrats.

Akkineni Suryateja is currently a prefinal year

student of civil engineering in SSN College of
engineering. His field of interest is in the area of
concrete and soil structure interaction studies
and
participates
in
symposiums
and
conferences. He is involved in a funded student project
promoted by SSN under the guidance of Dr. R. Rajkumar. He
ranked second in his class and received the scholarship award
from the institution. He has contributed technical articles for
the Department magazine and has competed in technical
model making competitions.

Ramya Sajeevan is currently a prefinal year

student of civil engineering in SSN College of
engineering. She participates in symposiums
and has contributed to the welfare of the society
through Enactus, a non-profitable organization
formed by her in SSN. She is involved in a funded student
project promoted by SSN under the guidance of
Dr. R. Rajkumar.

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