BY- ANKIT SANDILYA

• There are many types of concrete each

designed for fulfilling specific technical,
structural and aesthetic requirements. In the
broadest definition, concrete is a mixture of
cement, aggregate (gravel and/or sand) and
(potable) water.
• Structural LWC has an in-place density (unit
weight) <1800 Kg/m3 compared to normal
weight concrete a density in the range of
2240 to 2400 kg/m³. For structural
applications the concrete strength should be
greater than 2500 psi (17.0 MPa).
• The bond between the aggregate and the
matrix is stronger in the case of LWAC than in
normal concrete. Cement paste penetrate
inside the aggregates due to their porous
nature. Thus, there is very little or no ITZ
between the aggregates and the matrix
• The production of lightweight aggregate concrete has been expanding, and
now includes all types – from no fines concrete of low density, mainly for
block production, to structural concrete with densities from 1000 to 2000
kg/m3 and compressive strength up to 80MPa. There have been
difficulties pumping LWAC because the pump pressures forces water into
the porous aggregates particles resulting in an increased stiffness in the
concrete which blocks the pipes.
• Floating concrete is a fluid mixture of density less than water, which is
suitable to build floating structures, reducing the consumption of land for
buildings. Light weight concrete (foamed concrete) is a versatile material
which consists primarily of a cement based mortar mixed with at least 20%
of volume air.
• The use of lightweight (LWAC) can be traced to as early as 3,000BC,
when Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa were built during the Indus Valley
civilization.
• In Europe, the use of LWCA occurred 2,000 years ago when the
Romans built Pantheon, the aqua ducts, and the Colosseum in Rome.
EXAMPLES -
• LWC ships were produced in the USA during the 1914-1918 war, and their success
led to the production of the USS Selma (a war ship). In both 1953 and 1980 the
Selma’s durability was assessed by taking cored samples from the water line area.
On both occasion little corrosion was noted.
 PROPERTIES
• Light Weight: Density range from 300 Kg/m3 to 1850 Kg/m3 as compared to 1800 Kg/m3 to 2400 Kg/m3 for
conventional brick and concrete respectively. Despite millions of tiny air filled cells, it is strong and durable. There
is Lightweight advantage for the structure design, leading to savings in supporting structures and foundation.
• Compressive Strength: (<1 to 40)N/mm2.
• Excellent Acoustic Performance: It can be used as effective sound barrier and for acoustic solutions. Hence,
highly suitable for partition walls, floor screens/roofing and panel material in auditoriums.
• Earthquake Resistant: Since lighter than concrete & brick, the lightness of the material increases resistance
against earthquake.
• Insulation: Superior thermal insulation properties compared to that of conventional brick and concrete, so
reduces the heating and cooling expenses. In buildings, light-weight concrete will produce a higher fire rated
structure.
• Workability: Products made from lightweight concrete are lightweight, making them easy to place using less
skilled labor. The bricks can be sawed, drilled and shaped like wood using standard hand tools, regular screws and
nails. It is simpler than brick or concrete.

• Lifespan: Weather proof, termite resistant and fire proof.

• Savings in Material: Reduces dead weight of filler walls in framed structures by more than 50% as compared to
brickwork resulting in substantial savings. Due to the bigger and uniform shape of blocks, there is a saving in bed
mortar and plaster thickness. In most cases the higher cost of the light-weight concrete is offset by a reduction of
structural elements, less reinforcing steel and reduced volume of concrete.
• Skim Coating: Do not require plaster and water repellent paint suffices. Wallpapers and plasters can also be
applied directly to the surface.
• Modulus of Elasticity: The modulus of elasticity of the concrete with lightweight aggregates is lower, 0.5 – 0.75
to that of the normal concrete.
• Therefore more deflection is there in lightweight concrete
1. LIGHTWEIGHT AGGREGATE CONCRETE-
LIGHTWEIGHT AGGREGATE (LWA) CAN BE DIVIDED IN TWO CATEGORIES—THOSE OCCURRING NATURALLY
AND ARE READY TO USE ONLY WITH MECHANICAL TREATMENT, AND THOSE PRODUCED BY THERMAL
TREATMENT FROM EITHER NATURALLY OCCURRING MATERIALS OR FROM INDUSTRIAL BY-PRODUCTS. NATURAL
LWAS ARE MOSTLY OF VOLCANIC ORIGIN, AND THUS ARE FOUND ONLY IN CERTAIN PARTS OF THE WORLD.
PUMICE AND SCORIA ARE THE OLDEST KNOWN LWAS, AND THESE ARE LIGHT AND STRONG ENOUGH TO BE
USED IN THEIR NATURAL STATE, BUT THEIR PROPERTIES ARE VARIABLE. LIGHTWEIGHT AGGREGATES ARE MADE BY
A THERMAL PROCESS USING NATURAL MATERIALS SUCH AS CLAY, SHALE, SLATE, PERLITE, AND VERMICULITE.
BASICALLY, THERE ARE TWO PROCESSES FOR MAKING LIGHTWEIGHT AGGREGATES—A WET PROCESS AND A
DRY PROCESS. ALL LIGHTWEIGHT AGGREGATES ARE NOT PRODUCED USING NATURAL RAW MATERIALS. SOME
ARE PRODUCED FROM INDUSTRIAL BY-PRODUCTS SUCH AS FLY ASH, SLAG, MUNICIPAL WASTE, AND
DREDGING WASTE.
Aerated Concrete- (650 to 950 kg/m3 and its strength is about 15 to 30 kg/cm2)
Aerated concrete may be defined as concrete made very light and cellular by the addition of prepared foam or by
generation of gas within the unhardened mixture. It is also termed as cellular concrete and foamed
concrete.

No-Fines Concrete-
This concrete is made up of only coarse aggregate(passing through 20 mm retained on 10 mm), cement
and water. Aggregate/cement ratio from 6 : 1 to 10 :1
Unlike the conventional concrete, in which strength is primarily controlled by the water/cement ratio, the
strength of no-fines concrete, is dependent on the water/cement ratio, aggregate cement ratio and unit
weight of concrete. No-fines concrete, when conventional aggregates are used, may show a density of about
1600 to 1900 kg/m3, but when no-fines concrete is made by using light weight aggregate, the density may
come to about 360 kg/m3. No-fines concrete does not give much side thrust to the formwork as the particles are
having point to point contact and concrete does not flow.
1.4 MPa to about 14 MPa
LWAC microstructure
• Interfaces in Concrete
The presence of these materials gives rise to a wide variety of interfaces in concrete.
The principal ones are listed below:
a. the various phases that make up hcp.
b. the hcp and the still-unhydrated cement grain.
c. the hcp and the unreacted portion of the pozzolanic materials.
d. the hcp and aggregates
e. the hcp (or mortar) and the discontinuous fibers.
f. the hcp (or concrete) and the steel reinforcement.
g. the solid phases and either air or water

• In LWAC, on the other hand, the cracks tend to propagate in a straight line right through the aggregate
particles in the crack path. In this case, the aggregates themselves are weaker than either the hcp or
the interfacial region.
The principal factors necessitating modification of proportioning and control procedures for
lightweight aggregate concrete, compared to normal weight concrete, are the greater
absorptions and the higher rates of absorption of most lightweight aggregates.
• THE LIGHTWEIGHT AGGREGATES HAVE A POROUS SURFACE, DUE TO THIS ,
SOME PART OF THE BINDER WILL PENETRATE INTO THE AGGREGATE,
WHICH WILL SUBSEQUENTLY DECREASE THE INTERNAL BLEEDING WATER
ZONE.
• THE SURFACE BLEEDING IS DUE TO A HIGH PERMEABILITY OF
UNHYDRATED CEMENT PASTE. A CONSEQUENCE OF THIS PHENOMENON IS
LAITANCE, WHICH CONSIST OF A HIGHLY POROUS AND WEAK FILM OF
MORTAR ON THE SURFACE OF HARDENED CONCRETE.
• LAITANCE IS A MAJOR CAUSE OF FAILURE IN FLOORING INSTALLATIONS. IT
TAKES THE FORM OF A WEAK, FRIABLE LAYER ON THE SURFACE OF
CONCRETE AND SAND CEMENT SCREEDS WHICH APPEARS AFTER CURING. IT
IS MADE FROM CEMENT AND FINE AGGREGATES THAT RISE TO THE SURFACE
WHEN TOO MUCH WATER IS ADDED.
• THE INTERNAL BLEED WATER MAY CONTAIN FINE PARTICLES OF SAND AND
CEMENT, AND GIVES RISE TO A POROUS CEMENT PASTE MATRIX AT THE
AGGREGATE SURFACE, A PHENOMENON SIMILAR TO SURFACE LAITANCE.
• THE PASTE-AGGREGATE BONDING IS DEPENDENT ON THE NATURE OF THE
EXTERNAL SHELL OF THE AGGREGATE.
• MECHANICAL INTERLOCKING PLAYS AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN STRENGTHENING
THE INTERFACE.
• ABSENCE OF THE ORIENTED CA(OH)2 IS RELATED TO THE ABSORPTION OF WATER
BY LWA.
• THERE IS SOME MICRO-STRUCTURAL EVIDENCE OF POZZOLANIC ACTIVITY OF
LWA, WHICH IS POSSIBLE DUE TO THE CHEMICAL REACTION.
• ABOUT 10% ADDITION OF SILICA FUME HELPS TO IMPROVE THE EARLY STRENGTH
IN SOME CASES, WHEREAS POSITIVE EVIDENCE OF THE LATENT HYDRAULICITY OF
SLAG WAS NOTED IN THE CONCRETE CONTAINING 30%.
• THE THERMAL RESISTANCE OF LWAC IS UP TO 6 TIMES THAT OF NORMAL
WEIGHT CONCRETE.
• The compressive strength of lightweight aggregate concrete is usually related to the
cement content at a given slump, rather than to the water/cement ratio.

(psi)

APPROXIMATE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN

CEMENT VARIATION AND STRENGTH
• A floating concrete structure is usually a
solid body made of reinforced concrete
& an inner chain of chambers filled with
a lightweight impermeable material,
here the concrete is made to float by
addition of Aluminium powder (It
generates fluffiness in the concrete
same as baking soda does in a cake.
This admixture when added to mortar
or concrete mixture react chemically
with hydroxides present in the cement
& form minute bubbles of hydrogen gas
of size ranging from 0.1 to 1 mm
throughout the cement-water as an air
entraining agent).
• In addition to this, the concrete includes-
• Polypropylene fibers for good binding,
• Nano Silica(having particle size less than 100 nm)
to improve concrete workability & strength, increase
resistance to water penetration & to help control the
leaching of calcium,
• CaCl2 as an accelerator &
• Water proofing agents(One of the major
requirements of floating concrete is it should not
have any leakage through it. The porosity of the
concrete mortar should almost be equal to zero).
• Aluminium mesh instead of steel mesh is used for
reinforcement, for making it light weight & corrosion
resistant. Carbon fiber mesh can also replace the
aluminium mesh as it is the best among the light
weight but strong meshes available.
• Aggregates used shall comply with the following conditions:
a) At least 95% of aggregates must be via the 18mm BS sieve.
b) The stone aggregate used shall not exceed 10% by 10 mm BS sieve.
c) Stone did not diffuse through the BS 4mm sieve.
• In case of RCC structures, increase the cover by 10mm extra, to avoid corrosion steel.
• Two ways are there to induce the air in concrete.
• Gas concrete
• Foamed concrete
• Finely divided aluminum powder is generally used as gas producing
agent.
• Its quantity is about 0.2-0.5 % of weight of cement.
• Aluminum powder reacts with Ca(OH)2 to liberate hydrogen bubbles.
• POWDERED ZINC, ALUMINUM ALLOY OR HYDROGEN PEROXIDE CAN ALSO BE USED AS GAS
PRODUCING AGENTS.
• FOAMED CONCRETE IS PRODUCED BY ADDING FOAMING AGENT, USUALLY HYDROLYZED
PROTEIN OR RESIN SOAPS, DURING MIXING
• IN SOME CASES, STABLE PREFORMED FOAM IS ALSO ADDED DURING MIXING.
• COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH VARIES FROM 12MPA TO 14MPA FOR A CONCRETE OF DENSITY
500KG/M3.
 SLUMP
• Slump:
1. Due to lower aggregate density, structural lightweight concrete does not slump as much as normal-
weight concrete with the same workability.
2. A lightweight air-entrained mixture with a slump of 50 to 75 mm can be placed under conditions that
would require a slump of 75 to 125 mm.
3. With higher slumps, the large aggregate particles tend to float to the surface, making finishing
difficult.
4. A slump of 50 to 100 mm (2 to 4 in.) produces the best results for finishing.
• AIR CONTENTS ARE GENERALLY BETWEEN 5% AND 8%, DEPENDING ON THE
MAXIMUM SIZE OF COARSE AGGREGATE (PASTE CONTENT) USED AND THE
EXPOSURE CONDITIONS.

• TEST RESULTS FOR 1:3 (CEMENT:SAND) WITH 0.08% OF ALUMINIUM POWDER,

FLOW VALUE= 14%, SUITABLE FOR MARINE STRUCTURES
STRENGTH= 3MPA (2-7 RECOMMENDED)
SLUMP= 0-150
RC floating harbor
used in WWII