GROUP 5 – ADMIXTURE Rice husk ash also improves the concrete’s
resistance to chloride and sulphate attacks
ADMIXTURE
5. Metakaolin - Ordinary clay and kaolin clay when thermally
An admixture is a material other than water, aggregates,
activated, is called metakaolin, in the non-purified form.
cementitious materials, and fiber reinforcement, used as
The particle size of metakaolin is smaller than cement
an ingredient of a cementitious mixture to modify its
particles. Metakaolin is not an industrial by-product like the
freshly mixed, setting, or hardened properties and that is
other admixtures.
added to the batch before or during its mixing.
Metakaolin provides strength to the concrete
Admixtures is added to these materials in preparing the
It helps the concrete resist chemical attacks
cement mortar to modify its properties.
It makes the concrete more durable and it helps in
Admixtures can be broadly classified into two types –
early strength development in concrete.
chemical admixtures and mineral admixtures
CHEMICAL ADMIXTURES - the ingredients in concrete other than
MINERAL ADMIXTURES - are basically derived from other
portland cement, water, and aggregate that are added to the mix
substances and not chemically manufactured. Fly ash, blast furnace
immediately before or during mixing.
slag, silica fumes are popular examples of mineral admixtures.
1. Air-entraining admixtures - facilitate the development of a
These admixtures have different roles to play in the concrete mix
system of microscopic air bubbles within concrete during
and enhance various properties of concrete.
mixing. They increase the freeze-thaw durability of
1. Fly Ash - is a very fine particle like residue, which has
concrete, increase resistance to scaling caused by deicing
pozzolanic properties. Hence it is often blended with
chemicals, and improve workability.
cement. Fly ash can be of two types – C type and F type. C
2. Water-reducing admixtures - usually reduce the required
type fly ash is rich in calcium and possesses both
water content for a concrete mixture by about 5 to 10
cementitious and pozzolanic properties whereas F type fly
percent. Consequently, concrete containing a water-
ash is low in calcium content and possesses only pozzolanic
reducing admixture needs less water to reach a required
properties.
slump than untreated concrete. The treated concrete can
Fly ash particles are mostly spherical and increase
have a lower water-cement ratio. This usually indicates
the workability of concrete.
that a higher strength concrete can be produced without
The setting time of concrete is also increased by
increasing the amount of cement.
adding fly ash to it 3. Retarding admixtures - which slow the setting rate of
Fly ash added to concrete mix reduces the concrete, are used to counteract the accelerating effect of
segregation and bleeding of concrete. hot weather on concrete setting. High temperatures often
2. Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBFS) - Blast cause an increased rate of hardening which makes placing
furnace slag is a by-product of iron extraction process from and finishing difficult. Retarders keep concrete workable
iron ore. Amongst all mineral admixtures, blast furnace slag during placement and delay the initial set of concrete.
has the highest specific gravity (2.8 to 3.0). . It is a highly Most retarders also function as water reducers and may
reactive form of slag and is usually quenched to form a entrain some air in concrete.
hardened matter which is then ground into particles of 4. Accelerating admixtures - increase the rate of early
fineness almost same as that of cement. Hence the name, strength development, reduce the time required for proper
ground granulated blast furnace slag. curing and protection, and speed up the start of finishing
GGBFS increases the initial setting time of the operations. Accelerating admixtures are especially useful
concrete. for modifying the properties of concrete in cold weather.
The ultimate strength gain is improved by slag 5. Superplasticizers - also known as high-range water
replacement and also the durability of the reducers (HRWR), reduce water content by 12 to 30
concrete is increased percent and can be added to concrete with a low-to-
3. Silica Fume - is basically very fine particles of amorphous normal slump and water-cement ratio to make high-slump
silica. It is produced as a by-product in electric arc furnaces flowing concrete. Flowing concrete is a highly fluid but
in the production of elemental silica or other silicon based workable concrete that can be placed with little or no
compounds. Being of very fine nature, silica fume increases vibration or compaction.
the water demand of concrete and hence a superplasticizer 6. Corrosion-inhibiting admixture - fall into the specialty
is almost always used with it. admixture category are used to slow corrosion of
Silica fume makes the concrete mix stickier and reinforcing steel in concrete. Corrosion inhibitors can be
more cohesive. used as a defensive strategy for concrete structures, such
There is a drastic reduction in the bleeding of as marine facilities, highway bridges, and parking garages,
concrete. that will be exposed to high concentrations of chloride.
Compressive and flexural strength of concrete is Other specialty admixtures include shrinkage-reducing
enhanced. The elastic modulus of concrete is also admixtures and alkali-silica reactivity inhibitors. The
increased by about 15 % compared to normal shrinkage reducers are used to control drying shrinkage
Portland cement concrete. and minimize cracking, while ASR inhibitors control
4. Rice Husk Ash - During milling of the paddy coming from durability problems associated with alkali-silica reactivity.
fields, a lot of rice husk is produced. This rice husk is mostly
used as a fuel. Rice husk ash is produced by burning the Admixture Health and Safety
rice husk. It is about a quarter of the mass of the husk. Most admixtures are water-based and are non-hazardous or, at
Rice husk ash provides strength to the concrete worst, irritants. A small group have a high pH and are therefore
It reduces the heat of hydration of concrete. harmful: this particularly applies to some air- entrainers,
water resisting admixtures and sprayed concrete accelerators. A
few, mainly accelerators and corrosion inhibitors, may be toxic.
