Internal Curing - Using Expanded Shale, Clay and Slate Lightweight Aggregate
Expanded Shale, Clay, and Slate Institute
Lightweight aggregate batched at a high degree of absorbed water may be
substituted for normalweight aggregates to provide “internal
curing”in concrete containing a high volume of cementitious
materials. High cementitious concretes are vulnerable to
self-desiccation and early-age cracking, and benefit significantly from
the slowly released internal moisture. Field experience has shown that
high strength concrete is not necessarily high performance concrete and
that high performance concrete need not necessarily be high strength. A
frequent, unintended consequence of high strength concrete is early-age
cracking. Blending lightweight aggregate containing absorbed water is
significantly helpful for concretes made with a low ratio of
water-to-cementitious material or concretes containing high volumes of
supplementary cementitious materials that are sensitive to curing
procedures. This process is often referred to as water entrainment.
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