Minimising Defects in Plastering Work Defects in plastering work can be minimised by following the below mentioned techniques. The brick and plastering work should be carried out by skilled masons in the best workmanship manner. Bond of brick work should be properly maintained. Efflorescence is removed by rubbing brushes on the damaged surface. A solution … Read more
Why Beam-Column Joints are Special In RC buildings, portions of columns that are common to beams at their intersections are called beam-column joints (Figure 1). Since their constituent materials have limited strengths, the joints have limited force carrying capacity. When forces larger than these are applied during earthquakes, joints are severely damaged. Repairing damaged joints … Read more
Factors Affecting the Setting and Hardening of Portland cement (1) The Impact of Cement’s Composition The mineral composition of cement and their ratios are the main factors affecting the setting and hardening of cement. As mentioned above, various mineral components will reveal different characteristics when reacting with water. For example, the increase of C3A can … Read more
Role of Steel in Concrete Reinforced concrete is a material that combines concrete and some form of reinforcement into a composite whole. Whilst steel bars, wires and mesh are by far the most widely used forms of reinforcement, other materials are used in special applications, e.g. carbon-filament reinforcement and steel fibres. Concrete has a high … Read more
What is Contraction Joint? A contraction joint is one in which the two concrete surfaces are free to move away from one another as a result of shrinkage or thermal movement. Relative movement in the plane of the joint is prevented. Why to Provide Contraction Joint? As concrete hardens and dries out, it shrinks. Unless … Read more
What is Efflorescence in Concrete? Efflorescence in concrete simply means appearance of white colored powdered material on the concrete surface. Efflorescence is the formation of salt deposits, usually white, on or near the surface of concrete after it has been finished and causing a change in the appearance. Light-coloured concrete shows the deposit much less … Read more
Definition – What is Bitumen Emulsion? Bitumen emulsion is a mixture of water & bitumen. Hey wait, we know that bitumen is a oil product and it cannot be mixed with water. That is why we add an emulsifier (a surface active agent) with water before adding bitumen. Addition of emulsifier with water facilitates breaking … Read more
In geotechnical engineering, hydrometer analysis is primarily used to know the grain size distribution of a fine grained soil. In this post I will share with you the following things. What is a hydrometer? Why hydrometer analysis is done? What is the theory behind hydrometer analysis of soil? How to perform hydrometer analysis of soil? … Read more
What is Liquid Limit of Soil? When water is added to dry soil, it changes its state of consistency from hard to soft. If we add water to a fine grained soil, then water will change its consistency from hard to semi hard. If we continue to add more water then again the soil will … Read more
What is Crazing on Concrete Surface? Crazing is the development of fine shallow hair cracks on create surface. Due to crazing the surface appearance of concrete looks not so pleasing. This may appear within few day after curing or sometimes after a longer periods. These cracks do not penetrate deep onto the concrete and do … Read more