what is concrete ? full defination
Answers
Concrete, in construction, structural material consisting of a hard, chemically inert particulate substance, known as aggregate (usually sand and gravel), that is bonded together by cement and water.
Among the ancient Assyrians and Babylonians, the bonding substance most often used was clay. The Egyptians developed a substance more closely resembling modern concrete by using lime and gypsum as binders. Lime (calcium oxide), derived from limestone, chalk, or (where available) oyster shells, continued to be the primary pozzolanic, or cement-forming, agent until the early 1800s. In 1824 an English inventor, Joseph Aspdin, burned and ground together a mixture of limestone and clay. This mixture, called portland cement, has remained the dominant cementing agent used in concrete production.
Aggregates are generally designated as either fine (ranging in size from 0.025 to 6.5 mm [0.001 to 0.25 inch]) or coarse (from 6.5 to 38 mm [0.25 to 1.5 inch] or larger). All aggregate materials must be clean and free from admixture with soft particles or vegetable matter, because even small quantities of organic soil compounds result in chemical reactions that seriously affect the strength of the concrete.
Concrete is characterized by the type of aggregate or cement used, by the specific qualities it manifests, or by the methods used to produce it. In ordinary structural concrete, the character of the concrete is largely determined by a water-to-cement ratio. The lower the water content, all else being equal, the stronger the concrete. The mixture must have just enough water to ensure that each aggregate particle is completely surrounded by the cement paste, that the spaces between the aggregate are filled, and that the concrete is liquid enough to be poured and spread effectively. Another durability factor is the amount of cement in relation to the aggregate (expressed as a three-part ratio—cement to fine aggregate to coarse aggregate). Where especially strong concrete is needed, there will be relatively less aggregate.
The strength of concrete is measured in pounds per square inch or kilograms per square centimetre of force needed to crush a sample of a given age or hardness. Concrete’s strength is affected by environmental factors, especially temperature and moisture. If it is allowed to dry prematurely, it can experience unequal tensile stresses that in an imperfectly hardened state cannot be resisted. In the process known as curing, the concrete is kept damp for some time after pouring to slow the shrinkage that occurs as it hardens. Low temperatures also adversely affect its strength. To compensate for this, an additive such as calcium chloride is mixed in with the cement. This accelerates the setting process, which in turn generates heat sufficient to counteract moderately low temperatures. Large concrete forms that cannot be adequately covered are not poured in freezing temperatures.
Concrete that has been hardened onto imbedded metal (usually steel) is called reinforced concrete, or ferroconcrete. Its invention is usually attributed to Joseph Monier, a Parisian gardener who made garden pots and tubs of concrete reinforced with iron mesh; he received a patent in 1867. The reinforcing steel, which may take the form of rods, bars, or mesh, contributes tensile strength. Plain concrete does not easily withstand stresses such as wind action, earthquakes, and vibrations and other bending forces and is therefore unsuitable in many structural applications. In reinforced concrete, the tensile strength of steel and the compressional strength of concrete render a member capable of sustaining heavy stresses of all kinds over considerable spans. The fluidity of the concrete mix makes it possible to position the steel at or near the point where the greatest stress is anticipated.