About This Book
Design and Control of Concrete Mixtures is the concrete industry's primary reference manual on concrete technology. Published by the Portland Cement Association (PCA) for over a century, it covers the properties, selection, and proportioning of raw materials needed to produce safe, durable, and workable structures.
Core Concepts of Mix Design
- Proportioning: Determining the precise ratios of cement, water, fine and coarse aggregates, and admixtures.
- Performance Targets: Balancing strength, low permeability, and workability to meet specific project requirements.
- Sustainability: Incorporating supplementary cementitious materials—such as fly ash or slag—to reduce environmental impact.
Control and Execution
- Quality Control: Ensuring consistency throughout batching, mixing, and transport.
- Placement and Curing: Managing consolidation, finishing techniques, and moisture and temperature control, including procedures for hot and cold weather conditions.
- Testing: Applying standard ASTM, ACI, and AASHTO test methods to verify the properties of both fresh and hardened concrete.
Practice Tests Using This Book
This book is required or recommended for 2 licensing exams. We've written 48 practice questions directly from this material, each one citing the chapter and section it comes from.