Resistance to permeation of high strength concrete containing fly ash

Abstract

Utilization of fly ash as a supplementary cementitious material enhances sustainability of concrete. This study focused on the permeability of concrete incorporating high volume Class F fly ash from Western Australia. The permeation properties have been investigated by means of sorptivity and water permeability tests. Concrete mixtures with fly ash as 0%, 30% and 40% of the total binder were investigated. The 28 days compressive strength of the concrete mixtures varied from 65 to 85 MPa. Fly ash concretes achieved more than 80% of control (0% fly ash) concrete’s compressive strength at 28 days. In the sorptivity and permeability tests after 28 days of curing, fly ash incorporated concretes showed better performance than control concretes of similar strength or same total binder content and water to binder (w/b) ratio. In general, inclusion of Class F fly ash as part of the total binder improved the resistance to water permeation.