Concrete is a popular building material. It is a stone obtained by hardening a mixture of a binder, fillers and water, as well as additives. A wide range of applications of concrete is associated with a wide variety of its types, the possibility of operation in different conditions and with different purposes.
How much does one m3 of concrete weigh?
This value may vary depending on the filler. The weight of concrete in 1m3 is, in fact, its density. The following groups of concrete are distinguished:
- Light - with a density of 500-2000 kg / m 3 . It is made both on porous and on dense aggregates of different sizes. It is used in walling and load-bearing structures, it is also popular as thermal insulation.
- Heavy - the average density of 2000-2500 kg / m 3 . The composition already has more dense fillers - limestone, granite and similar rocks, Portland cement varieties usually act as an astringent. Typically, such concrete is used in housing, for hydraulic structures, and as a component of road and airfield coatings.
- Heavy-duty concrete has a density above 2500 kg / m 3 . Scope - special designs, for example, nuclear power plants. The placeholders are heavy metal ores that can protect against radiation.
It should also be noted that the weight of concrete in 1m3 of dry mix and after mixing it with water will be different. This is due to compaction of the components. Even the weight of 1m3 of concrete M200, for example, may vary. Components sometimes have a density that differs up or down, and the use of large fraction fillers increases the porosity of concrete stone, thereby facilitating it.
Concrete stone parameters
The main characteristics of concrete are class, frost resistance, strength, moisture resistance. Indicators for these characteristics are indicated in the concrete labeling.
- Water permeability is marked with the Latin letter W with a digital coefficient that determines the pressure of the water jet, which can withstand a sample of concrete of this brand in the form of a cylinder.
- Frost resistance, denoted by F, shows how many cycles of defrosting and subsequent freezing (in other words, winter-summer transitions) concrete can withstand without loss of bearing capacity and other important qualities. This indicator plays a role only for a cold climate, and in the conditions of subtropics and tropics, the temperature does not drop so much that the concrete is frozen, and not just cooled.
- The class and grade of concrete determines the compressive strength of the stone.
Component Requirements
The materials used for concrete should not contain foreign substances. You should make sure that the sand contains a minimum amount of organic impurities, because they significantly reduce the strength of concrete stone. The main requirements for crushed stone are good indicators of strength and resistance to low temperatures. As for cement, its grade is 2-3 times higher than the grade of concrete at the outlet. Water should be clean, free of chemical and biological contaminants.
Additives
They can influence its properties in a wide variety of ways:
- increase the mobility of the mixture;
- prevent delamination during transportation;
- reduce liquid evaporation;
- adjust the speed of hardening of the mixture;
- change the density, and hence the weight of concrete in 1m3, the degree of porosity (due to the involvement of air, the formation of foam, gases, compaction);
- protect against various types of corrosion;
- give special properties (for example, regulate electrical conductivity).
Mostly complex additives are used, i.e., having an effect in a number of directions.
Buy or do it yourself?
The quality of the structures made from it depends on the proper selection of the composition of the concrete mixture, their durability and safety during operation. Therefore, you should not save on material. Although you can mix concrete with your own hands if you wish, the use of factory products is preferable. Mortar-concrete units constantly monitor the quality of the components and the mixture itself, make adjustments, which means that the weight of concrete of 1 m3 and other necessary characteristics will be met.
If it is nevertheless necessary to obtain concrete yourself, then regulatory documents offer clear and understandable process algorithms. To calculate the weight of concrete in 1m3 and choose the proportions of the components, there are also computer programs and various online calculators that perform the same function.
For the most part, they take into account only the desired concrete grade, the used cement grade and the filler fraction, but the exact proportions, in addition to these factors, are significantly affected by the humidity of the sand and gravel.