EXPERIMENTAL STUDY ON STRENGTH PROPERTIES OF CONCRETE BY USING SELF CURING AGENTS

Abstract

Curing is the process by which hydraulic cement concrete ages and acquires the hardened qualities over time as a result of continuing to hydrate the cement in the presence of enough water and heat. Curing stops concrete from losing moisture. There are numerous curing techniques, including water, steam, and self-curing. For our project, we use self-curing. Concrete moisture evaporation must be adequately controlled to avoid the formation of plastic shrinkage fractures. Thus, curing is a crucial step in the process of strengthening concrete. Self-curing agents carry out the curing process. In self-curing concrete, the concrete is mixed in the same proportions as regular conventional concrete, but we also add self-curing chemicals while we make the concrete. For testing the compressive and tensile strength over periods of seven and twenty-four days, moulds in the shapes of cubes and cylinders were cast. employing the slump cone test to assess whether fresh concrete is workable. In the current study, the strength of concrete containing self-curing agents at various cement percentages will be examined and compared to that of traditionally cured concrete. Finally, PEG-600 (2%) and PVA (0.5%) showed positive results compared to the nominal concrete strength.