Specific surface area of aggregate and its relation to concrete drying shrinkage

Abstract

This paper deals with the influence of aggregate properties on the shrinkage of concrete during drying. The drying shrinkage strains of concretes with various types of aggregates were measured and their influences on the fundamental properties of the different types of aggregates were investigated. Furthermore, the specific surface areas (SSAs) of aggregates were obtained by the BET method using both nitrogen (N2) and water vapour (H2O). The SSAs determined by using H2O exhibited higher values than those by using N2. The drying shrinkage strains of concretes increased with the H2O SSAs of the aggregates used. Our results suggest that the SSA determined by using H2O is an effective index for evaluating the influence of the aggregate type on the drying shrinkage of concrete.