During a construction project, it is very important to know the strength of concrete because it will determine when it is possible to walk on the surface, remove the form-work, or continue building the structure.

The problem often faced is that the concrete strength can be hard to estimate. This is primarily due to the fact that concrete strength does not always develop at the same speed. Temperature and weather conditions will affect how fast or slow the strength of a structure develops.

This is where the concept of Concrete Maturity comes in.

What is Concrete Maturity?

Concrete Maturity represents the combination of time and temperature. It is calculated based on the temperature history of the structure by applying one of the maturity functions. In its essence, maturity is:

Maturity = Time * Temperature

The main concept about concrete maturity is that a specific value of maturity can be obtained with many different combinations of time and temperature.

For example, the graphs below represent the temperature history of three different pieces of concrete. All of these have reached the same maturity of 100 °C-hours, but it took a different amount of hours to do so. This is because the temperature has been different throughout that period.

If you look at the first graph (Graph 1), you will see that the temperature is 20 °C and that it has been curing for 5 hours. This gives a maturity of 100 °C-hours.

If we compare this with Graph 2, you will see that the temperature is higher. Since the concrete temperature has been at 40 °C, it only took 2,5 hours for it to reach the same maturity of 100 °C-hours.

Looking at Graph 3, the temperature is the lowest of the examples at 10 °C, and in this case, it will take 10 hours to reach the maturity of 100 °C-hours.

Temperature affects how fast the maturity develops. If the temperature is high, it will take less time to reach a certain maturity, compared to if the temperature is low.

What are the benefits of monitoring Concrete Maturity?

Understanding and monitoring the maturity of concrete allows the achievement of a number of significant benefits these include:

1. Accurate assessment of in-situ strengths

2. Faster construction cycles

3. Reducing risk and testing costs

By adopting the Maturix Concrete Sensors, Actech has the expertise and resources, and specialises in providing comprehensive and cost effective concrete maturity services, these include:

1. Assisting our clients understanding and applying the concept of concrete maturity

2. Developing and presenting project specific solutions

3. Determining strength versus maturity relationships of products and establish relevant targets

4. Monitoring and reporting the in-situ performance in real time