TESTING-SCC: Towards new European Standards for fresh SCC

Title: TESTING-SCC: Towards new European Standards for fresh SCC
Author(s): P. Bartos
Paper category : conference
Book title: SCC'2005-China: 1st International Symposium on Design, Performance and Use of Self-Consolidating Concrete
Editor(s): Zhiwu Yu, Caijun Shi, Kamal Henri Khayat and Youjun Xie
Print-ISBN: 2-912143-61-6
e-ISBN: 2912143624
Publisher: RILEM Publications SARL
Publication year: 2005
Pages: 25 - 44
Total Pages: 20
Nb references: 15
Language: English

Abstract: One of the key obstacles preventing a faster and wider introduction of SCC into construction practice is the absence of national and international standard tests for assessment of key properties of fresh self-compacting concretes (Filling ability; Passing ability; Segregation resistance). Pressure from industry, demanding standards, which will permit a convenient and reliable specification of SCC mixes for intended applications, has risen so much, that different test methods are being hastily 'adopted', without the necessary rigorous pre-normative investigation. Such an uncontrolled and uncoordinated adoption of unreliable tests and/or tests with limited meaning/sensitivity would become counterproductive, holding back further advance in SCC. Future international harmonisation' will become very difficult.
To avoid such an adverse situation, the European Commission supported a major international project "TESTING-SCC" in which all of the known tests were initially considered. Tests suitable for standardisation were identified following a systematic evaluation and a rigorous examination of their performance. The TESTING-SCC has been the only large-scale project in which both relative and absolute performance of the tests were carried out. This was a technically extremely challenging task, because the SCC trial mixes and their controlled variations in properties when fresh could only be characterised by test methods, which were investigated. Significance and meaning of the test results and their capability to detect differences in the key properties of fresh SCC could be therefore reliably assessed only in full-scale site-trials, which were carried out. The unique pre-normative data obtained now provide the essential base for production of formal draft EN standards for SCC. These are being completed by a consortium (1) of representing major sectors of European concrete-related industry, in collaboration with the European Standards Institute (CEN), aiming for their earliest possible formal adoption and publication.
The tests selected for the EN standardisation are also briefly presented and their performance, advantages and limitations are outlined in this paper. It is expected that these tests will also become international standards, adopted by many countries beyond Europe.

Online publication: 2005-04-11
Publication type : full_text
Public price (Euros): 0.00
doi: 10.1617/2912143624.003