Effects of Curing Conditions on the Properties of Ternary (Ordinary Portland Cement/Fly Ash/Silica Fume) Concrete

This paper presents the effects of various curing methods that are frequently encountered in the field on several properties of ternary (OPC/FA/SF) concrete mixtures containing ordinary portland cement (OPC), 20 or 30% of Class C fly ash (FA), and 5 or 7% of silica fume (SF). The curing conditions evaluated in the study included: air drying (absence of wet burlap, plastic sheet, or curing compound), 7-day curing compound application, 3-day curing under wet burlap, and 7-day curing under wet burlap. The properties studied at both early and late ages included compressive strength, salt scaling resistance, resistance to chloride ion penetration (RCP), initial rate of absorption (sorptivity), and free shrinkage. The ANOVA analysis was performed to identify statistically significant differences in the test results for the different curing conditions. In addition, the impact of curing conditions on the respective properties was compared in the quantitative manner.