Concrete testing
We undertake a wide range of site and laboratory concrete testing. Concrete is a composite construction material composed primarily of aggregate, cement and water. There are many formulations that have varied properties. The aggregate is generally coarse gravel or crushed rocks such as limestone, or granite, along with a fine aggregate such as sand. The cement, commonly Portland cement, and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, serve as a binder for the aggregate. Various chemical admixtures are also added to achieve specific properties. The water reacts with the cement which bonds the other components together, eventually creating a robust stone-like material. Concrete has relatively high compressive strength, but much lower tensile strength. For this reason, it is usually reinforced with materials such as steel due to its strong tension qualities.
Some of our concrete testing services include:
- Concrete testing for carbonation
- Testing and survey for concrete cover
- Concrete durability testing
- Concrete defection and deterioration testing
- Testing and assessment of corrosion damage to reinforced concrete elements
- Fire damage testing and investigation
- Alkali silica reaction assessment
- Investigation of sulphate attack
- Chemical, abrasion and impact damage
- Construction defects and poor workmanship
- Concrete core sampling and testing
- Petrographic examination
- Compressive strength testing
- Cement content and type determination
- Chemical analysis