Admixtures for Concrete - What is an Air Entraining Admixture?

This video introduces air entraining agents and shows why they are important and some cool properties. www.tylerley.com
You can find more details in these papers:
Ley, M.T., Folliard, K.J., Hover, K.C., “Observations of air-bubbles escaped from fresh cement paste”, Cement Concrete Research (2009), doi:10.1016/j.cemconres.2009.01.019.
Ley, M.T, Chancey, R., Juenger, M., Folliard, K.J., The physical and chemical characteristics of the shell of air-entrained bubbles in cement paste, Cement Concrete Research (2009), doi:10.1016/j.cemconres.2009.01.018.

[@beongjoonkang3639]

Big thanks to Dr. Ley for the super informative and interesting lecture. EPIC!

[@JavedKhan-ny3pm]

An excellent presentation.

[@RobertJordan7]

Tyler, Thank you for your videos and enthusiasm! I’ve watched everything on simple concrete & mix design and am working through the rest of your videos. We are currently troubleshooting unstable air contents in a specialty mix with many admixtures. The mix is for a 5 ksi low-shrink post tensioned slab. Our normal mixes contain lignosulfonate based type D low range water reducer, & 0.55 oz/cwt air entrainer. Our workable mixes contain LRWR, 0.27 oz/cwt air entrainer, & 1.9 oz/cwt type F polycarboxylate based high range water reducer. Our PT mix contains LRWR, 1.2 oz/cwt air entrainer, 4 oz/cwt HRWR, & 3.6 oz/cwt type S migrating corrosion inhibiting admixture. The CIA is not calcium nitrite based. Rather, it is an amine based mixed inhibitor. I suspect that the higher dosage of HRWR is creating a coarse & less stable air void system. Also, the CIA has increased the required AEA by >4x (1.2/0.27). What can we do to stabilize the air? How do CIAs generally interact with air void systems?

[@TylerLey]

Thanks Josh for watching and for the question. This is a hard one and I would use the Super Air Meter to troubleshoot it. kzbin.info/www/bejne/rpLFdKeVeM6VgLs I would systematically remove admixtures and see how it changes the air void quality and the dosage of AEA to get a reasonable air content. I have done a lot of work with CIA and it is very dependant on the combination of cement, WR, SCM, and AEA you use. Some perform better with synthetic AEAs. Contact me by email if you want to talk more.

[@khalidsalah8482]

Wow! Fantastic video. I like it. Thank you very much professor.

[@karldarnit]

Thanks for the video!

[@nonsequitor]

Super vidéo. Thank you. Love the wrong-threaded bottle top detail at 4:20 😉

[@TylerLey]

Thanks!

[@sevenmile]

OK -- I just watched the entire thing (the ending was kind of unexpected....) Storytime at your house must be fascinating.

[@josephgilliand4]

You meant "The creature from the BLACK Lagoon". The creature from the blue lagoon is Brooke Shields.:)

[@Bel...QWERTY1]

Hope you answer me soon ❤ And sure thanks for your ultraprofissional content ❤

[@brennandc]

If one were making their own concrete on site, could standard dish soap be used in a pinch as an AEA? (realizing it's not ideal)

[@TomasSwiftMetcalfe]

Weird, I never thought I'd find concrete interesting, but here we are.

[@geoffnorrena5707]

Tyler, can you help me.. we have a light-wieght concrete job coming up, and i know calibrations need to be done daily, no idea what or how to do them, immediately thought to ask for your help. Love your passion, great, educational videos man!! Huge fan!

[@MrOliverAC]

Tyler! Thanks for your videos. Have you ever heard of the Air Void Analyzer for liquid state concrete? I am curious about your thoughts on it. On the other hand, would it be ok to use AE Admixture on regular Quikrete concrete bags? Or AE should be left for the readymix guys only?

[@marcnaidu5804]

Hi Tyler, is there a cheap additive to buy to add to my concrete mix for a rapid cure ? For example gypsum powder ...? I read that calcium chloride makes concrete dry very fast but I can not find it where I live in the shops. Is there another more common way to get calcium chloride source and then add it to my concrete. I’m thinking the calcium chloride in the moisture dehydrators such as hungry hippo ?

[@markyes2041]

Hi Tyler , I realise this is Air Entrained concrete you are discussing in this video but what do you see in the future for Non-Autoclaved site mixed AirCrete - (Air Entrained cements) being approved in building codes ? I see this as a huge win economically but as far as i know it has not been approved by any state in the USA. They could be fibre reinforced or Steel reinforced with multiple different densities to obtain the ideal insulation versus structural properties...

[@kestergascoyne6924]

Holy!!! COW!!!

[@Bel...QWERTY1]

And what is the hydrophobic part job ?? Can we say that hydrophobic part keeps water in a safe distance to protect bubble while hydrophilic part attracts some water particles so the surface tension between bubble and water decrease ???

[@lepham2135]

Tyler, you indicated that as freezing occurs in the pores, water moves from the pores to the air voids. But several studies show that water actually moves towards the freezing sites whether they are pores or air voids. Any thought?

[@Dadnatron]

Tyler, is there a basic ‘list of things to remember and attend to’ for ensuring concrete has been reasonably optimized? I recognize there is a massive amount of data far beyond a normal person, but I could really use a basic list of the top 10 things to address when building/pouring concrete for farm purposes. Slabs, short walls, etc. I’ve watched all your videos, but honestly, I don’t know which parts are of high criticality and which are only really important for building a triple level overpass. I’d pay for a basic list of ‘top 10 things in order of importance’ to require from concrete supplier or when mixing my own out of a bag. I built a barn recently, before I found your videos, and they put in a small slab which cracked within 3 months. Nothing can be done now, but I didn’t know enough to ask for fiber reinforcement. I watched another guy try to simply add more water, to make it easier for him to work the cement, but by then, I knew the issue with compressive strength, so told him no, he grumbled a bit, but finished the slab without much effort. I now understand Super-P, aggregate shape and size, etc. But in the real low scale world, I don’t know if all the hoops are useful for me and I don’t know which are important to my outcome needs. If you had a list of ‘top farm/home owner’ concrete issues to address, it would be fantastic!

[@naderemil1429]

hi mr tyler , i have a problem in batch plant , firstly i am using pce admixture and the problem come when i making concrete trail on small mixer like 30 liter , the results become very good and start with collapse and retention may be stand for 2 hours , but when making on big mixer 1 m3 concrete not start with collapse and slump loss fast , all same dosage and water and mix design

[@Bel...QWERTY1]

Do Air-Entrainers produce air bubbles or protect them or both ??? i hear about materials that added to concrete like aluminum powder with hydrogen biroxide to produce hydrogen air bubbles in the concrete and there is organic wood resins that do a similar job and they defined as air entrainers too( also pumping air into concrete one way to put those bubbles in but in that way i dont know how we controll the bubbles size )???

[@carpenterfamily6198]

So what admixture would recommend ? Drexel FM-160 ?

[@kelkel1959]

In my region Light Gauge Steel Framing + monolith foam concrete is quite popular. I also like the technology but about the corrosion? Some companies claim they have a secret foam concrete additives that prevent steel from corrosion. Can it be true? Or maybe a polymeric cover is the only solution?

[@Dadnatron]

At approximately time 11:00, as you discuss air transfer in ‘cracked bubble’, is the assumption you make that not only is the large obviously cracked bubble affected, but the bubbles which are shrinking also ‘cracked’ and thus allowing air transfer? Is there a state in which large bubbles (with presumably weaker shells) fractured and smaller bubbles remaining intact?

[@r.sphere5314]

Thanks for your contributions I have been creating fractal patterns in concrete for decorative purpose I do not see this effect on the web and it is kinda cool A few other unique effects are in the arsenal Vast aesthetic potential I believe Could you propose a person or persons with the ability and willingness to assist in chemically or otherwise enhancing the recipes or manipulation techniques For a reasonable fee

[@piyushdadgal]

Can we add water reducing, air entrainment and water proofing in same mix

[@RicardoCruz-tn8by]

thanks for sharing knowledge. I have a problem. The air entraining admixtures it don't use much in ready mix concrete in my country, because we are in tropical zone without problems like a freeze and thaw. But with certain sands, the air content is crazy, because it can star in 2.0% and after 60 min it could be 8.0% ( the mayority of ready mix concrete include a plasticizer and superplasticizer PCE). In your video you show the bubbles from non air entrained changes the size. Have you any idea? is it defoamer stability? is it the sand gradation? thanks for read

[@TylerLey]

Ricardo, There are a few things that it could be. You could have impurities in your sand. These could be clays or oils that entrain air during mixing. The best thing to do would be to add a defoamer in the mix and see if they go away. If it does then I would plan on using a high dosage in all of your mixtures. It is also possible to trap air in your sand during mixing. This typically happens when there is a high amount of #50 and #30. However, I am not sure this is the problem because you said the results are variable. Sand gradations typically do not change drastically and so that doesn't match with the change in air volume that you are reporting. Let me know what you find.

[@sinclairconstructiongroup4844]

Tyler - is air entrainment necessary if the capillary structure is sealed up? Thanks for all the great videos! Please keep them coming!

[@TylerLey]

Yes! We have tried mixtures down to 0.35 w/cm and still shown that you need air entrainment. Others have gone lower. The water will get into the concrete.

[@michaelnunez8983]

Hi Tyler awesome video I stumbled upon this because I’m trying to learn why concrete sometimes Bubbling on the top surface of slab .what would be the cause of this, would it be simply that contractor is not vibrating concrete enough , too much water?

[@kbanghart]

Maybe the top of the concrete was sealed with a steel trowel before enough air escaped? I'm just guessing, I'm about to start my own project myself lol

[@civiljr6371]

legend

[@TylerLey]

Thank you so much!

[@greg9872010]

Do you think it is beneficial to use air entrained concrete in an unheated garage slab that will be subject to freeze thaw cycles but not a significant amount of water?

[@TylerLey]

I would probably air entrain it if you expect it to freeze. Water has a weird way of finding its way into things. For example, when you pull your car into the garage will it bring in ice that will melt? Is there any way possible that water could get onto the concrete? Air entraining agent is not an expensive admixture.

[@PersianDude427]

Tyler, your video is great! Quick question, does air entraining concrete increase its work-ability and or decrease its weight? Also I have read that its also heavily used/recommended in southern climates. Is there a reason for this I am missing, since the primary reason to me seems to be for helping with freeze thaw cycles.

[@TylerLey]

PersianDude, Air entrainment does lots of good things for concrete; however, it can be a pain. Most people use it for freeze thaw durability. It reduces the weight slighltly and it modifies the workability. Sometimes good and sometimes bad. It can actually make the concrete sticky and a lot of finishers don't like it. One other awesome thing is that the producer can sell a person air! This can make the mixture more economical. In summary, I would only use air entrainment where you need freeze thaw protection. I like to focus on the basics in my mixture designs and make sure that I do those well. I talk about this mindset in my mixture design videos.

[@townsend236]

@@TylerLey Hi Tyler, I would appreciate it if you could tell me what admixture I could use to help pump sand and cement with a machine

[@jimpizza6518]

@@TylerLey Great info professor........You are the most Intelligent ...Cementhead !,,,,,,,,Always use air up here near Lake Erie.....Yet, ...I Hate when my boards stick while trowelling ..........Stay Browns ! .............ET

[@sirajalqunaynah9196]

Could we design our mix by weight with different foam agents by weight of cement kg? I am not using the design method of 1m3. Thanks

[@markbenn1907]

Great work Dr. Ley! What a computer you used for you PhD!

[@patconnelify]

I have 2 brothers engineers I'm the dumb one thanks for an insight to the world of concrete.

[@garryspencer1193]

Hi. I was wondering what would happen if a concrete mix was cured in a vacuum?

[@tomtrevessey3620]

Hi Tyler. I'd like to Thank you for sharing your knowledge! I have a project i'm working on but am a novice with concrete casting.. I have a small 3ft tall silicon rubber mould that i'm trying to cast some statues from. I'm finding it hard to work out a ratio for my materials and how much fumed silica to add and water - cement ratio.I'm getting a lot of bubbles and segregation still. I use a vibrating rod and have been told to mix the concrete for a short time. Also I've been trying to use washing up liquid as a mould release to take away the static charge from the mould.I'm fascinated with the idea of air entrapment but don't know what soap to add and how i would go about it. If you could help me with a rough formula i can try out and practise doing some more casts that would be very helpful. Cheers!

[@TylerLey]

Tom - Are you adding aggregate? Why are you using silica fume? This is an expensive ingredient and is not commonly used. I think a long mixing time is better than a short one. You want to make sure your materials are homogeneous. One way to get small amounts of admixtures is to buy them from fitz pack. You will probably have to weigh out the material that you need. Here is a link for an air entrainer: www.fritzpak.com/products/product_air-plus.shtml

[@tomtrevessey3620]

Hi Tyler, I'm just using sand, cement and a stone dust and I thought about adding silica fumed as I have some left over from making the fibreglass jackets to the mould. I was told if i mixed in the cement mixer for too long it would make the crystal in the cement week.. but I could have been told some wrong info! So my main problems is segregation like a patchy effect and lots of air bubbles. I'm trying to work out a mix and find the best admixtures and figure out the best way to do the mix and when to add water, in bits or does that not matter. Thanks for any tips you have, It seems casting concrete is more complicated than i first thought.

[@TylerLey]

I would leave out the silica fume. If you mixed for 30 minutes then you might have issues but I wouldn't worry about it. I would add water in bits until you get the consistency that you need. If you vibrate long enough then you can take out most of the bubbles. Good luck!

[@MrVikingdane]

Also use a plasticizer or super plasticizer with some air entrainment to a proper mix design. Will make the mix perfect. We use Portland normal, concrete sand and stone with the two additives. Mix for 10 min max and if you can manually shake the statue mold or at least at the end of your vibrating .. that will reduce the surface bubbles. Don’t create more unnecessary bubbles with the vibrating wand.

[@madalinabaciu4195]

Hey, Tyler. I am a cement tiles manufacturer, and as you probably already know, we use a hydraulic press in our manufacturing process. I want to produce tiles that are also suitable for exterior uses. Is this kind of admixture ok for my tiles? I've seen you compressed your bubbles and they came back to their initial form, but what if the compression is about 60 tons heavy?

[@TylerLey]

Thanks for the question. I think you will still need air bubbles. I am not sure if the air bubbles come back or not. It would be good to find out. However, I believe they should come back with enough time.

[@mariodinovo4018]

dish soap works too

[@MarkProffitt]

What is the best additive to make cement foam? 25% - 50% bubbles?

[@fritzpak4821]

Are you trying to make controlled low strength material? We have an admixture that uses entrained air to create these mixes. kzbin.info/www/bejne/fZKph56QfcuAY5o

[@domingo2977]

Please show me how & where you learned to code?

[@shamseldinabdo4353]

hi tyler i would like to thank you for your videos .. but i have a question that annoys me long ago about voids in concrete .. for non entrained air concrete we say that it has voids with volume of 1.5 % , but in the book of concrete micro structure for mehta and monteiro, its written that normal concrete has capillary voids from (30-45 ) % (page 38 third edition ) .. so how is iit .. or what is the difference ?!!

[@TylerLey]

Thanks for the question. Could you email me the page from the book? I think that number is too high. I have some recent measurements that show that number to be a lot lower. Thanks!!!

[@shamseldinabdo4353]

Tyler Ley can you send me your email please ?

[@TylerLey]

Check my website. www.tylerley.com

[@mdharrisuiuc]

Could you give some examples of air entrainers available on the consumer market? Could I simply use dish soap, and if so, could you recommend a dosing rate? The application would be for repairing spalled concrete in a residential driveway.

[@TylerLey]

Marty - Check this video out: kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZoC5eYqNfcyJrs0 There are details in the notes. Do not use dish soap!!!

[@whatchusee3404]

U can used vegetables oil 🛢️ or olic and steric oil, animal oil

[@kannadanewscorner]

Nice video,tq sir ........want video on mix design plz. ..

[@TylerLey]

Here is a bunch of them! kzbin.info/aero/PLRq6Z9d0kCT-lQ7xM6Jh6HZVUjUObsz_8

[@kannadanewscorner]

Tqsm sir

[@whatchusee3404]

Never seen anything like it

[@terryolson8591]

Polar set?

[@z.r1999]

😍

[@HergerTheJoyous]

Do you know the results if you added this to Aircrete?

[@TylerLey]

I have not studied aircrete a lot. It depends on the surfactant you use to stabilize the bubbles. I would think the results would be similar.

[@HergerTheJoyous]

@@TylerLey I've used dawn concentrated dish soap and Drexel foaming agent. What interested me was the part of your video where the bubbles we're in capsulated. With Aircrete the longer you can maintain the integrity and uniform consistency and have microbubbles the better the end product.

[@msnpassjan2004]

This whole time I thought he was talking about Aircrete.....

[@geoffnorrena5707]

Side question, has anyone added soda water instead of soap?

[@alexsol3378]

In theory these bubbles should decrease concrete strength, right?

[@fritzpak4821]

If you add enough of them. Using a high percentage of entrained in the mix is actually a great way to create controlled low-strength material. However, at 1 - 2% we have not found there to be any significant changes to concrete strength.

[@keshialidres3082]

WOWWWWWWW

[@TylerLey]

Thank you Keshia! Check out some of my other videos.

[@majikglustik9704]

Cool demo! Now, freeze, then thaw the paste "on camera" and get back to me...

[@felixar90]

Imagine if you could make concrete meringue

[@TylerLey]

That would be awesome!

[@JohnSmith-xq6cv]

Don’t soy face in the video avatar

[@marcusmason3440]

air intraining admixtures in concrete cause air bubbles and bleeding out......rubbish concrete......use a polycarboxelate plasticizer.....water reduction and quality concrete!!