JUST FOAMED CONCRETE - AN OVERVIEW

E P Kearsley
University of Pretoria
South Africa

ABSTRACT. Foamed concrete is manufactured by adding a foaming agent to a cement

based mortar. The foaming agent can be added to the mixture and foam formed through
vigorous mixing or the foaming agent can be aerated before being added to the mixture (pre-
foaming). The foamed concrete discussed in this paper has been manufactured using pre-
foaming. Over the last fifty years the use of foamed concrete in the construction industry has
been almost exclusively limited to non-structural applications such as void filling, thermal
insulation, acoustic dampening, trench filling and building blocks. Although foamed concrete
has been widely used it is perceived to be weak and non-durable. Tests conducted at the
University of Pretoria in South Africa during the past ten years indicate that the short and
long term properties of foamed concrete is such that the material could well be used for
structural elements. In South Africa large volumes of pulverized fuel ash (pfa) is available at
relatively low cost and the effect of using high percentages of pfa under different curing
regimes has been investigated. Tests have been conducted on the use of steel reinforced
foamed concrete in structural applications. The behavior of foamed concrete elements has
been compared to that of normal concrete elements of the same compressive strength. The
use of fibers in foamed concrete to improve shear behavior is discussed.

Keywords: Foamed concrete, Pulverized-fuel ash (PFA), Curing, Durability, Fibers, Shear
strength, Lightweight concrete, Aerated concrete.

Mrs Elsabe P Kearsley is a Senior Lecturer in Civil Engineering at the University of

Pretoria in South Africa. Her main interests are the development of affordable alternative
building materials and methods.

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 228 Kearsley

INTRODUCTION

Over the last fifty years the use of foamed concrete in the construction industry has been
almost exclusively limited to non-structural applications such as void filling, thermal
insulation, acoustic dampening, trench filling and building blocks. Although foamed concrete
has been widely used it is perceived to be weak and non-durable.

Cost is a major concern in the development of any infrastructure and to address the need of
developing communities for affordable infrastmcture and permanent residential units, schools
and clinics, modern specialized technology should be applied to improve the quality of
building materials used in under developed areas. Foamed concrete is a lightweight building
material that can be used if the strength is optimized and the cost minimized and therefore the
use of waste products, such as ash, in foamed concrete is being investigated.

During development the emphasis should be on energy efficient housing in order to minimize
electricity consumption. The good thermal properties of foamed concrete increase the
possible use of foamed concrete in energy efficient applications [1]. The relative high drying
shrinkage and low mass of foamed concrete makes the material most suitable for
manufacturing small pre-cast structural elements that can be used in labor intensive or self-
help projects.

Tests conducted at the University of Pretoria in South Africa during the past ten years
indicate that the short and long term properties of foamed concrete is such that the material
could well be used for structural elements. This paper is based on some of the results
obtained from the ongoing research project.

MATERIALS USED

Foamed concrete is produced under controlled conditions from cement, filler, water and a
liquid chemical that is diluted with water and aerated to form the foam. The foaming agent
used is "Foamtech", consisting of hydrolyzed proteins and manufactured in South Africa. The
foaming agent is diluted with water in a ratio of 1:40 and then aerated to a density of
3
70 kg/m .

The cement used in this investigation is rapid hardening Portland cement that can be
classified as CEMI 42.5R according to the South African specification SABS ENV 197-
1:1992 [2].

In South Africa the production of electricity and liquid fuel from coal causes the
accumulation of vast quantities of coal ash. In 1990 it was estimated that approximately 350
million tons of coal ash was stored in South Africa and that this amount was growing by 23
million tons annually [3]. A large proportion of this ash can be used at low cost as a cement
extender. SABS 1491: Part II, the South African standard for the use of ash as cement
extender [4], limits the particles with diameters exceeding 45 pm to a maximum of 12.5%,
which increases the cost of producing classified ash. Unclassified ash, where approximately
40% of the particles have diameters exceeding 45 pm, has been used as cement extender and
filler in the mixtures discussed in this paper.

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 Foamed Concrete 229

PROPERTIES OF FOAMED CONCRETE

Foamed concrete is more sensitive to water demand than normal concrete. Water demand is
normally not a problem but if the water in the mixture is not sufficient for the initial reaction
of the cement, the cement withdraws water from the foam, causing rapid degeneration of the
foam. If too much water is added segregation takes place, causing a variation in density [5].
The density of foamed concrete is a function of the percentage foam added to the mixture and
the maximum compressive strength of the material decreases as the density decreases (and
the foam content increases) as indicated in Figure 1.

Figure 1 contains a graph of 28 day compressive strength as a function of dry density for
mixtures with different percentages of ash replacement. All the mixtures contained water,
cement and a pre-foamed protein foam. The first set of mixtures contained no ash and for
each set of mixtures a larger percentage of the cement was replaced with unclassified ash.
The ash/cement ratios of 1, 2, 3 and 4 as indicated reflects 50%, 66.7%, 75% and 80%
cement replacement (per weight). For all the mixtures the water/cementitious ratio was kept
constant at approximately 0.3. From this graph it can be seen that 50% of the cement can be
replaced with unclassified ash without any reduction in 28 day compressive strength. Higher
percentages replacement results in reduced strength and the effect of high ash content on the
28 day compressive strength seems to increase with increased density. The dry densities as
indicated in Figure 1 were determined by oven drying a cube at 105 ° C until no further
reduction in strength took place.

30

25

2C

13

Hi

0
200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400
3
DRY DENSITY (kg/m )

Figure 1 Effect of ash replacement on compressive strength.

The dry densities as indicated in Figure 1 can however not be used in calculating the exact
composition of foamed concrete mixtures. A so-called "casting density" is required for mix
design and casting control purposes. The relation between casting and dry density of the
above-mentioned mixtures is indicated in Figure 2. For casting densities between 700 and
3
1500 kg/m there seems to be a linear relation between the casting and the dry density and
this relation can best be explained by the following equation:

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 230 Kearsley

y =0.8687 -55.07 (1)

/ dry 1 cast

Where:
=
Ydry dry density (kg/m )
= 3
Yeast casting density (kg/m )

This equation explains 99.35% of the variability in dry density. If foamed concrete with a
specific dry density is required the equation as indicated above can be used to determine what
the casting density would need to be. When designing foamed concrete a target casting
density is determined and the water/cement and sand/cement ratios are chosen [6]. Using
these ratios and the relative densities of the materials the mass of the cement and the volume
of foam that should be added to obtain the required density can be determined.

1500

1000

S W
500

300 1200 1500

600 900

3
CASTING DENSITY (kg/m )

Figure 2 Dry density as a function of casting density

EFFECT OF CURING

The compressive strengths as indicated in Figure 1 was obtained for samples that were
wrapped in plastic after demoulding, and then placed in a constant temperature room at 22 °C
and approximately 65% relative humidity. The compressive strengths obtained after 28 days
3
for mixtures with dry densities in the region of 1 250 kg/m indicate that foamed concrete
with similar densities could be used in structural elements.

If structural elements are manufactured in a pre-cast factory it is of utmost importance that

the required strength is reached in the shortest viable time. The influence of pfa on the
strength development of concrete has been studied extensively and it has been concluded that
the rate of strength development is related to the mix proportions, properties and type of pfa,

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 Foamed Concrete 231

temperature and curing conditions and the hydration of the cementitious materials. In general
terms at normal temperatures the use of coal ash results in reduced early strengths and
increased long term strengths [7]. When concrete made with normal Portland cement is cured
at temperatures in excess of 30 °C, an increase in strength at early ages is followed by a
marked decrease in strength at later ages. In contrast however pfa shows strength gains as a
result of heating. The fact that no reduction in 28 day strength was observed for foamed
concrete mixtures with up to 50% cement replacement, cured in air at 22 °C (see Figure 1),
indicates that elevated curing temperatures, could result in increased strength for mixtures
with high pfa contents.

To establish the effect of elevated curing temperature on the strength development of foamed
3
concrete, cubes manufactured from mixtures with a casting density of 1 500 kg/m were
3
cured in water at different temperatures. A mixture with a casting density of 1 500 kg/m will
3
have a dry density in the region of 1 250 kg/m .

In Figure 3 the compressive strength of a mixture with an ash/cement ratio of 1 (50% cement
replacement) is plotted as a function of time for different curing temperatures. The
temperatures as indicated are 22 °C, 40 °C, 50 °C, 60 °C and 70 °C. These results indicate
that it is possible to obtain compressive strengths as high as 40 MPa within 3 days for foamed
3
concrete with dry densities as low as 1 250 kg/m . From the results obtained the optimum
temperature for the highest ultimate strength seems to be 40 °C, which yielded an average
compressive strength of 62 MPa after 56 days.

Although these mixtures have high compressive strengths they will not be cost effective and
the cement content will have to be reduced, not only to reduce the cost but also to reduce
shrinkage [5]. One way of reducing the cement content is to increase the percentage cement
replacement and therefore the effect of the curing temperature on the strength gain of a
3
mixture with a casting density of 1 500 kg/m and an ash/cement ratio of 3 (75% cement
replacement) was investigated.

The compressive strength of this mixture is plotted as a function of time in Figure 4. The
compressive strength at all the curing temperatures is noticeably lower than for the mixture
with 50% cement replacement, but this difference seems to be the largest at low curing
temperature. The higher ash content seems to result in a decrease in the rate of strength
development even at high temperatures. After 28 days the mixtures containing 75% pfa that
were cured at high temperature have virtually the same strength than the mixtures containing
only 50% ash. The optimum curing temperature again seems to be somewhere between 40 °C
and 50 °C, but with such a high ash content the early age strength development at these
temperatures is very slow as can be seen in the 3 and 7 day compressive strengths in Figure 4.

For early age strength the curing temperature at 75% cement replacement will have to be
increased to at least 60 °C, if less than 7 days curing is required. Although the ultimate
strengths are in the region of only 40 MPa in stead of 60 MPa where 50% cement
replacement took place, the strengths are still such that the material could be used for
structural applications. The fact that up to 50% of the concrete own weight can be eliminated
can however lead to savings the cost of the super- and substructure of any building
constructed using foamed concrete.

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 232 Kearsley

• 22oC

• 40oC

r 1 3

A50oC
1£
eg X6O0C

6 X70oC
o
10 20 30 40 50 60

A G E (days)

Figure 3 Strength development for 50% cement replacement

x go • 22oC
H
O
60 • 40oC

A
40
I V A50oC
X
co
X6O0C
20 *
'A •
5 • X70oC

10 20 30 40 50 60

A G E (days)

Figure 4 Strength development for 75% cement replacement

STRUCTURAL BEHAVIOUR

As the compressive strength of foamed concrete at higher densities falls within the same
range than the characteristic compressive strengths as used in structural design codes such as
BS 8110, it was decided to compare the behavior of foamed concrete beams to that of
identically reinforced normal concrete beams. If the behavior does not differ much it should
be possible to use normal concrete design codes for designing foamed concrete structural
elements.

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 Foamed Concrete 233

Beams with a compressive strength of 15 MPa were cast using foamed concrete and normal
concrete. Each beam was reinforced using two 10 mm bars and shear stirrups at 150 mm
centers. These beams were tested using a third-point-loading configuration and the results of
these tests can be seen in Figure 5 [8]. The modulus of elasticity as measured for foamed
concrete is approximately 50% of the value measured for normal concrete with comparable
compressive strength. This reduction in modulus of elasticity indicates that under similar
loading the foamed concrete should have significantly higher deflections than normal
concrete. From the results as shown in Figure 5 it can be seen that the foamed concrete does
deflect noticeably more than the normal concrete but the difference in deflection is relatively
small and the stiffness of the reinforcing must be contributing to limit the deflection.

The foamed concrete beam with stirrups at 150 mm centers failed in shear while an
identically reinforced normal concrete beam carried a higher load and failed in bending. To
obtain a result from the foamed concrete similar to that obtained from the normal concrete the
spacing of the shear stirrups had to be decreased. From Figure 5 it can be seen that the
behavior of a foamed concrete beam with stirrups at 125 mm centers can be compared to that
of a normal concrete beam with stirrups at 150 mm centers [5].

•Normal
Concrete
150c/c

J -Foamed
Concrete
150c/c

Foamed
Concrete
125 c/c

"Foamed
Concrete
10 20 30 .10 150c/c +
Fiber
MIDSPAN DEFLECTION (mm)

Figure 5 Load deflection behaviour of 15 MPa beams

Aggregate interlocking is said to improve the shear resistance of concrete and the lack of
course aggregate in foamed concrete can be the reason for the reduced shear resistance of the
material. Some form of interlocking needs to be provided to improve the shear behavior of
foamed concrete. The inclusion of steel fibers in normal concrete is known to enhance the
flexural and shear strength of the resulting composite material and in beams made of mortars
the fibers are said to be generally more effective as they are free from aggregate interference
[9]. Steel fibers can not be used in foamed concrete as their high density causes them to settle
to the bottom of the mixture while the foamed concrete is still setting. The use of various
types, diameters, lengths and volumes of fibers have been investigated [9] and it was decided
3
to add 2 kg/m of 12 mm long chopped polypropylene fibers to the foamed concrete beams to

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 234 Kearsley

enhance the shear behavior. The fibers did not improve the compressive strength but from the
results as indicated in Figure 5 it can be seen that the fibers improved the shear behavior of
the foamed concrete sufficiently that the behavior of foamed concrete beams containing
fibers does not differ noticeably from normal concrete beams.

The compressive strength of all these beams were only 15 MPa, which is significantly lower
than the compressive strength normally used for structural concrete elements and the
behavior observed might therefore not be typical of structural elements. 30 MPa beams were
cast to determine whether the behavior of structural foamed concrete beams could be
improved by the addition of fibers.

The load deflection behavior of the 30 MPa beams is shown in Figure 6. Each of these beams
was reinforced with two 10 mm diameter high yield steel bars, and 8 mm mild steel stirrups
at 150 mm centers. From this graph it can be seen that the fibers is again required to prevent
shear failure. Although the compressive strength of the concrete is double that of the concrete
used in Figure 5 the ultimate load carried by the beam is only marginally higher than before.
The beams were under-reinforced and bending failure occurred with the steel flowing.

Foamed
Concrete

U
Z
£

MIDSPAN DEFLECTION (mm)

Figure 6 Load deflection behaviour of 30 MPa beams

DURABILITY OF FOAMED CONCRETE

Although foamed concrete has been widely used throughout the world it is perceived to be
weak and non-durable. A durable structure will maintain its required strength and
serviceability during its service life, and the durability of concrete depends largely on the
permeability of the concrete [10]. The permeability of foamed concrete of different densities
was determined and compared to that of normal 25 MPa concrete [11]. Oxygen permeability
tests were undertaken using a falling head permeameter [12] and the results obtained are
indicated in Figure 7. In this graph time is plotted as a function of the log of the ratio of

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 Foamed Concrete 235

pressure at the beginning of the test (Pn ) to the pressure at the end of the test (P). From these
results it can be seen that the pressure decline is,as expected, a function of the density of the
foamed concrete, with the higher density mixes exhibiting slower rates of decline in pressure.
3
These results indicate that the concrete with a casting density of 1 500 kg/m was less
permeable than the normal 25 MPa concrete. If oxygen permeability is taken as an indication
of concrete durability, it does seem possible that foamed concrete with relatively high
densities could be used as a durable alternative to normal concrete.

Repeating the test on lower density samples resulted in a higher rate of decline indicating that
the pressure might damage the porous structure of the material. The falling head permeameter
might therefore not be a suitable method for determining the permeability of low density
foamed concrete.

Figure 7 Permeability

CONCLUSIONS

Replacing large volumes of cement with unclassified pfa can reduce the cost of
manufacturing foamed concrete. The pfa not only reduces the drying shrinkage of foamed
concrete but can also result in increased strength. Curing at high temperatures can improve
the early and long term compressive strength of foamed concrete. The strengths obtained
from well cured mixtures with high ash contents are such that foamed concrete can be used as
a structural material in reinforced foamed concrete.

The shear resistance of foamed concrete is much lower than that of normal concrete due to
the lack of aggregate interlocking but the shear strength can be improved by the addition of
chopped polypropylene fibers. The behavior of foamed concrete beams containing fibers is
similar to that of normal concrete. At this stage of our investigation it seems that the
structural design codes used for normal reinforced concrete can be used for foamed concrete
elements.

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 236 Kearsley

The durability of foamed concrete needs to be investigated before reinforced foamed concrete
structures can be built. The cell-like structure of foamed concrete and the possible porosity of
the cell walls do not make the foamed concrete less resistant to penetration of moisture than
normal concrete. The air voids seem to act as a buffer, preventing rapid moisture penetration.
3
Initial tests indicate that foamed concrete with a casting density of 1 500 kg/m can be less
permeable than normal 25 MPa concrete, and accelerated corrosion tests indicate that foamed
concrete can be just as durable than normal concrete. These tests still need to be correlated
with full scale, long term durability tests.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The author would like to express appreciation for the research grants made by Grinaker
Duraset (Mining) Limited and Alpha Limited to carry out the work reported in this paper.

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8. KEARSLEY, E. P. & MOSTERT, H. F. The Use of Foamcrete in Southern Africa.

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9. SWAMY, R. N., JONES, R. & CHAIM, T. P. Influence of steel fibers on the Shear
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10. NEVILLE, A. M. 1995. Properties of Concrete. Fourth Edition. Longman Group

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