Concrete Technology: CM 425 CM 425

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425 Concrete Technology
Fundamentals of Jointing for Volume
Change in Concrete
CM 425
Concrete Technology
Fundamentals of
Jointing for Volume
Change in Concrete
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Volume Changes in Concrete

Concrete is at its greatest volume when it is
freshly placed.
As the concrete cures and hardens, water is
consumed in the chemical reaction that occurs
between the water and portland cement.
Excess water is also evaporated from the
concrete as heat is liberated in this chemical
reaction.
This chemical hardening and water loss causes
a relatively large initial reduction in volume of
the concrete mass, known as shrinkage.
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One-third of the average shrinkage

occurs during the first month and
most of the remaining shrinkage
occurs by the end of one year.
Professor Kamran M. Nemati

Fall Quarter 2007 1
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Change in Concrete
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Concrete, like most other building materials, will
change in volume a definable amount due to
moisture and temperature changes.
Concrete will expand with a rise in temperature or
a gain in moisture and will contract with a fall in
temperature or a loss of moisture.
This means that whether concrete will expand or
contract depends upon the temperature and
moisture condition at the time.
Opposite conditions tend to counteract each other
and similar conditions compound each other.
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If concrete was unrestrained -meaning that
it was free to move in any direction without
resistance to changes in volume- there
would be no stress in the concrete.
However, concrete in use is rarely in a total
unrestrained condition.
Therefore, once the volume change stresses
become greater than the tensile strength of
the concrete, the concrete cracks.
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Jointing in Concrete
Most cracking in concrete can be controlled by
joints that reduce stress to manageable limits.
The three types of joints are:
Contraction (or control) joints
Used to subdivide large sections into smaller units.
Isolation (sometimes called expansion) joints
Used to isolate sections of unusual shape or to
separate slabs from fixed objects.
Construction joints
Used to provide transition between one day’s work
and the next
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Change in Concrete
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Contraction Joints
Contraction joints are necessary to
control natural cracking from stresses
caused by concrete shrinkage, thermal
contraction, and moisture or thermal
gradients within the concrete.
Typically, transverse contraction joints
are cut at a right angle to the
pavement centerline and edges.
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Contraction Joints in Slab on Grade

Both longitudinal and transverse contraction
joints are required in most situations.
The theory behind proper jointing is to
provide a weakened section that forces the
concrete to crack at predetermined locations.
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The depth of the joint must be at least one-
fourth the slab thickness in order to provide
a sufficiently weakened section to control
cracking.

Fall Quarter 2007 3
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Change in Concrete
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A general rule-of-thumb is that the
spacing in feet should not exceed two to
three times the slab thickness in inches.
For example, a 5-inch slab will be jointed
at 10 to 15 feet intervals in both
directions.
Plain pavements with short joint spacings
designed to control cracking are usually
limited to spacings of 15 to 20 feet.
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Pavement lane widths must be limited to 12 to
13 feet in order to control longitudinal cracking.
Longitudinal joints are usually tied together with
deformed tie bars to keep the lanes from
separating at these joints.
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Pavements with heavy truck traffic will
also require load transfer dowels to
prevent differential movements of
adjacent panels.
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Fall Quarter 2007 4
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Change in Concrete
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Highway pavements with welded wire
fabric placed two-inches from the slab
surface have joints spaced up to 40 feet
apart.
Joints in floors of buildings to control early
shrinkage stresses vary from about ten
feet to thirty feet depending on floor
thickness, size of aggregate and slump of
the concrete.
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Contraction Joints in Buildings

Joints should be no more than twenty feet apart in
exterior walls with frequent openings.
In walls without openings, the joint spacing should
never exceed twenty-five feet to be most
effective.
Joints should be placed within ten to fifteen feet of
a corner, if possible.
Where small openings are more than twenty feet
apart at the first-story level, there should be a
joint in line with each jamb below the openings.
Above the first-story, a single joint at the
centerline of each opening will usually be
adequate.
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Isolation (or Expansion) Joints

They permit both horizontal and vertical
differential movements at a joining parts of the
structure, such as:
Around the perimeter of a floor on ground
Around columns
Around machine foundations
The objective is to separate the slab from the
more rigid parts of the structure.
Care must be taken during the construction of
isolation joints to assure that the joint passes
completely through the structure in order to
provide complete isolation. A joint that provides
only partial isolation will not function properly.
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Fall Quarter 2007 5
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Change in Concrete
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Isolation Joint
The material could be as thin as ¼ inch
or less, but ½ inch materials are
commonly used.
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Construction Joint
A true construction joint should bond
new concrete to existing concrete and
prevent movement. Deformed tie-bars
are often used in construction joints to
restrict movements.
Since extra care is needed to make a
true construction joint, they are
usually designed and built to function
as contraction joints, and therefore
may purposely be made unbonded.
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Construction Joint
Construction joints join concrete that is paved at different
times.
Transverse construction joints are necessary at the end of
a paving segment.
Longitudinal construction joints join lanes that are paved
at different times, or join through-lanes to curb and gutter.
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Fall Quarter 2007 6

Concrete Technology: CM 425 CM 425

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CM

Volume Changes in Concrete

Volume Changes in Concrete

 One-third of the average shrinkage

Professor Kamran M. Nemati

Volume Changes in Concrete

Volume Changes in Concrete

Professor Kamran M. Nemati

Contraction Joints in Slab on Grade

Contraction Joints in Slab on Grade

Professor Kamran M. Nemati

Contraction Joints in Slab on Grade

Contraction Joints in Slab on Grade

Contraction Joints in Slab on Grade

Professor Kamran M. Nemati

Contraction Joints in Slab on Grade

Contraction Joints in Buildings

Isolation (or Expansion) Joints

Professor Kamran M. Nemati

Professor Kamran M. Nemati

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One-third of the average shrinkage