Concrete is the world’s most important construction material, and its strength and durability depend on the curing process.
After fresh concrete is poured, the water reacts with the cement and the individual sand and gravel particles bond together to create the stone-like final product. This bonding process requires a strictly-controlled environment for best results. Failure to manage it correctly can lead to weak, brittle concrete susceptible to cracking and shrinkage – concrete that is both unattractive and dangerous.
Careful management of the entire process is known as curing. Curing insulates the moist concrete from the air, preventing the evaporation of moisture from the concrete too quickly. This allows the bonding to take place slowly and ensures that the concrete reaches its design strength and hardness.
New concrete can take three weeks to reach 90% of its final strength. Only insulation from the elements through proper curing can enable this to take place.
Modern concrete curing is facilitated through the application by a concrete-finishing specialist of a specially-designed curing compound to the surface of the fresh concrete, insulating it from the air beneath an impervious film. This insulation from the elements enables hydration to take place at an appropriate pace, moisture level, and temperature.
The insulating compounds used range from mineral-based resins to acrylic emulsions, and are selected by the concrete-finishing specialist based on the curing requirements of the concrete installation at hand.
Incorrect choice of a curing compound may have detrimental effects on the strength of the concrete as well as affecting subsequent after-trades such as the adhesion of vinyl or carpet glues.
Arrunga Surface Solutions is experienced in all methods of concrete curing and can partner with the Civil Engineer to establish the safest, most effective, and most appropriate concrete-finishing policy for any job.
Arrunga Surface Solutions is also able to employ the most environmentally-friendly concrete-curing solutions, including Eco-Cure™, a curing compound formulated to meet the stringent environmental requirements of the green construction industry.
Eco-Cure Datasheet
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