Most of the great engineering designs are founded on delicate trade-off between extreme options. In our non-utopian world, we usually have to sacrifice some options at hand so that we obtain better alternatives. The same situation also applies to the world of concrete. On the one hand, we try to keep the cement ratio in the mixture at the highest level in order to keep the material quality at its highest level. On the other hand, we desire to increase the water ratio to a certain level in order to perform this process in the most convenient way possible. It is imperative that we find the delicate balance between cement and water in this dilemma. As the cement ratio in the concrete mixture increases, the pumping process becomes tougher. Water/Cement ratio, which is simply the weight of water divided by the weight of cement, is a technical detail that is often neglected by the operators. The concrete pumping process might be difficult in concrete mixtures with a high cement ratio. In such cases, operators usually try to dilute the concrete mix by pumping water into concrete mixers with a hose. However, this has serious consequences on the concrete quality. You can examine the table below showing the relationship between the pressure resistance of concrete on the 28th day and the water / cement ratio, which is accepted as a standard in the industry. As the water ratio increases, the concrete resistance gravely decreases. While the resistance of concrete to the compression force decreases, its hardness decreases on the other hand. Increasing water ratio in the mixture reduces the density of cement on the surface and creates a porous structure. In such cases, it must be kept in mind that a high-quality pump must be used for high-quality concrete output. SLMG concrete pumps easily transfer the hardest concrete mixes with its specially designed S-tube and boiler system, offering the best concrete pumping experience. Secondly, water should not be added immediately. Concrete quality decreases dramatically as the water ratio increases with no control at all. In such cases, the best decision would be to direct the mixer back to the plant and obtain better concrete in a desired consistency.
