How Is Concrete Made?

Concrete is made using cement, gravel, sand, water and air. In a nut shell, concrete is cement paste that is hardened and is largely used for construction purposes as a building material. It is made up of two main components; filler and a binder. The filler can be a fine or a coarse mixture while the binder is generally made up of water and cement. The binder's job is to glue the filler together so as to form a thick paste. Water is used so that the cement is hydrated and thus solidifies.

The concrete is formed by a process called cement hydration wherein the hydrated crystals of cement get formed and intertwine themselves. To quicken this process, calcium chloride or "accelerator" is used. Concrete once made can last for a tremendously long period of time.

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Concrete is primarily made of cement ( commonly used is Portland cement) as well as other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate (gravel limestone or granite, plus a fine aggregate such as sand or manufactured sand and water) and chemical admixtures.

Chemical mixtures have different purpose depending on the implementation of your project

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