Fresh Concrete Temperature (ACI 305.1)

The temperature of fresh concrete as batched, from the ACI 305.1 ingredient heat balance.

Run the calculator

Example

You enter

You get

Details, formula, and sources

T = [0.22(Ta Wa + Tc Wc) + Tw Ww + Twa Wwa] / [0.22(Wa + Wc) + Ww + Wwa], solids weighted by their ~0.22 specific heat and water by 1.0. Aggregate 3000 lb at 80 F, cement 564 lb at 150 F, 240 lb of 70 F water, and 60 lb of aggregate moisture batch to 85.8 F. Water's heat capacity is four times the solids', so chilling the mix water or adding ice is the cheapest way to beat the ~90 F hot-weather ceiling. A batching aid; the mix design governs.

T = [0.22(Ta x Wa + Tc x Wc) + Tw x Ww + Ta x Wwa] / [0.22(Wa + Wc) + Ww + Wwa]; solids specific heat 0.22 Btu/lb-F, water 1.0, aggregate free moisture at the aggregate temperature.

ACI 305.1 Specification for Hot Weather Concreting (the batch heat-balance for fresh concrete temperature); PCA Design and Control of Concrete Mixtures, by name; the mix design and project specification govern.

The mass-weighted heat balance is first-principles; the 0.22 solids specific heat is the standard ACI value. Ingredient weights and temperatures come from the batch ticket.

Estimate. AHJ and licensed professional govern.

Field names used by the API: agg_weight_lb, agg_temp_f, cement_weight_lb, cement_temp_f, water_weight_lb, water_temp_f, agg_moisture_weight_lb, concrete_temp_f

Related tools