Long-term performance of controlled permeability formwork

Controlled Permeability Formwork (CPF) has been shown to improve the durability of concrete by reducing the porosity of the cover concrete. However, research to date has focused on laboratory and short-term trials. This paper reports a long-term project in which specimens have been placed on exposure sites at three coastal locations in Australia for 5 years. The specimens include three materials, 100% Portland cement, 30% Pulverised Fly Ash and 65% Ground Granulated Blastfurnace Slag. Specimens were cured using traditional plywood formwork under wet hessian for 1 and 14 days and with CPF for 1, 7 and 14 days. The performance of the concrete was monitored at six monthly intervals by means of visual inspection, Ultrasonic Pulse velocity, resistivity and surface strength using Schmidt Hammer. At the conclusion of the 5 years, chloride ingress and the apparent chloride diffusion coefficient were determined from sample cores. The results showed that the CPF improved surface appearance and surface hardness of the concrete. In addition, chloride ingress was reduced by the application of CPF, with lifetime modelling indicating that service life expectancy could be improved by up to five times when compared to one day curing under hessian.