Size Effect in Compressive Strength Tests of Cored Specimens of Lightweight Aggregate Concrete

The aim of this paper is to discuss the unrecognized problem of the scale effect in compressive strength tests determined for cored specimens of lightweight aggregate concrete (LWAC) against the background of available data on the effect for normal-weight concrete (NWAC). The scale effect was analyzed taking into consideration the influence of slenderness (lambda = 1.0, 1.5, 2.0) and diameter (d = 80, 100, 125, and 150 mm) of cored specimens, as well as the type of lightweight aggregate (expanded clay and sintered fly ash) and the type of cement matrix (w/c = 0.55 and 0.37). The analysis of the results for four lightweight aggregate concretes revealed no scale effect in compressive strength tests determined on cored specimens. Neither the slenderness, nor the core diameter seemed to affect the strength results. This fact should be explained by the considerably better structural homogeneity of the tested lightweight concretes in comparison to normal-weight ones. Nevertheless, there were clear differences between the results obtained on molded and cored specimens of the same shape and size.