The Use of the Flow Length Concept to Assess the Efficiency of Air Entrainment with Regards to Frost Durability: Part II—Experimental Results

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Abstract
Samples from 20 concrete mixtures were submitted to microscopical examination in order to record the size-distribution of the circles intercepted by a plane and the chords intercepted by a line of traverse. These data were used to determine the flow length and other characteristics of the air-void system by using a numerical method developed earlier. The flow lengths were correlated to the results obtained from freezing and thawing tests previously carried out on the same concrete mixtures. They were also compared to spacing factors and Philleo factors obtained from the same experimental data. The results of these correlations confirm the validity of the flow length concept and the numerical method used to calculate it. They clearly suggest that the flow length is a better indicator of the frost durability of concrete than the commonly used Test Method for Microscopical Determination of Parameters of the Air-Void System in Hardened Concrete (ASTM C 457) spacing factor, and more realistic indication of the actual spatial distribution of air voids in concrete than the Philleo factor.