Concrete is a hardened building material created by combining a mineral aggregate such as sand, gravel, or crushed stone with a binder such as cement, chemical additives, and water. Cement is commonly used as a synonym for concrete but the two are quite different. Cement includes a wide variety of fine-ground powders that harden when mixed with water and makes up one of the components in modern concrete. As concrete dries, it acquires a rock-hard consistency that renders it ideal for constructing.
Steam is used to heat aggregate piles in cold weather.
Steam is also used in curing where early strength gain is needed and where heat may be required for hydration in the product. In prestressing and precast plants, steam provides high early strengths, enabling rapid demolding and reuse of forms. Steam usage speeds up “curing or setting” of concrete and makes it stronger. In some processes, steam cured concrete can obtain the strength of 28 day normally cured concrete in just 3 days!
Each concrete product requires a set temperature and pressure specific to its design. Some processes will require various periods of time at different pressures and temperatures which will fluctuate over the curing process, so precise control is needed.
Once in the cement kiln line, curing generally takes place in large ovens or autoclaves where this precise control of steam temperature and pressure is critical to the quality of the finished product.
Pre-cast concrete forms for bridge girders, pre-stressed products such as rail sleepers and others utilize Steam in their manufacture.
Clayton’s instantaneous response and precise steam supply at verifying pressures and demands make our Steam Generator perfect for this application.