A system and method for automatically controlling concrete batch mixing cycles and for training an operator to minimize the mixing cycles, includes receiving real time mixer motor power measurements; detecting an initial peak value among the real time mixer motor power measurements; determining, by a processor, an initial amount of water to add to a concrete batch; waiting a first time period to determine a first supplemental amount of water to add to a concrete batch; and, then, periodically determining additional supplemental amounts of water to add to a concrete batch; until, the real time mixer motor power measurements meet a pre-determined target mixer motor power value, responsive to which, one or more outputs are activated, such as a user interface indicator that the batch is ready, or an optional electronic signal to a batch control system to dump the batch, or both.

A method and apparatus are disclosed for a mixing system with a recirculation pump and a sensor configured to measure a property of a fluid discharged from the recirculation pump, wherein the sensor may transmit the property to a control system to allow an operator to adjust the mixing system in response to changes in the measurement signal.

The disclosure provides a measurement set-up for a return cement suspension, a construction site arrangement with a measurement set-up, and a method which can be carried out inexpensively, reliably, and easily.

A low-density, high-strength concrete composition that is lightweight and self-compacting or non-self-compacting, with a low weight-fraction of aggregate to total dry raw materials, and a highly-homogenous distribution of a non-absorptive and closed-cell lightweight aggregate such as glass microspheres or copolymer polymer beads or a combination thereof, and the steps of providing the composition or components. Lightweight concretes formed therefrom have low density, high strength-to-weight ratios, and high R-value. The concrete has strength similar to that ordinarily found in structural lightweight concrete but at a lower density, such as an oven-dried density as low as 40 lbs./cu.ft. Such strength-to-density ratios range approximately from above 30 cu.ft/sq.in. to above 110 cu.ft/sq.in., with a 28-day compressive strength ranging from about 3400 to 8000 psi.

There is disclosed a computer-implemented method for determining a density value of a fresh concrete sample using an acoustic probe assembly. The acoustic probe assembly has an acoustic path, an acoustic emitter configured to emit an acoustic signal along the acoustic path, and an acoustic receiver configured to receive the acoustic signal after propagation along the acoustic path. The acoustic probe assembly is configured and adapted to generate an electromagnetic signal indicative of a duration of time taken by the acoustic signal to travel from the acoustic emitter to the acoustic receiver across the fresh concrete sample. The method generally has a step of determining the duration of time based on the electromagnetic signal, a step of matching the duration to a density value using reference data, and a step of displaying the density value.

A liquid additive mixing apparatus is provided that has a plurality of chambers containing additives, as well as a system for mixing the additives. One or more additives are mixed with water to form a mixing fluid. The mixing fluid is placed in a first tank that is fluidly connected to a cement mixing unit. A cementing operation is executed during which the mixing fluid from the first tank is mixed with a cement to form a slurry. A capillary electrophoresis (CE) instrument is employed to monitor at least one additive parameter and detect deviations from a predetermined tolerance for the at least one additive parameter.

An inference system for monitoring a cementitious mixture for three-dimensional printing is provided. The inference system includes an ambient condition sensor, a temperature sensor, a moisture sensor and an image capturing device. The inference system also includes a controller coupled to the ambient condition sensor, the temperature sensor, the moisture sensor, and the image capturing device. The controller receives sensed ambient conditions, a temperature signal, and a moisture content signal. The controller receives an image feed of a portion of a cementitious mixture. The controller also receives signals indicative of a motor speed and a motor torque associated with a mixing container. The controller builds a model and determines a material suitability of the cementitious mixture using the model based on the received ambient conditions, the temperature signal, the moisture content signal, the image feed, the motor speed, and the motor torque and determines one or more corrective actions.

There are described methods and systems for handling fresh concrete inside a drum . In an aspect, a method of determining calibration data for use in determining workability of fresh concrete inside a rotating drum based on hydraulic pressure is described. This method has receiving a probe pressure value indicative of pressure exerted on a rheological probe mounted inside the drum and immerged in the fresh concrete; determining a workability value indicative of workability of the fresh concrete based on the probe pressure value and on calibration data for the rheological probe; receiving a hydraulic pressure value indicative of pressure of a hydraulic fluid used for rotating the drum; and determining hydraulic calibration data by associating the hydraulic pressure value and the workability value to one another.

Globally our environment comprises structures built to perform a meet different requirements including residential, commercial, retail, recreational and service infrastructure. Whilst, millions of tons of construction materials are deployed annually the quality control procedures in many instances have not changed to reflect today's demands. Accordingly, it would be beneficial to provide construction companies, engineering companies, infrastructure owners, regulators, etc. with means to automated testing/characterization of construction materials during at least one of its manufacture, deployment in construction and subsequent infrastructure life. It would be further beneficial for such automated methods to exploit self-contained data acquisition/logging modules allowing them to be employed with ease at the different points in the life cycle of a construction material and/or construction project.

There is described a system generally having a rotatable drum rotatably for receiving fresh concrete, the drum having inwardly protruding blades mounted inside the drum which, when the drum is rotated in an unloading direction, force fresh concrete inside the drum towards a discharge outlet of the drum, at least one discharge outlet sensor disposed at the discharge outlet of the drum and being configured to sense the presence of fresh concrete at the discharge outlet as the drum rotates in the unloading direction; and a controller communicatively coupled with the at least one discharge outlet sensor, the controller being configured for performing the steps of: receiving a signal from the at least one discharge outlet sensor indicative of the presence of the discharged fresh concrete at the discharge outlet as the drum rotates in the unloading direction; and determining at least one parameter based on the received signal.