CONCRETE
APPLICATIONS
CONCRETE IN ACTION
The Concrete Advancement Foundation supports research and initiatives that demonstrate how concrete is used to solve real-world challenges across infrastructure, buildings, and communities. These applications highlight performance, durability, and long-term value across a wide range of conditions and environments.
For more information or to request additional materials, please contact Ally Herrera.
APPLICATIONS IN PRACTICE
Explore how concrete is used across key areas of construction, from infrastructure and buildings to water management and innovation. These focus areas highlight how concrete performs in real-world applications and supports long-term, reliable solutions.
Supports roads, bridges, and transportation systems
designed to last.
Improves strength, energy efficiency, and overall performance in residential and commercial construction.
Helps manage water and reduce runoff with solutions like pervious concrete.
Focuses on improving materials and construction methods to make concrete work better over time.
Buildings & Structural Systems
Explore research and projects focused on how concrete performs in buildings, from residential construction to large-scale structural systems. These resources highlight strength, efficiency, and long-term performance across a range of applications.
Cost & Energy Performance:
ICF vs. Wood-Framed Homes
A side-by-side comparison showing how concrete and wood-framed homes differ in cost and energy use in real-world conditions.
Insurance Cost Comparison:
Wood vs. Concrete
Looks at how building materials impact insurance costs for multifamily buildings across different cities.
Acoustic Performance
of Concrete
Explores how well concrete reduces sound compared to other common building materials.
Earthquake Performance
of Building Systems
Compares how different building materials perform during earthquakes in major U.S. cities.
ICF Thermal
Performance Study
Shows how insulated concrete forms compare to traditional framing when it comes to temperature control and energy efficiency.
Low-Reinforcement
Concrete Wall Study
Examines how concrete walls can maintain strength and performance while using less steel reinforcement.
Pavements & Infrastructure
Explore how concrete is used in roads, parking areas, and public infrastructure to improve durability, extend service life, and support reliable performance in real-world conditions.
Guide to Concrete Overlays
of Asphalt Parking Lots
A practical guide for extending the life of parking lots using concrete overlays.
PavementDesigner.org
A free, easy-to-use tool that helps engineers and planners design concrete pavements.
Erosion Design Resources
Helps determine whether the ground beneath a pavement is strong enough or needs additional support
Guide to Concrete Trails
Provides step-by-step guidance for planning and building durable concrete trails for communities.
Materials, Mixtures & Optimization
Explore research focused on improving concrete mixtures, helping producers and engineers achieve better performance, efficiency, and long-term value.
Performance-Engineered Mixtures
Focuses on improving concrete mixtures so they perform better and last longer in real-world conditions.
Extended Mixing Time Study
Looks at whether concrete can be mixed longer without affecting quality or performance.
Life-365 Software
A tool used to estimate how long concrete will last and what it will cost over time.
Concrete Strength Model
A tool that helps producers create stronger concrete without using more materials than necessary.
"It is not the beauty of a building you should look at; it's the construction of the foundation that will stand the test of time."
Durability & Performance
Explore studies that examine how concrete performs over time, including how it responds to weather, environmental exposure, and long-term use.
Scientific Investigation into Concrete Durability
Explores why concrete breaks down over time and how to make it last longer.
Frost Damage &
Deicing Resistance
Examines how concrete holds up in cold weather and when exposed to deicing salts.
Chloride Limits for
Reinforced Concrete
Looks at how salt exposure affects reinforced concrete and how to improve protection against corrosion.
Hurricane Katrina Forensic Study
Analyzes how structures performed during Hurricane Katrina to better understand resilience.
Modeling, Innovation & Digital Tools
Explore tools and research that support better design, analysis, and decision-making through modeling, simulation, and emerging technologies.
Virtual Cement & Concrete Testing Laboratory (VCCTL)
A digital tool used to simulate and study
how concrete materials behave.
Building Information
Modeling Strategic Plan
Outlines how digital modeling can improve how concrete structures are designed and built.
Performance-Based Specifications
(P2P Initiative)
Explore resources that support a shift toward performance-based approaches, helping define concrete requirements based on how it performs rather than prescriptive limits.
Improving Reliability of
Resistivity Testing
Shows how testing concrete can help predict how it will perform over time.
Optimizing Concrete
Mixtures for Performance
Explores ways to improve concrete performance while using materials more efficiently.
Performance-Based
Alternatives to ACI 318
Looks at new ways to define concrete requirements based on performance instead of strict rules.
Quality Management System
for Concrete Producers
Provides tools and guidance to help concrete producers maintain consistent quality.
Performance-Based Specification Development (Phase I)
Lays the groundwork for developing performance-based concrete specifications.
Helps engineers and designers specify concrete based on how it should perform.
Performance Specification
Case Study
Demonstrates how performance-based approaches can improve concrete design and outcomes.
"Each of us is carving a stone, erecting a column, or cutting a piece of stained glass in the construction of something much bigger than ourselves."
Additional Technical Resources
Explore additional studies and tools that support a wide range of concrete applications, offering insights into performance, construction practices, and material behavior.
Formed Concrete
Surfaces Evaluation
Reviews guidance on achieving consistent quality in formed concrete surfaces.
SCC Formwork Pressure Study
Provides guidance on how concrete behaves in forms during placement.
Pervious Concrete
Performance Model
Helps evaluate how pervious concrete performs and how to ensure quality in the field.