The relationship between porosity and strength for porous concrete

As for many porous media, the strength of porous concrete is significantly affected by the porosity of its internal structure. This paper describes the development of a mathematical model to characterize the relationship between compressive strength and porosity for porous concrete by analyzing empirical results and theoretical derivations. The suitability of existing equations for porous concrete is assessed and a new model is then proposed. The new model, which was derived from Griffith’s theory, presents a better agreement with the experimental data for porous concrete. It is demonstrated that the proposed model could provide a better prediction of porous concrete compressive strength based on the material porosity.

► The effective porosity was measured and the total porosity was estimated.
► The total porosity shows a good correlation with the effective porosity.
► The exponential equation has been examined for porous concrete.
► A new model using Griffith’s fracture theory was proposed.
► Proposed model represents a significant improvement over the exponential equation.