GETTING BACK TO THE BASICS IN TEACHING ENGINEERING: LET US START WITH PORTLAND CEMENT CONCRETE

The purpose of an undergraduate laboratory course in concrete should be to familiarize civil engineering and technology students with two of the most important materials on construction: portland cement (PC), and PC concrete (PCC). The aim is to assist students in gaining an understanding of PC and PCC through the physical handing and testing of these materials in the laboratory environment. This guest editorial outlines the six elements of instruction he believes should be included in an undergraduate concrete laboratory course: an understanding of the basic materials that go into a PCC mix (aggregates, various types of portland cement, and how it is tested and manufactured, water, and an explanation of additives); guidance for the students in developing the mix design that their work squad will use in the course; preparation of specimens for compression, flexure, methods of determining tensile strength, Young's modulus and Poisson's ratio, and the interaction of steel and concrete; an understanding of the importance of curing and proper methods for the handling of fresh concrete; an understanding of the relationship between concrete strength, time, and mixture ingredients, particularly the water-to-cement ratio; and the testing of the prepared specimens and the preparation of detailed reports based upon these tests. The author believes that today's problem with engineering education is not balancing engineering theory with design, but determining the appropriate sequence of instruction. He questions whether today's faculty, trained in engineering theory and largely lacking in industrial experience, as evidenced by the profuse lack of engineering licenses, can successfully impart the new engineering philosophy.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/10523928
• Corporate Authors:

  American Society of Civil Engineers

  1801 Alexander Bell Drive
  Reston, VA  United States  20191-4400
• Authors:
  • Kett, I
• Publication Date: 2000-7

Language

• English

Media Info

• Pagination: p. 91-92
• Serial:
  • Journal of Professional Issues in Engineering Education and Practice
  • Volume: 126
  • Issue Number: 3
  • Publisher: American Society of Civil Engineers
  • ISSN: 1052-3928
  • EISSN: 1943-5541
  • Serial URL: http://ascelibrary.org/journal/jpepe3

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Aggregates; Civil engineering; Compression; Concrete; Concrete curing; Education; Engineering; Engineers; Flexure; Fresh concrete; Laboratories; Licenses; Mix design; Poisson ratio; Portland cement; Portland cement concrete; Steel; Strength of materials; Tensile strength; Universities and colleges; Water cement ratio; Young's modulus
• Subject Areas: Administration and Management; Education and Training; Geotechnology; Highways; Materials; Safety and Human Factors; I10: Economics and Administration; I32: Concrete;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00795695
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Jul 18 2000 12:00AM