Investigation of permeability of structural lightweight aggregate concrete

Good durability is very important for the application of structural lightweight aggregate concrete (LWAC). In this paper, extensive tests on the permeability coefficient of LWACs were conducted and the effects of cement content, water/cement ratio and workability on the permeability were studied. The study concluded that: (1) the permeability coefficient of LWAC with higher cement content were found to increase obviously with increase of the water/cement ratio. ; (2) under the same water/cement ratio, LWAC with higher cement content gave the lower permeability results. ; (3) for LWACs of higher water/cement ratio, the increase of workability can result in greater decrease of permeability coefficient of LWACs