Control Surface Dusting, Wear, And Weak Finishes
Through Proven Abrasion Resistance Test
2.1 Abrasion Resistance
Abrasion resistance is the ability of a concrete surface to resist wear caused by rubbing, rolling, sliding, cutting and impact forces. Wear, which is the removal of surface material, is a process of displacement and detachment of particles or fragments from the surface. Abrasion mechanisms are complex and combinations of different actions can occur in many environments – for example, from truck tyres, foot traffic, scraping and impact. Excessive and early wear can be caused by the use of under-specified or non-compliant concrete or water damage at the construction stage.
In normal warehouse working conditions, poor abrasion resistance is rarely a problem for a typical power-trowelled and well-cured floor using good quality concrete. Lower concrete strength classes may require a dry shake topping to achieve adequate abrasion resistance.
A test to measure the abrasion resistance of a floor surface is described in EN 13892-4[5]. The minimum age of test is not noted but the concrete must have developed its required strength, i.e. a minimum of 28 days is considered sensible. It is suggested that a sampling rate of 1 test per 4000m2 is adequate. The maximum limit of abrasion should be 0.20mm.
If a floor is to be tested, it should be noted that resin-based curing compounds create a layer or ‘skin’ on the surface that can be impenetrable to the abrasion test machine [6].
Inadequate abrasion resistance in service can be improved by surface penetrating resin sealers and/or grinding.