Concrete testing services

About our concrete testing facilities

We offer research, testing and consultancy support to a range of sectors, including manufacturers, contractors, rail and highway infrastructure, and others. We can help develop concrete mix designs through the assessment of hardened, structural and durability performance under a wide range of conditions. We undertake testing to many BS EN 12350 and BS EN 12390 suites of standards, as well as other British and International standards, and bespoke or in-house tests upon consultation:

Concrete durability

In 2005, BRE published Special Digest (SD1), which provides practical guidance on the specification of concrete for installation in natural ground and in brownfield locations. Our expert team can assess sulfate resistance of concretes in conditions to reflect aggressive ground conditions. We can also conduct performance tests for carbonation, freeze-thaw resistance, alkali silica reaction (ASR), chloride migration and others.

We can prepare petrographic thin sections and carry out subsequent expert examination using optical microscopy. Concrete petrography is an integral aspect of concrete analysis and has considerable benefits when undertaking projects relating to the performance of concrete. Petrography is particularly beneficial when there is a requirement to investigate failures or undertake diagnostic examinations when a detailed microscopic study is needed.

Assessments against concrete design classes such as described in the concrete standards EN 206 and BS 8500 can be undertaken within our durability testing laboratories. For example, we can carry out accelerated freeze-thaw testing of  concrete products and can simultaneously expose XF class concretes that are designed to withstand specific freeze-thaw conditions; comparative performance can then be evaluated.

Specific and Engineering testing

In addition to investigating the properties of the concrete itself, within our facilities we can undertake testing of associated products such as admixtures (EN 934) and products associated with the protection and repair of concrete (EN 1504). Design approval testing of prestressed monoblock railway sleepers can also be undertaken in accordance with BS EN 13230-2.

Exposure sites

Our secure exposure sites for long term exposure of concrete test specimens include:

Marine exposure site at Portsmouth on the south coast of England. Offers continuous sea water immersion and fully exposed (outdoor) exposure. Assessments over time can include chloride ingress profiles with depth, visual assessment, carbonation and strength retention (relative to laboratory water stored reference specimens). Large concrete elements (including reinforced) can also be accommodated.

Natural outdoor exposure site at BRE, Garston at an inland suburban location in southern England. Offers continuous fully exposed (outdoor) exposure. Assessments over time can include visual assessment and carbonation. Large concrete elements can also be accommodated.

Low carbon concretes

BRE has many years of experience in research, testing and consultancy on low carbon cements and concretes that provide lower carbon alternatives to Portland cements (PC or CEM I), including access to our long-term testing capabilities/secure exposure sites.