Glossary: C
Calcium Chloride Vapor-Emission Test – An ASTM test used to measure the volume of moisture vapor released from a concrete substrate over time (typically 24 hours). Too much moisture emitted from a slab can affect the performance and bonding of overlays, coatings, and sealers. Moisture vapor test kits are available that include small containers of preweighed, unhydrated calcium chloride.
Cast in Place – Concrete placed and finished in its final location.
Cement Replacement – (or supplementary cementitious material) A material used in concrete as a partial replacement for portland cement. Includes pozzolans, fly ash, and granulated blast furnace slag. Can have positive effects on decorative concrete by improving finishability, reducing permeability, and reducing efflorescence.
Cementitious – A material containing portland cement as one of its components or having cement-like properties.
Chalking – Loose, powdery substance caused by deterioration of a concrete surface or degradation of a coating or overlay.
Coating System – A complete system requiring a number of coats of material to be applied separately in a predetermined order and at prescribed intervals to allow for sufficient drying and curing. May include a primer, one or more intermediate coats, and a topcoat.
Compressive Strength – The maximum compressive stress concrete or cementitious overlay materials are capable of sustaining, expressed as pounds per square inch (psi).
Color Chips – Plastic chips, available in various colors and sizes, for broadcasting onto freshly placed epoxy resin flooring systems, such as epoxy terrazzo, to produce multicolored effects.
Color Layering – Applying layers of color to achieve variegated or faux finish effects, such as antiquing or marbleizing. For example. a dry-shake color hardener may serve as the base color, accented by a pigmented powdered or liquid release agent, followed by additional accenting with acid stains, dyes, or tints.
Concrete Countertops – A handcrafted alternative to manufactured countertop surfaces. Can be precast in a shop in molds built to the customers specifications or cast onsite, by setting a mold on top of the base kitchen cabinets and then filling with concrete. The use of stains, pigments, decorative aggregates, and epoxy coatings can give concrete countertops the look, texture, and feel of quarried stone such as marble, granite, and limestone.
Concrete Surface Profile (CSP) – The degree of roughness of a concrete surface achievable with various surface preparation methods. The International Concrete Repair Institute has identified nine distinct roughness profiles considered to be suitable for the application of sealers, coatings, and polymer-modified overlays.
Consistency – The ability of fresh concrete to flow. The usual measure of consistency is slump.
Control (or contraction) joint – Sawed or tooled groove in a concrete slab used to regulate the location of cracking.
Coverage Rate – The area that a specified volume of coating will cover to a specified thickness upon drying.
Crack Chasing -Routing out cracks in concrete with a saw or angle grinder before filling with a repair material.
Crack Stitching – A method of repairing cracks that involves drilling holes on both sides of the crack and grouting in wire or U-shaped metal strips that span the crack.
Cracks, Moving – Cracks in concrete that are still moving, or active. Often they are structural in nature and continue through the entire depth of the concrete.
Cracks, Static – Random, non-moving hairline cracks that only affect the concrete surface (also see Craze Cracks and Plastic Shrinkage Cracks).
Craze Cracks – A series of fine, random cracks caused by shrinkage of the surface mortar.
Crusting – A condition that occurs when the surface of freshly placed concrete dries too quickly, often due to exposure to direct sun, wind, or high temperatures.
Curing – Action taken to maintain favorable moisture and temperature conditions of freshly placed concrete or cementitious materials during a defined period of time following placement. Helps to ensure adequate hydration and proper hardening.
Curing Compound – A liquid that, when applied to the surface of newly placed concrete, forms a membrane on the concrete or penetrates the concrete to retard the evaporation of water.
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