Isothermal Curing Test

Accelerating concrete curing is achieved by applying heat and additional moisture. This process accelerates the hydration of the cement, resulting in an earlier strength gain in the concrete. Steam curing is a method wherein the concrete products are either transported through a chamber on a conveyor belt or encased in plastic, allowing steam at atmospheric pressure to circulate freely around them. This process begins with a phase of moist curing that typically lasts between 3 to 5 hours, after...

The hydration of cement takes place within the water-filled capillary pores. However, environmental elements can disrupt this process by evaporating water from the concrete surfaces. Sealed concrete with a water-cement ratio below 0.5 experiences self-desiccation, leading to water loss. The water loss in concrete is mitigated by curing. This technique involves keeping the concrete saturated to maintain the necessary temperature and moisture conditions, to optimally fill the spaces in the cement...

Concrete members with a small surface-to-volume ratio are cured by oiling and moistening the forms before casting the concrete member. These forms can be left in place for a prolonged period to prevent moisture loss, and can be wetted if made of a material suitable for wetting. If the forms are removed early, the concrete member is moistened and covered with polythene sheets to maintain moisture. For large horizontal concrete surfaces exposed to dry weather, a temporary covering is suspended...

A thermodynamic process that occurs at constant temperature is called an isothermal process. Heat slowly flows into the system or out of the system to maintain thermal equilibrium. Processes involving phase changes like water evaporation into steam or freezing water into ice at a constant temperature are examples of Isothermal Processes. An ideal gas can also undergo isothermal expansion or compression. For example, consider 1 mole of an ideal gas inside an isolated cylinder at initial volume V...

Source: Domesle, K. J., et al. Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification for Screening Salmonella in Animal Food and Confirming Salmonella from Culture Isolation. J. Vis. Exp. (2020).This video demonstrates the loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) technique for detecting a target bacterial gene by amplifying DNA at a constant temperature. The reaction mixture is prepared by adding an isothermal master mix, specific primers for the target gene, and samples containing DNA templates. The...