ABSTRACT
Those who have already read the book High Performance Concrete (Aïtcin, 1998) will think that it is madness for us to start this book as well with a chapter devoted to terminology and definitions. In 1998, Aïtcin wrote:
Discussions on terminology are tricky and can be endless but it must be admitted that often the quality of the information in a technical book is diminished by the lack of consensus on the exact meaning of the terms used. The author makes no claim for the superiority of the terminology he uses; he wants only to make clear the exact meaning of the terms he employs. The reader is free to disagree with the pertinence and the validity of the proposed terminology but, by accepting it momentarily, he will better understand the concepts and values expressed in this book. The acceptance of these definitions is essential to make the most of reading this book. As stated by A.M. Neville “The choice of one term over another is purely a personal preference and does not imply a greater accuracy of definition”.
