Required air content for concrete, state by state
Air entrainment protects exterior concrete from freeze-thaw damage. State DOTs set the allowed air content range for their projects. Each row below is cited to the state's spec.
41 states · each value quoted from the state's Standard Specifications, with the page linked · how these answers are produced
| State | Requirement | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Total air content for Alabama DOT concrete projects must be between 2.0% and 6.0% by volume during placement and must not exceed 6.0% by volume during production. | Alabama DOT Standard Specifications, p. 256Alabama DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 375–376 |
| Alaska | Air content for Alaska DOT concrete must meet Table 501-4: Class A and A-A = 6.0% ±0.5%, Class P = 4.0% ±0.5%, Class DS = not required (except Super Air Meter ≤0.20 for Class A/A-A/P). | Alaska DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 179–180Alaska DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 189–191 |
| Arizona | For Arizona DOT projects, concrete placed at elevations 3,000 feet or above must have an air content of 4–7% (if freeze-thaw concern exists) or 5–8% (if freeze-thaw concern exists and concrete is pumped). | Arizona DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 1198–1199Arizona DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 1165–1166 |
| Arkansas | For Arkansas DOT projects, air content must be 6% ± 2% when air-entrained concrete is specified (Class S(AE)). Non-air-entrained concrete must not exceed 3% air content. | Arkansas DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 348–349Arkansas DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 690–692 |
| California | Air content must be ±1.5% of the specified value (or ±1.5% of the authorized mix design value if unspecified) when air entrainment is specified. | California DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 1274–1275California DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 619–620 |
| Colorado | "(1) The required air content before the pump for wet process applications shall be 7 –10 percent." | Colorado DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 567–568 |
| Connecticut | For concrete on Connecticut DOT projects, air-entrained concrete for piles must have an entrained air content of not less than 4% or more than 6%. | Connecticut DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 524–525 |
| Delaware | For Delaware DOT projects, air content must not exceed 6.5% for latex-modified concrete overlays. No air content requirement is specified for other concrete classes in the provided sources. | Delaware DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 712–714 |
| Florida | The required air content for all classes of concrete on Florida DOT projects is ≤ 6.0%. | Florida DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 360–361 |
| Georgia | Air content for Georgia DOT concrete must meet class-specific limits in Table 1 (e.g., 2.5–6% for Class AAA, 3.5–7% for Class A bridge decks). For Portland Cement Concrete Pavement (Special), air content must be 4.0–5.5%. | Georgia DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 632–633Georgia DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 559–560 |
| Idaho | "Air content, percent of plastic mix 0 - 6.5" "Test for slump, unit weight, air content, and compressive strength for acceptance." "Table 509.01- 3 – Pay Factor Adjustment for Air Content Above or Below Specified Air Content Pay Factor… | Idaho DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 409–410Idaho DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 405–406 |
| Indiana | "Air Content .............................................................. 5.0% to 8.0%" | Indiana DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 529–530 |
| Iowa | "Intended air e ntrainment of finished wet cast concrete is 6%. To allow for loss during placement, use a target value of 6.5% for air content of fresh unvibrated concrete, with a maximum variation of plus 1.5% and minus 1.0%." | Iowa DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 551–552 |
| Kansas | "When necessary, calculate a target percent air content at a maximum air void spacing factor of 0.0100 inch, using the equation in subsection 403.3e ." "Maintain an air content behind the paver as determined by KT-19 or KT-18, which meets… | Kansas DOT Standard Specifications, Division 400 — Concrete, pp. 22–23Kansas DOT Standard Specifications, Division 400 — Concrete, p. 4 |
| Kentucky | Air content for Kentucky DOT concrete classes ranges from 6% ± 2% (e.g., Class A, AA, D, D Mod) to 7 max. (Class M1, M2). Check the specific class requirements in the INGREDIENT PROPORTIONS AND REQUIREMENTS table. | Kentucky DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 285–287 |
| Maine | Maine DOT requires 6.0% air content (±1.5% tolerance) for concrete when tested per AASHTO T 152. | Maine DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 861–862 |
| Massachusetts | Air content must meet the target ±1.5% as tested by AASHTO T 309 for fresh concrete on MassDOT projects. | Massachusetts DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 268–269Massachusetts DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 546–547 |
| Michigan | "Air content (a) <5.0% or >9.0%" "(a) Action limits for air content must be defined in the Contractor ’s QC plan and cannot be <5.5 % or >8.5 %." "testing will be conducted whenever there is a change in QC ’s or QA ’s equipment or… | Michigan DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 1058–1059Michigan DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 1059–1060 |
| Minnesota | "I.4 Air Content before Consolidation If the Contractor places Type 3 concrete not meeting the air content requirements into the Work , the Department may apply monetary deductions to nonconforming concrete. | Minnesota DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 235–236Minnesota DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 557–558 |
| Mississippi | For Mississippi DOT projects, total air content must not exceed 6.0% for Class F, FX, and DS concrete not exposed to seawater. For concrete exposed to seawater, nominal total air content must be 4.5%. | Mississippi DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 957–958 |
| Missouri | For Missouri DOT projects, air-entrained concrete must have an air content target range of 4.5% to 7.5% by volume; field-measured air content must not exceed 9.0% or be below 4.5% (redosing allowed once per truckload if below 4.5%). | Missouri DOT Standard Specifications, p. 235 |
| Montana | "If 1½ -inch nominal maximum aggregate is used in the design, the air content requirement is reduced to 4.0% - 7.5%." | Montana DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 264–265 |
| Nebraska | Air content for Nebraska DOT concrete classes ranges from 5.0–9.0% (min–max), depending on class: 47B-OL (5.0–7.0%), 47B (6.5–9.0%), 47BD/BX/B-HE/PR1/PR3 (6.0–8.5%), SF (6.0–8.5%). | Nebraska DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 810–811Nebraska DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 811–812 |
| New Hampshire | Air content for NH DOT concrete classes ranges from 3% to 9% (Class B: 3–6%, Class A: 4–7%, Class AA: 5–9%, Class AAA: 5–9%). Class F requires 15–25% air content. | New Hampshire DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 189–191 |
| New Jersey | "Percent Air Entrainment for Coarse Aggregate 1 No. 57 & No. 67 No. 8 Cast - in - Place Items Bridge Approach A 3 ± 1 6.0 ± 1.5 7.0 ± 1.5 Footings, Piles B 3 ± 1 7.5 max 8.5 max Abutments, Wing Walls, Pier Shafts, Retaining Walls B 3 ± 1… | New Jersey DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 477–478New Jersey DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 475–477 |
| New Mexico | For New Mexico DOT projects, air content requirements vary by risk zone: 6.0% minimum for low-risk zones, 6.5% for medium-risk zones, and 7.0% for high-risk zones. Class G concrete has a maximum air content of 3.0%. | New Mexico DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 335–336New Mexico DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 337–338 |
| North Carolina | For North Carolina DOT projects, air content in concrete must be 6.0% ± 1.5% (general concrete) or 5.0% ± 1.5% (pavement concrete). Use AASHTO T 121, T 152, or T 196 for testing; Chace Indicator may be used with correlation. | North Carolina DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 419–420North Carolina DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 422–423 |
| North Dakota | Concrete on North Dakota DOT projects must have an air content of 5.0 to 8.0 percent by volume at placement. | North Dakota DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 422–424 |
| Ohio | "Beams with hardened air contents below 4 percent will be rejected" "Sample the concrete to perform the QC testing at the point of placement. Use the following quality control procedures during placement: a. | Ohio DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 404–405Ohio DOT Standard Specifications, p. 279 |
| Oklahoma | Air content for Oklahoma DOT concrete classes: Class AA 6.5±1.5%, Class A 6±1.5%, Class AP 6±1.5%, Class C 6±1.5%, Class P 5±1.5%. | Oklahoma DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 627–630 |
| Oregon | Air content for concrete on Oregon DOT projects must meet Table 02001-2 in 02001.20(b), with field-measured air content within ±1.5% of target values: 3/8" (6.0% moderate/7.5% severe), 1/2" (5.5%/7.0%), 3/4" (5.0%/6.0%), 1" (4.5%/6.0%),… | Oregon DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 1114–1116 |
| Pennsylvania | Design concrete to have an air content of 6.0% in the plastic state for standard mixes; 7.0% for AAAP, AA Slip Form Paving, and AA Form Paving mixes. Accept hardened concrete air content between 3.5%–7.5% (4.5%–8.5% for AAAP/AA mixes). | Pennsylvania DOT Standard Specifications, p. 666Pennsylvania DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 991–992 |
| Rhode Island | "Ensure that a ll concrete used on State of Rhode Island projects is air entrained ." "Air Content Range, AASHTO T152, % 5 - 9 5 - 9 5 - 9 5 - 9 5 - 9 ― 5 - 9" "A ir content of the mix" "the goal of produc ing concrete using the maximum… | Rhode Island DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 283–284Rhode Island DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 285–286 |
| South Carolina | For air-entrained concrete on SCDOT projects, use 4.5% (±1.5%) entrained air (or 5.5% (±1.5%) if pumped). | South Carolina DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 598–599 |
| South Dakota | "For the stationary side form method, the slump of the concrete will be between 1 inch and 3 inches. For the slip-form method, the slump of the concrete will not be more than 2 inches. The concrete will contain 6.5% entrained air with an… | South Dakota DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 217–218South Dakota DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 392–393 |
| Tennessee | "Design Class D , Class DS, and Class L concrete at 7% air content . Acceptance range for pumping and other methods of placement is 4.5 - 7.5%. | Tennessee DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 510–512Tennessee DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 396–398 |
| Utah | Air content for Utah DOT concrete mixes is specified in Table 2 of Section 03055 (Portland Cement Concrete), with ranges like 5.0–7.5% for most classes (e.g., AAA(AE), AA(LSF), AA(LS)) and 4.0–7.5% for others (e.g., AA(P), AA(AE)). | Utah DOT Standard Specifications, 2026 Standard Specifications, pp. 886–887 |
| Vermont | For Vermont DOT projects, concrete air content must be 7% (±2%) when tested per AASHTO T 152. The minimum air content for production is set by the Contractor’s qualification mix testing, but must not be less than the approved value. | Vermont DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 669–670Vermont DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 562–563 |
| Washington | "Air content for concrete Class 4000D shall conform to Section 6-02.3(2)A1. For all other concrete, air content shall be a minimum of 4.5 percent and a maximum of 7.5 percent for all concrete placed above the finished ground line unless… | Washington DOT Standard Specifications, p. 360Washington DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 362–363 |
| West Virginia | Air content for concrete on West Virginia DOT projects must meet target values in Table 601.3.1A (not provided here), with ±2.5% tolerance for standard concrete and ±1.5% for Class H concrete. | West Virginia DOT Standard Specifications, p. 338 |
| Wyoming | "Any sublot with an entrained air content less than 3.3 percent will be rejected. Any paved lot with an average entrained air content of less than 4.0 percent will be rejected." | Wyoming DOT Standard Specifications, pp. 370–371 |
State DOT specifications apply to that DOT's own contracts; private and municipal work follows the project spec and local code. Specs are revised — confirm the edition named in the source before relying on a value.