Title:
Estimation of Early-Age Thermal Cracking Tendency
of Massive Concrete Elements By Means of
Equivalent Thickness
Author(s):
G. De Schutter and L. Taerwe
Publication:
Materials Journal
Volume:
93
Issue:
5
Appears on pages(s):
403-408
Keywords:
geometrical effects; hardening concrete; numerical simulation;
temperature rules; thermal cracking.
DOI:
10.14359/9843
Date:
9/1/1996
Abstract:
Based on empirical temperature rules, the influence of the concrete element geometry on early-age thermal crack formation can be evaluated in terms of the maximum temperature rise and the maximum temperature difference between element core and surface. By means of numerical simulation, it is shown that the massivity, defined as the ratio between the volume of the con-crete element and the surface, is not a general quantitative parameter: A new parameter is introduced-the equivalent thickness-defined for a separable heat flow area of the concrete element. Numerical simulation indicates that the equivalent thickness enables a good quantitative comparison between different element shapes. A quick indication of the accuracy of the temperature rules is obtained by means of linear elastic stress calculations.