The paper deals with internal curing of High-Strength Concrete using pre-soaked lightweight aggregate (LWA). The effect of internal curing depends directly on the distance over which the internal curing water can travel. The effectiveness of internal curing is a function of the ratio between the water penetration depth and the paste-lightweight aggregate proximity, which is related to the spacing between the aggregates. Estimates of these parameters were developed in this study, based on a combination of modeling and experimental work. The results indicate that water can penetrate from the LWA into the surrounding matrix to a distance of up to several millimeters during the first seven days of hydration. The water penetration was sensitive to the pore structure of the aggregate, ranging from about 1 to 6 mm, and it was reduced in systems having lower w/b ratio and silica fume by almost a factor of 2.

Autogenous deformation of concrete is the free deformation of sealed concrete at a constant temperature. A number of observed problems with early-age cracking of high-performance concrete can be attributed to this phenomenon. During the last 10 years, this has led to an increased focus on autogenous deformation within both concrete practice and concrete research. The papers in this publication were presented at the American Concrete Institute’s Fall Convention in Phoenix, Arizona, October 2002, and will help readers understand the complexity of the autogenous deformation of concrete. The 12 papers from eight different countries indicate the broad, global research efforts dealing with autogenous deformation, and illustrate that interest in autogenous deformation is shared throughout the worldwide concrete community. Note: The individual papers are also available as .pdf downloads.. Please click on the following link to view the papers available, or call 248.848.3800 to order. SP220

Recent experimental results (creep tests and indentation tests at a nanometer scale) on Ductal®, a non-brittle (fiber-reinforced) ultrahigh-performance concrete (UHPC), show that only one constituent of this composite, the C-S-H phase, exhibits creep. Former creep tests on hydrated cement paste have shown a very high creep rate of the cement gel which decelerates very slowly (much more slowly than concrete creep). Furthermore, these results provide a clear explanation for the observations of a strong correlation between shrinkage and creep values. The reason is, when hydration rate becomes negligible (typically after a few weeks), the dominant part of shrinkage is nothing but the viscoplastic response of the cement gel to the internal stress which is applied by the liquid phase on the pore surface. This statement makes wrong the last argument against the explanation of shrinkage by capillary tension, the so-called argument of reversibility. Creep aging, as well as the very low creep of high-strength concretes can be explained by the consumption of creep potential by the hygral stress. Several coupling effects between creep and shrinkage can be explained, as for example the so-called PICKETT effect.

A micro-macro experimental study has been performed, from the end of mixing up to several months, on a set of plain cement pastes prepared with the same type I ordinary Portland cement (OPC) and various water-to-cement ratios (W/C), and cured at various constant temperatures. Chemical shrinkage, volumetric and one-dimensional autogenous deformations have been measured and analyzed in relation to the hydration process (degree of hydration of the cement a, Ca(OH)7 content, ...) and to the microstructural characteristics of the material. The effects of the curing temperature at early age (< 24 hours) in the range 10-50°C, and of W/C in the range 0.25-0.60, have been investigated. The temperature-induced changes recorded on both the magnitude and the kinetics of volumetric autogenous shrinkage clearly show the irrelevance of using the usual maturity concept to describe such phenomena within the whole early-age period. In addition, a threshold is pointed out at about a = 7%, both defining the range where autogenous shrinkage is linearly related to a and corresponding to the precipitation of Ca(OH)2. Moreover, a W/C threshold is pointed out both at the macro-level (autogenous deformations, ...) and at the micro-level (characteristics of the hydration products, MIP porosity and pore size distribution, ...). The chemical and (micro)structural basic effects of calcium hydroxide are in particular distinguished.

An experimental investigation of HPSCC, is outlined. Optimizations were performed on a laboratory scale according to an ideal grading of the particles in the fresh concrete for SCC, with high strength, high durability in marine environment or with fire spoiling safety. SCC was introduced in the full-scale production of beams and piles. The results showed high slump flow and robustness that allowed for a reasonable variation of the water-cement ratio, w/c, keeping the fresh concrete properties within the limits of the full-scale production even at elevated temperature. Creep, shrinkage, salt frost scaling and sulphate resistance did not differ much from the corresponding properties of vibrated concrete, NC. Internal frost resistance was improved for SCC compared with NC but the chloride migration was larger in SCC with limestone powder than in NC. Spoiling of the concrete during fire, especially in low-w/c concrete, was avoided by use of polypropylene fibers.