Title: New Developments in the Modeling of Mass Transport Processes in Cement-Based Composites: a Review

Author(s): J. Marchand and B. Gerard

Publication: Symposium Paper

Volume: 154

Issue:

Appears on pages(s): 169-210

Keywords: cements; composite materials; diffusion; microstructure; models; permeability; General

DOI: 10.14359/1056

Date: 5/1/1995

Abstract:
Cement-based composites are used in the construction of a wide range of structures. During their service life, many of these structures are exposed to various types of aggression; their durability is generally controlled by their diffusivity and permeability of the cement-based composite. Since the assessment of these two properties by laboratory or in situ tests is often difficult and generally time-consuming, a great deal of effort has been made towards developing microstructure-based models to predict them. A critical review of the most recent developments in this field is presented in this paper. The report begins with a survey of the various mathematical concepts developed to characterize the structure of porous media. Empirical and physical models are reviewed in separate sections. Special emphasis is placed on recent innovations in the field of numerical and digital image analysis based modeling. Each model is evaluated on the basis of its ability to predict the mass transport properties of a wide range of cement-based composites and its potential application to the study of other micro- and macro-structural properties.