Steel–concrete bond strength of lightweight self-consolidating concrete

The bond behavior of lightweight self-consolidating concrete (LWSCC) must be understood in order to use this type of high performance concrete in structural members. The objective of this research program is to assess the bond behavior of reinforcing steel bars embedded in LWSCC members. Three different classes of LWSCC mixtures were developed with two different types of lightweight aggregates. In addition, one normal weight SCC (NWSCC) was developed and used as a control mixture. A total of twenty four pullout tests were conducted on deformed reinforcing bars with an embedded length of either 100 or 200 mm and the load-slip responses, failure modes and bond strengths of LWSCC and NWSCC were compared. Based on the results of this study, the bond strength of deformed bars for LWSCCs are found to be less (between 16 and 38%) as compared with NWSCC. Under the conditions of equivalent workability properties and compressive strength, bond slip properties were shown to be significantly influenced by the type of lightweight aggregate used. In this study, the use of expanded shale in the production of LWSCC significantly enhanced the pullout strength when compared with lightweight slag aggregate.     

The role of 0–2 mm fine recycled concrete aggregate on the compressive and splitting tensile strengths of recycled concrete aggregate concrete

The aim of this study is to investigate the role of 0–2 mm fine aggregate on the compressive and splitting tensile strengths of recycled concrete aggregate (RCA) concrete with normal and high strengths. Normal coarse and fine aggregates were substituted with the same grading of RCAs in two normal and high strength concrete mixtures. In addition, to keep the same slump value for all mixes, additional water or superplasticizer were used in the RCA concretes. The compressive and splitting tensile strengths were measured at 3, 7 and 28 days. Test results show that coarse and fine RCAs, which were achieved from a parent concrete with 30 MPa compressive strength, have about 11.5 and 3.5 times higher water absorption than normal coarse and fine aggregates, respectively. The density of RCAs was about 20% less than normal aggregates, and, hence, the density of RCA concrete was about 8–13.5% less than normal aggregate concrete. The use of RCA instead of normal aggregates reduced the compressive and splitting tensile strengths in both normal and high strength concrete. The reduction in the splitting tensile strength was more pronounced than for the compressive strength. However, both strengths could be improved by incorporating silica fume and/or normal fine aggregates of 0–2 mm size in the RCA concrete mixture. The positive effect of the contribution of normal sand of 0–2 mm in RCA concrete is more pronounced in the compressive strength of a normal strength concrete and in the splitting tensile strength of high strength concrete. In addition, some equation predictions of the splitting tensile strength from compressive strength are recommended for both normal and RCA concretes.     

Serviceability Limit State criteria based on steel–concrete bond loss for corroded reinforced concrete in chloride environment

This paper will focus on the study of reinforced concrete beams stored in a chloride environment for a period of 14–23 years under service loading. According to the experimental results, a Serviceability Limit State (SLS) criteria is proposed based on an excessive steel–concrete bond reduction. Corrosion of reinforcement in chloride environment leads to a specific local steel cross-section loss as well as a steel–concrete bond loss. Experimental results have shown that, in the first stage of corrosion propagation period, the deflection is more sensitive to chloride-induced corrosion than the ultimate capacity due to the effect of the tension steel–concrete bond loss even if both are correlated. Given this high sensibility of the bending stiffness to corrosion pitting attacks, it appears that a Serviceability Limit State (SLS) criteria based on excessive deflection of structural members is an adequate factor for SLS assessment. Later in corrosion propagation period, when the bond is already significantly reduced, only the ultimate capacity is affected by the steel cross-section loss. This does not affect the serviceability, because pitting attacks are very localised with an insignificant influence on the global deflection. Then, once the steel–concrete bond is lost in critical parts of the beams (high bending moment areas), pitting corrosion propagation does not affect anymore serviceability (stiffness reduction, bending or corrosion cracks patterns) but still leads to an ultimate capacity reduction, which is not acceptable. As a result, excessive steel–concrete debonding can be considered as the SLS criteria.     

Effect of confinement level,aspect ratio and concrete strength on the cyclic stress–strain behavior of FRP-confined concrete prisms

Behavior of rectangular concrete columns confined with FRP composites depends on several parameters, including unconfined concrete strength, confinement level, aspect ratio of cross-section (defined as the depth/width of the cross-section), and the sharpness of the section corners. For modeling the cyclic stress–strain behavior of FRP-confined rectangular concrete columns, effect of column parameters on the cyclic behavior of these columns should be examined properly. In this paper, effects of unconfined concrete strength, confinement level and the aspect ratio of cross-section are studied. The test database includes 10 prisms from recent study of authors and 18 prisms from a new experiment. Results of tests show that some aspects of cyclic behavior of FRP-confined concrete prisms such as envelope curve and stress deterioration are unaffected by the considered parameters. Results also indicate that the plastic strain decreases as the unconfined concrete strength increases, but it is independent of the aspect ratio and the confinement level. While the reloading path in all specimens was almost linear, the unloading path was highly nonlinear and was affected by unconfined concrete strength.     

Analysis of FRP–concrete debonding via boundary integral equations

The problem of debonding of FRP plates glued over a concrete element is studied making use of boundary integral equations. Mode II cohesive crack model is adopted for the interface, whereas linear elasticity is used for the two materials outside the process zone. Symmetric Galerkin boundary element method is used, adopting the arc-length technique to follow the equilibrium path beyond its critical point. It is shown that, due to the presence of a softening branch in shear stress-slip law, the behavior of a specimen undergoing debonding may be strongly non-linear, and is associated with a very brittle failure mechanism. For bond lengths longer than minimum anchorage length, a snap-back branch typically occurs after the attainment of the maximum force. Two different test setups have been numerically simulated and results in good agreement with experimental tests are found.     

Capillary absorption in concrete and the Lucas–Washburn equation

Capillary absorption kinetics of concrete–ethylene glycol system was studied with respect to concrete matrix porosity and liquid viscosity. Porosity of specimens was altered by air-entraining agents and superplasticizers. Liquid which doesn’t react with cement gel was chosen for the experiment in order to study the reasons for deviation from Lucas–Washburn equation observed in concrete–water system. Viscosity of ethylene glycol changes from ～23 to 2 mPa s in the temperature range from 20 to 100 °C. The values of the capillary coefficient were determined at 20, 60 and 100 °C using Neutron Radiography and were found to be in the range from ～1.5 to 4.9 mm h^?1/2. The results show that the Lucas–Washburn equation in concrete–ethylene glycol system is valid only for ～25 h, which indicates that swelling and rehydration of cement gel are not the main reasons for deviation observed in concrete–water system.     

Performance of connections for prefabricated timber–concrete composite floors

Timber–concrete composite beams and slabs require interlayer connectors, which provide composite action in the cross-section. A range of mechanical connectors is available on the market with an extensive variety of stiffness and strength properties, which are fundamental design parameters for the composite structure. Another crucial parameter is the cost of the connector, including the labour cost, that if too high may prevent the use of the composite system. In order to reduce the construction cost and make timber–concrete structures more widespread on the market, it is believed that a high degree of prefabrication should be achieved. For a simple and cost effective construction process, the use of “dry” connections, which do not require the pouring and curing of concrete on site, may represent a possible solution. This paper reports the outcomes of an experimental programme aimed to investigate a number of different mechanical “dry–dry” connectors previously embedded into a prefabricated concrete slab. Direct shear tests on small blocks made of a glulam segment connected with a prefabricated concrete slab were performed. The shear force-relative slip relationships were measured and all the relevant mechanical properties such as slip moduli and shear strengths were calculated. It was found that some of the new developed connection systems for prefabricated concrete slab can perform as satisfactorily as those for cast-in-situ slabs, with the additional benefit of being relatively inexpensive.     

Processing conditions—fracture toughness relationships of asphalt concrete mixtures

The effect of processing conditions (dynamic compaction) on the fatigue crack propagation behaviour of AC-20 asphalt concrete mixture was studied. Beams were prepared from AC-20 asphalt binder containing 8% asphalt by weight with and without dynamic compaction. The gradation used was Ohio Department of Transportation item 403, and was kept the same. Flexural static tests were conducted to determine the effect of dynamic compaction on both the ultimate strength and flexural modulus. Flexural fatigue tests were conducted on three identical notched specimens prepared using each of the two compaction techniques. Parameters controlling the crack propagation process were evaluated; namely, the energy release rate and the change in work, W _i expended on damage formation and history dependent viscous dissipation processes within the active zone (region ahead of the crack tip). The modified crack layer (MCL) model was employed to extract the specific energy of damage, , a material parameter characteristic of the asphalt concrete mixture's resistance to crack propagation, and the dissipative coefficient, . It has been found that the dynamically and statically compacted AC-20 mixture displayed superior fracture resistance, as reflected in and . Also, the ultimate strength and modulus increased by about two-fold. Scanning electron microscopic examination revealed an obvious change in the morphology of the fracture surface. This is manifested in the appearance of a finer more dense texture in the case of the dynamically and statically compacted mixture. In addition, smaller more frequent dimples in binder rich areas are indicative of better adhesion between the binder and the aggregate. This in turn contributes to the increased fracture resistance of the dynamically and statically compacted AC-20 asphalt concrete mixture.     

Round-Robin analysis of over-reinforced concrete beams—Comparison of results

Following the Round-Robin test on compressive softening, RILEM TC 148-SSC (“Strain Softening of Concrete”, see [1]) has proposed a second Round-Robin on the application of strain-softening data from simple uniaxial compression tests for the analysis of over-reinforced beams. The beams were tested at Aalborg University in Denmark in 1996. The Round-Robin is carried out in collaboration with ACI-ASCE committee 447 (“Finite Element Analysis of Reinforced Concrete Structures”). The results of the beam tests have been kept confidential, and researchers were invited to analyze the beams given the compressive and tensile properties of the concrete and the reinforcement. In total six contributions were submitted, which were compared to the experimental results in a workshop at the 3rd International Conference on Fracture Mechanics of Concrete and Concrete Structures, in Gifu, Japan in October 1998. In this report the outcome of the different analyses are summarized and the results are compared to the experimentally obtained peak loads, ductility and size effect.     

The effect of meta-halloysite on alkali–aggregate reaction in concrete

Damage to concrete structures may occur as a result of internal effects. Alkali silica reaction (ASR) is a long term reaction between alkalis and reactive aggregate present in the concrete. The reaction product is sodium–potasium–calcium silica gel, able to absorb water, resulting in the expansion and cracking of concrete. The key problem is to find the right method for mitigating the internal damage. This paper presents the results of an investigation into the effectiveness of calcined halloysite (meta-halloysite) in improving the resistance to alkali-silica reaction (ASR). The pozzolanic reactivity of meta-halloysite was also evaluated using Thermo-Gravimetric Analysis. Microstructures of mortar bars were observed by Scanning Electron Microscopy coupled with Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS) to investigate the location and chemical composition of ASR gel. The results from this study showed satisfactory level of pozzolanic reactivity when cement was partially replaced by meta-halloysite. It was demonstrated that a 20% addition of meta-halloysite are able to mitigate ASR and lower expansion of mortar bars with reactive aggregate to a safe level of not more than 0.1% at 14 days. Microstructural observations of the specimens containing meta-halloysite indicated the presence of a calcium–alkali–silicate–hydrate gel. But fewer reaction products and with different composition than those forming in the pastes without mineral additives are present.     

Predicting the service-life of concrete structures – Limitations of simplified models

North American civil infrastructure systems are deteriorating. Roads, bridges, overpasses, marine and airport facilities are all impacted. The primary causes of premature concrete deterioration are harsh climatic conditions and chemical attacks, particularly exposure to winter de-icing salts and seawater. Given the growing concern for concrete degradation, numerous computer-assisted tools have been developed to assist engineers in the prediction of the service-life of structures. Many of these models are based on simplified equations that significantly restrict the scope of their application. The limitations of these approaches for the design of new construction and rehabilitation of existing structures are discussed. The theoretical assumptions at the basis of these models are first reviewed. Special attention is paid to the consequences of these simplifying assumptions on the reliability of the models. The difficulties of using these simplified models for the treatment of actual structures exposed to natural conditions are then discussed.     

Fracture properties of concrete reinforced with steel–polypropylene hybrid fibres

This research discusses polypropylene fibres and three sizes of steel fibres reinforced concrete. The total fibre content ranges from 0% to 0.95% by volume of concrete. A four-point bending test is adopted on the notched prisms with the size of 100×100×500 mm³ to investigate the effect of hybrid fibres on crack arresting. The research results show that there is a positive synergy effect between large steel fibres and polypropylene fibres on the load-bearing capacity and fracture toughness in the small displacement range. But this synergy effect disappears in the large displacement range. The large and strong steel fibre is better than soft polypropylene fibre and small steel fibre in the aspect of energy absorption capacity in the large displacement range. The static service limitation for the hybrid fibres concrete, with “a wide peak” or “multi-peaks” load–CMOD patterns, should be carefully selected. The ultimate load bearing capacity and the crack width or CMOD at this load level should be jointly considered in this case. The K_IC and fracture toughness of proper hybrid fibre system can be higher than that of mono-fibre system.     

Compressive stress–strain behavior of steel fiber reinforced-recycled aggregate concrete

The use of recycled aggregate from construction and demolition waste (CDW) as replacement of fine and coarse natural aggregate has increased in recent years in order to reduce the high consumption of natural resources by the civil construction sector. In this work, an experimental investigation was carried out to investigate the influence of steel fiber reinforcement on the stress–strain behavior of concrete made with CDW aggregates. In addition, the flexural strength and splitting tensile strength of the mixtures were also determined. Natural coarse and fine aggregates were replaced by recycled coarse aggregate (RCA) and recycled fine aggregate (RFA) at two levels, 0% and 25%, by volume. Hooked end steel fibers with 35 mm of length and aspect ratio of 65 were used as reinforcement in a volume fraction of 0.75%. The research results show that the addition of steel fiber and recycled aggregate increased the mechanical strength and modified the fracture process relative to that of the reference concrete. The stress–strain behavior of recycled aggregate concrete was affected by the recycled aggregate and presented a more brittle behavior than the reference one. With the addition of steel fiber the toughness, measured by the slope of the descending branch of the stress–strain curve, of the recycled concretes was increased and their behavior under compression becomes similar to that of the fiber-reinforced natural aggregate concrete.     

Chloride penetration into concrete structures in the marine atmosphere zone – Relationship between deposition of chlorides on the wet candle and chlorides accumulated into concrete

The relationship between chlorides from marine aerosol and chlorides accumulated into concrete is discussed in this paper. The experimental programme comprised an environmental characterisation, with climatic and chloride deposition data, and a study of chloride penetration into concrete based on natural exposure of specimens in a marine atmosphere zone. Results show that salt concentration in marine aerosol strongly decreases in the first meters from the sea. Chlorides present in the atmosphere can be studied using the wet candle method and correlated with chlorides accumulated into concrete. This relationship can be represented by the equation $C_{\text{tot}}=C_0+k_{\text{d}}·\sqrt{D_{\text{ac}}}$, where k_d is a coefficient which depends on concrete and environmental characteristics, C_tot is the average total amount of chlorides accumulated into concrete, C₀ is the chloride content in concrete before exposure and D_ac is the accumulated dry deposition of chlorides.     

Air voids reduction phenomena of asphalt concrete – A continuum approach

Asphalt concrete used in flexible highway pavement construction has 5–8 percent air voids immediately after laying of the roadway. Constitutive laws for asphalt concrete developed till now have modelled the mix as a linear elastic or viscoelastic material and have not taken into account the effect of void concentration on the mechanical behaviour of the material. In this paper, the theory of linear elastic material with voids is used to model asphalt concrete under isothermal conditions. Two cases of void reduction behaviour are studied, one in which the void volume reduces asymptotically under a constant load and the other in which it reaches the refusal air void content. The model is used to predict the creep behaviour under constant compressive stress as well as to obtain the hysteretic stress-strain behaviour. Solutions for the case of uniaxial deformation are derived and the strains are simulated for a constant compressive stress. Use of the air voids reduction measure as a possible damage parameter is also examined. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Assessment of alkali–silica reaction damage through quantification of concrete nonlinearity

A newly developed nondestructive evaluation technique, Nonlinear Impact Resonance Acoustic Spectroscopy (NIRAS), is applied to concrete specimens in an ongoing assessment of aggregate alkali reactivity during standard concrete prism testing. NIRAS measures the nonlinearity in a specimen caused by the inception and growth of microcracks throughout the sample and debonding at the aggregate/cement interface. NIRAS is used to exploit the nonlinear effect of excitation amplitude dependent resonance frequency changes, which are related to nonlinearity measurements of concrete samples cast with aggregates of varying reactivity. To relate microstructural changes to changes in nonlinearity and expansion, sample characterization is performed with uranyl-acetate staining. The results demonstrate the utility of NIRAS for not only assessing the potential for ASR under standardized test conditions, but for more general damage characterization in concrete and assessment of “job mixtures.” NIRAS can distinguish reactive from nonreactive aggregates without ambiguity, as supported by sample characterization results.     

Reinforced concrete beam–column joint strengthened with carbon fiber reinforced polymer

An effective rehabilitation strategy is proposed to enhance the strength and stiffness of the beam–column joint in this study. An analytical model is proposed to predict the column shear of the joints strengthened with carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP). Three full scale interior beam–column joints, including two specimens strengthened with CFRP and one prototype specimen, are tested in this study. The specimens are designed to represent the pre-seismic code design construction in which there is no transverse reinforcement. A new optical non-contact technique, digital image correlation (DIC), which can measure the full strain field of specimen, is used to measure and observe the full strain field of the joint. The experimental results show that the beam–column joints strengthened with CFRP can increase their structural stiffness, strength, and energy dissipation capacity. The rehabilitation strategy is effective to increase the ductility of the joint and transform the failure mode to beam or delay the shear failure mode. By observing the measured results, it is found that the mechanical anchorages can prevent the debonding of CFRP. Comparing the analytical and experimental results, the proposed model can accurately predict the column shear and shear strength of the joints strengthened with CFRP.     

Testing and modeling of a novel FRP-encased steel–concrete composite column

A composite column consisting of steel, concrete and fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) is presented and assessed through experimental testing and analytical modeling. The composite column utilizes a glass FRP (GFRP) composite tube that surrounds a steel I-section, which is subsequently filled with concrete. The GFRP tube acts as a stay-in-place form in addition to providing confinement to the concrete. This study investigates the behavior of the proposed composite columns under axial loading. A total of seven specimens were tested. The influence of concrete shrinkage on the compressive behavior of the composite columns was also investigated. Significant confinement and composite action resulted in enhanced compressive behavior. The addition of a shrinkage reducing agent was found to further improve the compressive behavior of the composite columns. An analytical model was developed to predict the behavior of the composite columns under axial loading.     

Bond strength of CFRP–concrete elements under freeze–thaw cycles

Bonding between the adherents represents a key point when dealing with the reinforcement of concrete structures by using FRPs. Bonding depends on mechanical and physical properties of concrete, composite and adhesive as well as on the surface treatment of the concrete substrate. A very important topic for civil engineering applications is related to the durability of the bond in harsh environments. In the present paper some specimens were first subjected to freeze–thaw cycles and then experimental debonding tests were performed in order to investigate the effects of the bonding length and environmental conditions. First, the effects of environmental conditions on bond strength is discussed. Finally, the experimental data are compared to the design formulae proposed by the Italian Recommendations CNR DT200/2004 and critical considerations are presented.     

Pickett effect and creep in flexure of steel‐fiber reinforced concrete

Abstract

Creep and shrinkage are of great concern in the design of steel fiber reinforced concrete structures. This is especially true for a prestressed flex‐ural member with thin section. The test results of creep of steel‐fiber rein‐foced concrete in flexure are presented. The concrete beams made with various fiber volume contents were tested in flexure under drying or standard moist conditions. The Pickett effect in steel‐fiber reinforced concrete was investigated. This research shows that fibers can effectively restrain the bending creep of concrete. The Pickett effect can be reduced with the addition of fibers to plain concrete beam subjected to fiexural loading.