Analysis of the early-age cracking in concrete made from rapid hardening cement

Abstract

This paper investigates the use of concrete containing ultra-rapid hardening cement for rapid repairs in confined spaces where the repaired element has to sustain dynamic loading within a short time after repair. The study focuses on the early-age strength development and structural integrity of the repaired element. The study is divided in two parts. The first part is devoted to the compressive and split cylinder strengths, and to the temperature rise under adiabatic conditions in the concrete repair material from early-age (1h after casting) to 7 days of age. The second part of the study focuses on the finite element thermal and thermo-mechanical analysis of three repair options of a damaged concrete element in a confined space using simplified pseudo-static loading characteristics for the repaired element.