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A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Construction and Building Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 March 2023) | Viewed by 19368

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Prof. Dr. Gun Kim

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Department of Urban and Environmental Engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, Ulsan 44919, Republic of Korea
Interests: ultrasound; durability of concrete; material characterization; sonochemistry; composites
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

While a variety of chemical and mechanical phenomena in cement-based materials has been revealed, there are still challenges around sustainability and resilience. The aim of this Special Issues is to gather recent scientific progress on cement and concrete, particularly dedicated to cutting-edge techniques used for cement and concrete research that unveil new phenomena in those materials and possibly accommodate sustainability and extension of the service life of concrete structures. Specifically, this Special Issues encompasses experimental studies at the crossroads between chemistry, materials science and engineering, biology, and applied physics. Potential topics include but are not limited to the following: durability, material characterization, alkali-activated materials, UHPC, internal curing, cement–carbon nanocomposites, CO₂ sequestration, and sustainability. Furthermore, to compile comprehensive documentation, other potential studies on engineered cement and concrete, numerical study, and sensing techniques for damage quantification are welcomed for publication in this Special Issue.

We kindly invite you to submit a manuscript(s) for this Special Issue. Original research articles, communications, and reviews are all welcome.

Prof. Dr. Gun Kim
Guest Editor

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Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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Keywords

durability
material characterization
alkali-activated materials
UHPC
internal curing
cement–carbon nanocomposites
CO₂ sequestration
sustainability
sensing techniques

Related Special Issue

New Advances in Cement and Concrete Research—2nd Edition in Materials (1 article)

Published Papers (12 papers)

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Editorial

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2 pages, 160 KiB

Open AccessEditorial

New Advances in Cement and Concrete Research

by Gun Kim

Materials 2023, 16(11), 4162; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ma16114162 - 02 Jun 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1415

Abstract

The Special Issue (SI), “New Advances in Cement and Concrete Research”, highlights the latest breakthroughs in cement and concrete research [...] Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Advances in Cement and Concrete Research)

Research

Jump to: Editorial

15 pages, 4007 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effects of Nitrite/Nitrate-Based Accelerators on Strength and Deformation of Cementitious Repair Materials under Low-Temperature Conditions

by Heesup Choi, Masumi Inoue, Hyeonggil Choi, Myungkwan Lim and Jihoon Kim

Materials 2023, 16(7), 2632; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ma16072632 - 26 Mar 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 852

Abstract

This study aimed to develop a cementitious repair material that can be constructed in cold weather conditions. The addition of nitrite/nitrate-based antifreezing agents has been shown to increase the initial strength of cementitious repair materials in cold weather. However, increasing the amount of these agents may lead to an increase in deformation behavior and shrinkage cracking. In this study, the effects of different types and amounts of nitrite/nitrate-based antifreezing agents on the strength development and deformation behavior of cementitious repair materials under low-temperature conditions were evaluated. As a result, it was found that the addition of a large amount of calcium nitrite can promote hydration and improve the initial strength of the repair material, irrespective of the type of antifreezing agent. However, this also leads to an increase in shrinkage and the concern of shrinkage cracking. Therefore, a repair material that is repairable in winter was developed by balancing the initial strength and deformation behavior through the appropriate selection of antifreezing agents. The developed repair material can be used to repair structures in cold weather conditions, which is of great significance for the construction industry in Hokkaido, Japan. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Advances in Cement and Concrete Research)

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10 pages, 3219 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effect of the Concrete Slurry Waste Ratio on Supercritical CO₂ Sequestration

by Sang-Rak Sim and Dong-Woo Ryu

Materials 2023, 16(2), 742; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ma16020742 - 12 Jan 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1220

Abstract

To prevent drastic climate changes due to global warming, it is necessary to transition to a carbon-neutral society by reducing greenhouse gas emissions in all industrial sectors. This study aimed to develop carbon utilization sequestration technology that uses the concrete slurry water generated during the production of concrete as a new CO₂ sink to reduce CO₂ emissions from the cement industry. This was achieved by performing supercritical CO₂ carbonation by varying the concrete slurry waste (CSW) ratio. The study’s results confirmed that, according to the CSW ratio (5 to 25%), complete carbonation occurred within only 10 min of the reaction at 40 °C and 100 bar. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Advances in Cement and Concrete Research)

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17 pages, 5023 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Composition Design and Fundamental Properties of Ultra-High-Performance Concrete Based on a Modified Fuller Distribution Model

by Xiaogeng Xie, Junqi Fan, Peng Guo, Haoliang Huang, Jie Hu and Jiangxiong Wei

Materials 2023, 16(2), 700; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ma16020700 - 11 Jan 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1402

Abstract

Both the discrete and continuous particle packing models are used to design UHPC, but the influences of a water film covering the particle surfaces on the compactness of the particle system were not considered in these models. In fact, the water film results in a certain distance between solid particles (DSP), which affects the compactness of the particle system, especially for cementitious materials with small particle sizes. In the present study, the mixture design method for UHPC was proposed based on the Fuller distribution model modified using the DSP. Then, the components of cementitious materials and aggregates were optimized, and the UHPC matrices with high solid concentrations were obtained. The results showed that the solid concentration, slump flow, and compressive strength of the UHPC matrix reached 77.1 vol.%, 810 mm, and 162.0 MPa, respectively. By replacing granulated blast furnace slag (GBFS) with quartz powder (QP), the flexural strength of the UHPC matrix was increased without reducing its compressive strength. When the steel fiber with a volume fraction of 1.5% was used, the slump flow, compressive strength, tensile strength, and flexural strength of the UHPC reached 740 mm, 175.6 MPa, 9.7 MPa, and 22.8 MPa, respectively. After 500 freeze–thaw cycles or 60 dry–wet cycles under sulfate erosion, the mechanical properties did not deteriorate. The chloride diffusion coefficients in UHPCs were lower than 3.0 × 10⁻¹⁴ m²/s, and the carbonation depth of each UHPC was 0 mm after carbonization for 28 days. The UHPCs presented ideal workability, mechanical properties, and durability, demonstrating the validity of the method proposed for UHPC design. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Advances in Cement and Concrete Research)

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15 pages, 3957 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Application of the J-Integral and Digital Image Correlation (DIC) to Determination of Multiple Crack Propagation Law of UHPC under Flexural Cyclic Loading

by Yanfei Niu, Junqi Fan, Xiaoyan Shi, Jiangxiong Wei, Chujie Jiao and Jie Hu

Materials 2023, 16(1), 296; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ma16010296 - 28 Dec 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1182

Abstract

This study investigated the fatigue crack propagation behavior of ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC) incorporated with different steel fiber lengths of 6, 13, and 20 mm under flexural cyclic loading, based on the Paris law and nonlinear fracture mechanics. In addition, multiple crack covering areas and fatigue J-integral amplitudes were employed to quantitatively evaluate the fatigue crack propagation rate and predicate the fatigue life of the UHPC during the steady development stage. The results indicated that the maximum crack opening displacement (COD) values were 0.312, 0.673, and 1.265 mm and the minimum crack growth rates were −3.05, −4.48 and −4.62 for SF6, SF13, and SF20, respectively. The critical crack length was approximately 65 mm for UHPC specimens containing different fiber length at a given fiber volume fraction (2.0%), indicating that the critical crack length was simply related to the fiber length. Interestingly, when the fatigue crack area of all the tested series reached approximately 35

{mm}^{2}

, fracture failure occurred. There were very small predictions between the actual tested and predicated fatigue lives, all less than 7.21%. Hence, it was reasonable to predict the fatigue life of the UHPC based on the J-integral according to the DIC technique. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Advances in Cement and Concrete Research)

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24 pages, 2858 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Review on Strength and Durability Properties of Wooden Ash Based Concrete

by Buthainah Nawaf AL-Kharabsheh, Mohamed Moafak Arbili, Ali Majdi, Jawad Ahmad, Ahmed Farouk Deifalla and A. Hakamy

Materials 2022, 15(20), 7282; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ma15207282 - 18 Oct 2022

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 1984

Abstract

The partial replacement of cement in concrete with other building materials has come to light because of research on industrial waste and sustainable building practices. Concrete is made more affordable by using such components, and it also helps to ease disposal worries. Ash made by burning wood and other wood products is one example of such a substance. Many researchers focused on the utilization of wooden ash (WA) as a construction material. However, information is scattered, and no one can easily judge the impact of WA on concrete properties which restrict its use. Therefore, a details review is required which collect the past and current progress on WA as a construction material. relevant information. This review aims to collect all the relevant information including the general back of WA, physical and chemical aspects of WA, the impact of WA on concrete fresh properties, strength properties, and durability aspects in addition to microstructure analysis. The results indicate the WA decreased the slump and increased the setting time. Strength and durability properties improved with the substitution of WA due to pozzolanic reaction and micro-filling effects. However, the optimum dose is important. Different research recommends different optimum doses depending on source mix design etc. However, the majority of researcher suggests a 10% optimum substitution of WA. The review also concludes that, although WA has the potential to be used as a concrete ingredient but less researchers focused on WA as compared to other waste materials such as fly ash and silica fume etc. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Advances in Cement and Concrete Research)

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24 pages, 5887 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Concrete Made with Iron Ore Tailings as a Fine Aggregate: A Step towards Sustainable Concrete

by Mohamed Moafak Arbili, Muwaffaq Alqurashi, Ali Majdi, Jawad Ahmad and Ahmed Farouk Deifalla

Materials 2022, 15(18), 6236; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ma15186236 - 08 Sep 2022

Cited by 16 | Viewed by 2133

Abstract

The need for low-cost raw materials is driven by the fact that iron ore tailings, a prevalent kind of hazardous solid waste, have created major environmental issues. Although many studies have focused on using iron ore tailing (IOT) in concrete and have reported positive results, readers may find it difficult to accurately assess the behaviors of IOT in concrete due to the scattered nature of the information. Therefore, a comprehensive assessment of IOT in concrete is necessary. This paper thoroughly reviews the characteristics of concrete that contains IOT such as fresh properties, mechanical properties and durability at different age of curing. The outcome of this review indicates that by using IOT, concrete’s mechanical properties and durability improved, but its flowability decreased. Compressive strength of concrete with 20% substitution of IOT is 14% more than reference concrete. Furthermore, up to 40% substitution of IOT produces concrete that has sufficient flowability and compactability. Scan electronic microscopy results indicate a weak interfacial transition zone (ITZ). The optimum IOT dosage is important since a greater dose may decrease the strength properties and durability owing to a lack of fluidity. Depending on the physical and chemical composition of IOT, the average value of optimum percentages ranges from 30 to 40%. The assessment also recommends areas of unsolved research for future investigations. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Advances in Cement and Concrete Research)

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14 pages, 2956 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Investigation on Carbonation and Permeability of Concrete with Rice Hush Ash and Shop Solution Addition

by Manish Kumar, Ashutosh Anand, Rajeshwari Chatterjee, Shubham Sharma, Tushar Kanti Maiti, Shashi Prakash Dwivedi, Ambuj Saxena, Changhe Li and Elsayed Mohamed Tag Eldin

Materials 2022, 15(17), 6149; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ma15176149 - 05 Sep 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1469

Abstract

The goal of this study was to determine the coefficient of permeability as well as the rate of carbonation of concrete constructed with rice husk ash (RHA) as a partial replacement for cement (i.e., 5%, 10%, and 15%) and two different concentrations of soap solutions (i.e., 1 percent and 2 percent). The microstructural studies of RHA, and carbonated samples have been conducted by using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) analysis. According to this study, the carbonation depth of concrete made with 1% and 2% soap solution concentration and without rice husk ash decreased by 11.89% and 46.55%, respectively. From the results, it may also be observed that the carbonation depth of concrete made with up to 10% replacement of cement by rice husk ash led to maximum carbonation resistance, while more than 10% replacement of cement showed higher carbonation depth. It is also observed that the coefficient of permeability of concrete with 2% soap solution significantly decreased as compared to the 1% soap solution and control mix. It may be observed from the SEM images that 0% soap solution (M1) concrete has a very rough concrete surface which may indicate more voids. However, 2% soap solution concrete has a much smoother surface, which indicates a smaller number of voids. Furthermore, the SEM images showed that the soap solution helps in filling the voids of concrete which ultimately helps in reduction in permeability. Energy Dispersive X-Ray Analysis (EDX) of concrete with 0% (M1) and 2% (M6) soap solution disclosed that the concrete with 2% soap solution (M6) exhibited more silica element formation than the concrete with no soap solution (M1). Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Advances in Cement and Concrete Research)

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17 pages, 6014 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Inverse Estimation of Moisture Diffusion Model for Concrete Using Artificial Neural Network

by Jae Min Lee and Chang Joon Lee

Materials 2022, 15(17), 5945; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ma15175945 - 28 Aug 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 979

Abstract

In this research, the moisture diffusion model for concrete was inversely estimated using artificial neural network (ANN) and the data collected from virtual experiments. In addition, the moisture distribution was predicted using the ANN model in numerical analysis. For inverse estimation, virtual experimental data were used. The virtual experimental data were generated by adding noise to the moisture distribution obtained by a numerical simulation using a known moisture diffusion model. ANNs of two architectures were used in the inverse estimation. For performance test, the inversely estimated ANN model and the known moisture diffusion model were compared. The predicted humidity distribution using the ANN and virtual experiment data were also compared. The inversely estimated ANN model was in a good agreement with the known moisture diffusion model used for the virtual experiment. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Advances in Cement and Concrete Research)

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20 pages, 26961 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Estimating Radiation Shielding of Fired Clay Bricks Using ANN and GEP Approaches

by Muhammad Nasir Amin, Izaz Ahmad, Asim Abbas, Kaffayatullah Khan, Muhammad Ghulam Qadir, Mudassir Iqbal, Abdullah Mohammad Abu-Arab and Anas Abdulalim Alabdullah

Materials 2022, 15(17), 5908; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ma15175908 - 26 Aug 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1365

Abstract

This study aimed to determine how radiation attenuation would change when the thickness, density, and compressive strength of clay bricks, modified with partial replacement of clay by fly ash, iron slag, and wood ash. To conduct this investigation, four distinct types of bricks—normal, fly ash-, iron slag-, and wood ash-incorporated bricks were prepared by replacing clay content with their variable percentages. Additionally, models for predicting the radiation-shielding ability of bricks were created using gene expression programming (GEP) and artificial neural networks (ANN). The addition of iron slag improved the density and compressive strength of bricks, thus increasing shielding capability against gamma radiation. In contrast, fly ash and wood ash decreased the density and compressive strength of burnt clay bricks, leading to low radiation shielding capability. Concerning the performance of the Artificial Intelligence models, the root mean square error (RMSE) was determined as 0.1166 and 0.1876 nC for the training and validation data of ANN, respectively. The training set values for the GEP model manifested an RMSE equal to 0.2949 nC, whereas the validation data produced RMSE = 0.3507 nC. According to the statistical analysis, the generated models showed strong concordance between experimental and projected findings. The ANN model, in contrast, outperformed the GEP model in terms of accuracy, producing the lowest values of RMSE. Moreover, the variables contributing towards shielding characteristics of bricks were studied using parametric and sensitivity analyses, which showed that the thickness and density of bricks are the most influential parameters. In addition, the mathematical equation generated from the GEP model denotes its significance such that it can be used to estimate the radiation shielding of burnt clay bricks in the future with ease. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Advances in Cement and Concrete Research)

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19 pages, 3507 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Computational AI Models for Investigating the Radiation Shielding Potential of High-Density Concrete

by Muhammad Nasir Amin, Izaz Ahmad, Mudassir Iqbal, Asim Abbas, Kaffayatullah Khan, Muhammad Iftikhar Faraz, Anas Abdulalim Alabdullah and Shahid Ullah

Materials 2022, 15(13), 4573; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ma15134573 - 29 Jun 2022

Cited by 16 | Viewed by 2022

Abstract

Concrete is an economical and efficient material for attenuating radiation. The potential of concrete in attenuating radiation is attributed to its density, which in turn depends on the mix design of concrete. This paper presents the findings of a study conducted to evaluate the radiation attenuation with varying water-cement ratio (w/c), thickness, density, and compressive strength of concrete. Three different types of concrete, i.e., normal concrete, barite, and magnetite containing concrete, were prepared to investigate this study. The radiation attenuation was calculated by studying the dose absorbed by the concrete and the linear attenuation coefficient. Additionally, artificial neural network (ANN) and gene expression programming (GEP) models were developed for predicting the radiation shielding capacity of concrete. A correlation coefficient (R), mean absolute error (MAE), and root mean square error (RMSE) were calculated as 0.999, 1.474 mGy, 2.154 mGy and 0.994, 5.07 mGy, 5.772 mGy for the training and validation sets of the ANN model, respectively. Similarly, for the GEP model, these values were recorded as 0.981, 13.17 mGy, and 20.20 mGy for the training set, whereas the validation data yielded R = 0.985, MAE = 12.2 mGy, and RMSE = 14.96 mGy. The statistical evaluation reflects that the developed models manifested close agreement between experimental and predicted results. In comparison, the ANN model surpassed the accuracy of the GEP models, yielding the highest R and the lowest MAE and RMSE. The parametric and sensitivity analysis revealed the thickness and density of concrete as the most influential parameters in contributing towards radiation shielding. The mathematical equation derived from the GEP models signifies its importance such that the equation can be easily used for future prediction of radiation shielding of high-density concrete. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Advances in Cement and Concrete Research)

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15 pages, 1888 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Multi-Case Study on Environmental and Economic Benefits through Co-Burning Refuse-Derived Fuels and Sewage Sludge in Cement Industry

by Karolina Wojtacha-Rychter and Adam Smoliński

Materials 2022, 15(12), 4176; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ma15124176 - 13 Jun 2022

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 1961

Abstract

The use of waste as an energy source in cement clinker production is a promising way to transition toward a circular economy and limit carbon dioxide (CO₂) in the atmosphere. The cement industry is responsible for around 5% of global CO₂ emissions. In this paper, the analysis of environmental and economic profits associated with the substitution of coal by two refuse-derived fuels (RDF) and sewage sludge (SS) in a cement kiln was presented. Differences in the fuel-related CO₂ emissions were calculated for two-, three-, and four-component fuel blends based on the fuel consumption data, heating values, and the correspondent emission factors. The biogenic fraction content of 19% and 43% were measured in RDFs. The material balance of fuels with the assumed technological parameters of the cement clinker production installation (capacity of 6000 Mg per day and unit heat of 3.6 GJ) shows that the RDF heat substitution at the level of 90% allows for a saving of approximately 28.6 Mg per hour of coal, and to manage even approx. 40 Mg per hour of RDF. The increase in the share of SS in the total heat consumption to 6% contributed to reducing the actual emissions by 17 kg of CO₂ per 1 Mg of clinker. Multilateral benefits due to the use of RDF in the cement plant were evident. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Advances in Cement and Concrete Research)

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