scholarly journals Self-healing bacterial cementitious concrete composites: development and performance evaluation

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sini Bhaskar

The principal objective of the research is to contribute towards attaining the goal of developing self-healing cementitious concrete composites by incorporating bacteria as healing agent. Since the root cause of the majority of structural failure is attributed to concrete cracking, there is a compelling economic incentive to develop a concrete that can treat and repair the damage all by itself. Even though some research has been carried out in this area, a major breakthrough in identifying the types of bacteria, modes to protect this bacteria from high pH concrete environment and nutrients for effective healing are yet to materialise. For the present study, three different bacteria namely, Sporosarcina ureae, Sporosarcina pasteurii and Bacillus subtilis subsp. spizizenii and two protective vehicles such as zeolite and pumice were selected to determine the best combination among them for self-healing. Normal and fibre reinforced mortar and engineered cementitious composite (ECC) specimens were employed for the study. In order to develop self-healing bacterial concrete based materials, it is crucial to understand whether the introduction of mineral producing bacteria and nutrients adversely affect the properties. Thus, various concentrations of bacteria and nutrients were tested to determine the best possible combinations without sacrificing concrete properies. Evaluation of healing effect was determined by comparing compressive strength, sorptivity and rapid chloride permeability (RCPT), four point bending and ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) properties of sound and damaged specimens at different ages. Healing associated with crack closure was visualised and analysed using scanning electronmicroscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive Spectrum Energy (EDS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies. Finally, an attempt was made to employ statistical models for parameter optimization of self-healing characteristics in terms of compressive strength, sorptivity, RCPT and UPV by design and analysis of experiments. Evaluation of results to determine self-healing efficiency indicated that a significant amount of self-healing was achieved by all three selected bacteria, out of which Sporosarcina pasteurii and Bacillus subtilis subsp. spizizenii found to be promising choices. Both zeolite and pumice turned out to be effective protective vehicles. Statistical modelling of the experiment proved to be the ideal choice for modelling self-healing characteristics.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sini Bhaskar

The principal objective of the research is to contribute towards attaining the goal of developing self-healing cementitious concrete composites by incorporating bacteria as healing agent. Since the root cause of the majority of structural failure is attributed to concrete cracking, there is a compelling economic incentive to develop a concrete that can treat and repair the damage all by itself. Even though some research has been carried out in this area, a major breakthrough in identifying the types of bacteria, modes to protect this bacteria from high pH concrete environment and nutrients for effective healing are yet to materialise. For the present study, three different bacteria namely, Sporosarcina ureae, Sporosarcina pasteurii and Bacillus subtilis subsp. spizizenii and two protective vehicles such as zeolite and pumice were selected to determine the best combination among them for self-healing. Normal and fibre reinforced mortar and engineered cementitious composite (ECC) specimens were employed for the study. In order to develop self-healing bacterial concrete based materials, it is crucial to understand whether the introduction of mineral producing bacteria and nutrients adversely affect the properties. Thus, various concentrations of bacteria and nutrients were tested to determine the best possible combinations without sacrificing concrete properies. Evaluation of healing effect was determined by comparing compressive strength, sorptivity and rapid chloride permeability (RCPT), four point bending and ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) properties of sound and damaged specimens at different ages. Healing associated with crack closure was visualised and analysed using scanning electronmicroscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive Spectrum Energy (EDS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies. Finally, an attempt was made to employ statistical models for parameter optimization of self-healing characteristics in terms of compressive strength, sorptivity, RCPT and UPV by design and analysis of experiments. Evaluation of results to determine self-healing efficiency indicated that a significant amount of self-healing was achieved by all three selected bacteria, out of which Sporosarcina pasteurii and Bacillus subtilis subsp. spizizenii found to be promising choices. Both zeolite and pumice turned out to be effective protective vehicles. Statistical modelling of the experiment proved to be the ideal choice for modelling self-healing characteristics.


Buildings ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 416
Author(s):  
Yunfeng Qian ◽  
Dingyi Yang ◽  
Yanghao Xia ◽  
Han Gao ◽  
Zhiming Ma

Ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) has a high self-healing capacity and is prone to bursting after exposure to high temperatures due to its characteristics. This work evaluates the damage and improvement of UHPC with coarse aggregates through mechanical properties (compressive strength and ultrasonic pulse velocity), transport properties (water absorption and a chloride diffusion test), and micro-properties such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), Mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP), and Scanning electronic microscopy (SEM). The result demonstrates that polypropylene (PP) fibers are more suitable for high temperature tests than polyacrylonitrile (PAN) fibers. The result shows that 400 °C is the critical temperature point. With the increase in temperature, the hydration becomes significant, and the internal material phase changes accordingly. Although the total pore volume increased, the percentage of various types of pores was optimized within 400 °C. The mass loss gradually increased and the ultrasonic pulse velocity gradually decreased. While the compressive strength first increased and then decreased, and the increase occurred within 25–400 °C. As for the transport properties, the chloride migration coefficient and capillary absorption coefficient both increased dramatically due to the higher sensitivity to temperature changes. The results of the property improvement test showed that at temperatures above 800 °C, the compressive strength recovered by more than 65% and the ultrasonic pulse velocity recovered by more than 75%. In terms of transport properties, compared to the results before self-healing, the chloride migration coefficient decreased by up to 59%, compared with 89% for the capillary absorption coefficient, after self-healing at 800 °C. With respect to the enhancement effect after exposure to high temperatures, the environment of a 5% Na2SO4 solution was not as good as the clean water environment. The corresponding changes in microstructure during the high temperatures and the self-healing process can explain the change in the pattern of macroscopic properties more precisely.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (11) ◽  
pp. 412-421
Author(s):  
Mohammad Saiful Islam ◽  
◽  
Md. Saiful Islam ◽  

Concrete,a multiscale composite in its natural state, is an absolutely essential element of infrastructure throughout the world. Concrete is able to carry high compressive load but very weak in case of tensile forces, for which steel bars are embedded in the concrete.Again, cracks in concrete are unavoidable. Corrosive elements can go into cracks once theyve formed and consequently deterioration of the structural concrete starts with the corrosion of embedded steel. This leads to the strength reductionand durability curtailment of concrete. So, crack minimization in reinforced concrete is a must for both strength and durability aspect as well as for economic reasons as crack repair is a costly process. The goal of this study is to compare the performance of traditional and bacterial concrete and to find a link between compressive strength and bacterial culture concentration, as well as to determine the optimal bacterial concentration in concrete. 100 mm cubical sizeconcrete specimens were cast and cured for different ages in plain water to study the strength aspect and ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) analysis of concrete using Bacillus subtilis bacteria.With different bacterial concentrations of 2.12 x 108 cells/ml, 2.12 x 107 cells/ml, 3.25 x 108 cells/ml, 3.25 x 107 cells/ml, 6.39 x 108 cells/ml, 6.39 x 107 cells/ml, 7.91 x 108 cells/ml and 7.91 x 107 cells/mlconcrete specimens have been studied. From the investigation it is found that concrete specimens containing bacterial species shows better performance than conventional concrete due to calcite precipitation. Among them, concrete specimens of bacterial concentration 6.39 x 108 cells/ml of bacterial water shows better result against strength deterioration and UPV analysis.


Materials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (5) ◽  
pp. 1255 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ghasan Fahim Huseien ◽  
Abdul Rahman Mohd Sam ◽  
Iman Faridmehr ◽  
Mohammad Hajmohammadian Baghban

This research investigated the application of epoxy resin polymer as a self-healing strategy for improving the mechanical and durability properties of cement-based mortar. The epoxy resin was added to the concrete mix at various levels (5, 10, 15, and 20% of cement weight), and the effectiveness of healing was evaluated by microstructural analysis, compressive strength, and non-destructive (ultrasonic pulse velocity) tests. Dry and wet-dry conditions were considered for curing, and for generating artificial cracks, specimens at different curing ages (1 and 6 months) were subjected to compressive testing (50 and 80% of specimen’s ultimate compressive strength). The results indicated that the mechanical properties in the specimen prepared by 10% epoxy resin and cured under wet-dry conditions was higher compared to other specimens. The degree of damage and healing efficiency index of this particular mix design were significantly affected by the healing duration and cracking age. An optimized artificial neural network (ANN) combined with a firefly algorithm was developed to estimate these indexes over the self-healing process. Overall, it was concluded that the epoxy resin polymer has high potential as a mechanical properties self-healing agent in cement-based mortar.


2015 ◽  
Vol 77 (16) ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdul Rahman Mohd Sam ◽  
Nur Farhayu Ariffin ◽  
Mohd Warid Hussin ◽  
Han Seung Lee ◽  
Mohamed A. Ismail ◽  
...  

Formation of cracks due to the shrinkage effects during curing and mechanical loading can deteriorate the concrete performance especially in terms of durability aspect. Chemical and harsh solutions will easily penetrate into the concrete and cause damage to the concrete. In order to solve this problem, researchers have introduced a self-healing concrete; the mechanism of automatically repairing concrete cracks without external intervention. Nowadays, the self-healing concrete by using bacteria as a healing agent had gained interest among researchers. In contrast, this paper presents the study on performance of epoxy resin without hardener as a self-healing agent in concrete. Mortar specimens were prepared with mass ratio of 1:3 (cement: fine aggregates), water-cement ratio of 0.48 and 5 to 20% epoxy resin of cement content. All tested specimens were subjected to wet-dry curing; where compressive strength, apparent porosity and self-healing evaluation were measured. Result shows that, the compressive strength of mortar with addition of epoxy resin by 10% increased significantly compared to normal mortar. Epoxy resin as a healing agent was found to be functioned well as the compressive strength and ultrasonic pulse velocity regain the initial reading with prolonged curing time. These results together with microstructure test indicate that epoxy resin can be used as a self-healing agent.


2013 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sudarmadi Sudarmadi

In this paper a case study about concrete strength assessment of bridge structure experiencing fire is discussed. Assessment methods include activities of visual inspection, concrete testing by Hammer Test, Ultrasonic Pulse Velocity Test, and Core Test. Then, test results are compared with the requirement of RSNI T-12-2004. Test results show that surface concrete at the location of fire deteriorates so that its quality is decreased into the category of Very Poor with ultrasonic pulse velocity ranges between 1,14 – 1,74 km/s. From test results also it can be known that concrete compressive strength of inner part of bridge pier ranges about 267 – 274 kg/cm2 and concrete compressive strength of beam and plate experiencing fire directly is about 173 kg/cm2 and 159 kg/cm2. It can be concluded that surface concrete strength at the location of fire does not meet the requirement of RSNI T-12-2004. So, repair on surface concrete of pier, beam, and plate at the location of fire is required.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 1881
Author(s):  
Mei-Yu Xuan ◽  
Yi Han ◽  
Xiao-Yong Wang

This study examines the hydration–mechanical–autogenous shrinkage–durability–sustainability properties of ternary composites with limestone filler (LF) and ground-granulated blast furnace slag (BFS). Four mixtures were prepared with a water/binder ratio of 0.3 and different replacement ratios varying from 0 to 45%. Multiple experimental studies were performed at various ages. The experimental results are summarized as follows: (1) As the replacement levels increased, compressive strength and autogenous shrinkage (AS) decreased, and this relationship was linear. (2) As the replacement levels increased, cumulative hydration heat decreased. At the age of 3 and 7 days, there was a linear relationship between compressive strength and cumulative hydration heat. (3) Out of all mixtures, the ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) and electrical resistivity exhibited a rapid increase in the early stages and tended to slow down in the latter stages. There was a crossover of UPV among various specimens. In the later stages, the electrical resistivity of ternary composite specimens was higher than plain specimens. (4) X-ray diffraction (XRD) results showed that LF and BFS have a synergistic effect. (5) With increasing replacement ratios, the CO2 emissions per unit strength reduced, indicating the sustainability of ternary composites.


2014 ◽  
Vol 605 ◽  
pp. 147-150
Author(s):  
Seong Uk Hong ◽  
Seung Hun Kim ◽  
Yong Taeg Lee

This study used the ultrasonic pulse velocity method, one of the non-destructive test methods that does not damage the building for maintenance of to-be-constructed concrete structures using recycled aggregates in order to estimate the compressive strength of high strength concrete structure using recycled coarse aggregate and provide elementary resources for technological establishment of ultrasonic pulse velocity method. 200 test pieces of high strength concrete 40, 50MPa using recycled coarse aggregate were manufactured by replacement rates (0, 30, 50, 100%) and age (1, 7, 28, 180days), and air curing was executed to measure compressive strength and wave velocity. As the result of compressive strength measurement, the one with age of 180day and design strength of 40MPa was 43.69MPa, recycled coarse aggregate replacement rate of 30% 50% 100% were 42.82, 41.22, 37.35MPa, and 50MPa was 52.50MPa, recycled coarse aggregate replacement rate of 30% 50% 100% were 49.02, 46.66, 45.30MPa, and while it could be seen that the test piece substituted with recycled aggregate was found to have lower strength than the test piece with natural aggregate only, but it still reached the design strength to a degree. The correlation of compressive strength and ultrasonic pulse velocity was found and regression analysis was conducted. The estimation formula for compressive strength of high strength concrete using recycled coarse aggregate was found to be Fc=0.069Vp4.05, R2=0.66


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