Effect of Moisture Exchange on Interface Formation in the Repair System Studied by X-ray Absorption

In concrete repair systems, material properties of the repair material and the interface are greatly influenced by the moisture exchange between the repair material and the substrate. If the substrate is dry, it can absorb water from the repair material and reduce its effective water-to-cement ratio (w/c). This further affects the hydration rate...

Using nano-indentation and microscopy to obtain mechanical properties

Simulation of mechanical behaviour of heterogeneous materials is only possible if the local properties of the components are known. In recent years nano-indentation is being applied on different levels to obtain local mechanical properties. The aim of this paper is to explore various ways to obtain these properties by combining nano-indentation...

Micromechanical study of the interface properties in concrete repair systems

A modelling study of drying shrinkage damage in concrete repair systems

Differential shrinkage between repair material and concrete substrate is considered to be the main cause of premature failure of repair systems (Martinola, Sadouki et al. 2001, Beushausen and Alexander 2007). Magnitude of induced stresses depends on many factors, for example the amount of restraint, moisture gradients caused by different curing...

Impact of surface roughness on the debonding mechanism in concrete repairs

Surface roughness of the existing concrete substrate was considered to have the greatest impact on the bond strength in repair systems. However, the influence of this parameter has been subject for debates in recent years. The effect of concrete surface roughness is not quite clear, nor there exist a clear relation between the surface roughness...

Reliable concrete repair: A critical review

This paper highlights the importance of achieving durable and long-term predictable repair of reinforced concrete structures. The performance of concrete repair in past and current engineering practice, including all types of repair and application of different materials, is often unsatisfactory. One of the reasons for this lays in the fact that...