The formation of micro-cracks due to restrained shrinkage is a significant concern for the durability and in-service implementation of alkali-activated materials (AAM). These cracks develop as a result of partial or total restrained deformations which occur when the material's properties are still evolving, and the deformation rate is high. This makes AAM especially susceptible to cracking during this critical early stage, leading to potential long-term durability issues. Therefore, it is particularly crucial to understand their restrained shrinkage behavior and early-age cracking risk. This chapter discusses two approaches for assessing the cracking sensitivity of AAM with a particular focus on the empirical method. It reviews the existing testing devices for evaluating restrained shrinkage and cracking in AAM, and compares and discusses key findings from the literature.

Alkali-activated materials (AAMs), as eco-friendly alternatives to Portland cement (PC), have attracted increasing attention of researchers and users in the past decades. Despite the eco-friendly nature of AAMs, doubts about these materials as an essential ingredient of concrete exist, regarding, for example, their volume stability. One possible volume change concerns autogenous shrinkage. Autogenous shrinkage is the self-created volume reduction of materials due to chemical reactions without the need for substance or heat exchange with the environment. If the autogenous shrinkage of a binder material is too large, cracking might happen, which will seriously impair the durability of concrete. The aim of this chapter is to provide a state-of-the-art review on the autogenous shrinkage of AAMs. The different characteristics and mechanisms of autogenous shrinkage of different AAMs are reported. Corresponding shrinkage-mitigating strategies are summarized. Existing models to simulate and predict the autogenous shrinkage of AAMs are reviewed. Remarks are then given on testing methods of autogenous shrinkage, which link back to the determination of the magnitude of autogenous shrinkage of AAMs. Connections between autogenous shrinkage and other deformations such as drying shrinkage, thermal deformation and creep are also discussed. Research gaps and outlook on future research in this field are given in the end.

This study aims to compare the developments of mechanical properties and autogenous shrinkage related properties of alkali-activated materials-based concrete (AC) and ordinary Portland cement-based concrete (OC) against curing age and degree of reaction. Temperature Stress Testing Machines are utilized to monitor the evolution of the internal tensile stress and the cracking occurrence in the restrained concrete. It is found that AC shows lower tensile strength-to-compressive strength ratios than OC. The mechanical properties of both OC and AC can be modelled by a power law against the degree of reaction. AC shows higher autogenous shrinkage, but later cracking than OC when under restrained condition. However, the degrees of reaction at which AC and OC cracked are very similar. From the autogenous shrinkage, the elastic modulus and the self-induced stress, the elastic and creep deformations of the concrete can be calculated. AC is found to show much higher creep coefficient than OC.