Numerical analysis of effect of temperature history and restraint degree on cracking behavior of early-age concrete

Abstract EN

This paper presents a numerical analysis of concrete restraint tests conducted on a temperature stress testing machine (TSTM).

two numerical methods, namely, ID method using matlab software and 3D method using midas software, were adopted.

factors, such as cooling rate and external restraint degree, were numerically analyzed and compared with experimental results.

results show that numerical analyses of concrete restrained stresses were comparable with those of TSTM tests.

the cracking potential of concrete decreased with higher cooling rate at early age, and this benefit became more considerable for concrete structures under higher external restraint conditions.

a simplified relationship between the external restraint degree and the allowed temperature difference (the difference between maximum temperature and cracking temperature of concrete) is developed.

furthermore, it is found that the anti-cracking capability of concrete under different restraint conditions can be overestimated up to 56% when ignoring creep effect on values of restraint degree.