The effect of splitting concrete placement on controlling thermal cracking in mass concrete
Abstract
Thermal cracking due to heat of hydration in mass concrete is a common phenomenon. When the internal temperature in a concrete block exceeds the allowable limit, it will generate large thermal stress field which leads to early-age cracks and the loss of structural integrity. Therefore, it is significant to illustrate the thermal cracking process and study how to restrain this phenomenon in mass concrete. The paper presents a method of controlling thermal cracks by splitting concrete placement horizontally into layers at different levels of a structure, based on the finite element analysis. The interval between placing lower and upper concrete layers is also surveyed. Numerical analyses are performed by developing a finite element model of the foundation with and without placing concrete layers. Analytical results demonstrates that not only the position of splitting but also the interval between placing concrete layers has simultaneous effect on forming and controlling thermal cracks. The suitable position of splitting concrete placement and the time limit between placing concrete layers are then determined.
Keywords: Thermal cracking index; mass concrete placement; stress - temperature field; simulation.
Received: July 13th, 2017; revised: August 10th, 2017; accepted: November 2nd, 2017
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