Experimental and analytical studies on shrinkage cracking control in reinforced concrete structures using Shrinkage-Compensating Concrete (SCC)

混凝土含液构筑物(CLCS)主要用于储存水、废水和其他工业废物。这些结构的设计和细节是为了满足裂缝和泄漏控制的适用性要求。在这样的生命线设施中，受约束的温度和收缩应变是导致裂缝的主要原因之一，从而导致适用性问题。对收缩或温度变化引起的体积变化的限制通常是由于附着在其他结构段上而造成的，这将导致拉伸应变的发展。为了达到安全和适用性目标，同时控制建造和维护成本，有必要对这些结构的行为有很好的了解。在这项研究中，使用收缩补偿混凝土(SCC)作为一种潜在的解决方案，以最大限度地减少收缩裂缝将通过几个实验和数值案例研究。目标是改进具体技术，为工程师提供实用的设计指南，努力推出更好的设计解决方案。这将使CLCS的墙体具有更好的抗裂性能。主要目的是调查与当今实践中通常使用的常规混凝土材料相比，适当选择SCC等智能材料是否可以在CLCS的脆弱区域产生更好的裂缝/渗漏控制性能。这项研究涉及测试在经历温度和收缩运动时暴露在环境影响下的长结构梁。还将开发一个数值模型来模拟参数研究的实验程序。预计这项研究将为制定实用的CLCS设计指南提供一个有用的框架。这项研究还将为加拿大社会提供安全和不渗漏的施工解决方案，对最大限度地减少对环境的影响和公共安全的潜在危险至关重要。

Concrete liquid containing structures (CLCS) are primarily used for the storage of water, wastewater and other industrial wastes. These structures are designed and detailed to meet serviceability requirements for crack and leakage control. In such lifeline facilities restrained temperature and shrinkage strains are one of the major reasons for cracking resulting in serviceability problems. The restraint against volumetric changes due to shrinkage or temperature variations is usually caused as a result of attachment to other structural segments which would result in the development of tensile strains. A good understanding of the behaviour of these structures is necessary in order to meet safety and serviceability objectives, while containing construction and maintenance costs. In this study, the use of shrinkage-compensating concrete (SCC) as a potential solution to minimize shrinkage cracking will be studied through several experimental and numerical case studies. The goal is to improve the concrete technology and to provide engineers with practical design guidelines in an effort to introduce a superior design solution. This will lead to a better performance against cracking in the walls of CLCS. The main objective is to investigate if the proper choice of a smart material such as SCC could lead to superior performance in cracking/leakage control in the vulnerable regions of CLCS, as compared to the customary concrete material typically used in today's practice. The study involves testing long structural beams exposed to environmental effects while undergoing thermal and shrinkage movements. A numerical model will also be developed to simulate the experimental program for parametric studies. It is expected that this research will provide a useful framework towards the development of practical design guidelines for CLCS. The study will also provide practical benefit to the Canadian society by providing a safe and leak-tight construction solution vital for minimizing the environmental impacts and thus potential hazards to public safety.