Date of Graduation

12-2024

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Civil Engineering (MSCE)

Degree Level

Graduate

Department

Civil Engineering

Advisor/Mentor

Murray, Cameron D.

Committee Member

Hale, W. Micah

Second Committee Member

Fernstrom, Eric

Keywords

Cement; Concrete

Abstract

Cracking in concrete has been a concern for engineers because it reduces its durability and strength. Some of this cracking behavior is due to shrinkage, which occurs when the water in the concrete evaporates and causes a reduction in volume. Expansive cements were invented to counteract this shrinkage behavior. This research studies a new formulation of a standalone, fast-setting, fast-strength gain expansive BCSA cement. Since it is a new cement, a limited amount of literature is available about mixture design, strength properties, and how to obtain the desired level of expansion. This study then aims to fill some of these gaps while also suggesting an application to prestressed concrete by determining the theoretical amount of chemical prestress that could be caused by the concrete’s expansion. Vibrating wire strain gauges (VWSG) inside restrained and unrestrained cylinder specimens were used to collect strain data from the concrete. It was found that the expansive BCSA cement can achieve a maximum expansion of 75 με in 28 days. It can also achieve a chemical prestress of about 309 psi that could be used to overcome shrinkage in slabs, increase the flexural capacity of a member, or reduce the amount of stress applied in pre- or post-tensioned strands.

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