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Thoughts about drying shrinkage: Experimental results and quantification of structural drying creep

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Abstract

In this second article, we examine in greater detail the influence of concrete skin micro-cracking, linked with the non-uniformity of water content within the specimen. This cracking is responsible for the drying creep which results from a structural effect, also called “microcracking effect”, and which we prefer to call “structural creep” here. It is defined as the difference between the potential drying shrinkage of a specimen which does not crack and the shrinkage measured experimentally. We propose a simple experimental method making use of experimental curves of drying shrinkage as a function of weight loss and allowing the flanking and specification of certain properties of structural drying creep. We shall see that this method must also deal, in the interpretation of results, with the choice of the mechanical constitutive model allowing the processing of nonlinearities induced by concrete skin micro-cracking. Finally, to validate the hypotheses we have made, we shall base our approach on a probabilistic model of the cracking of concrete resulting from the work of Rossi, “coupled” with consideration of the drying of the concrete material in a sense that we shall specify. We shall see that this model is in satisfactory agreement with the curves of shrinkage as a function of weight loss. In addition, the results of simulations are very instructive, as regards the spacing and the width as well as the depth of cracks which appear in the drying shrinkage and creep tests.

Résumé

Dans ce deuxième article, nous étudions plus en détail l'influence de la fissuration de peau du béton, liée à la non uniformité de la teneur en eau au sein de l'éprouvette. Cette fissuration est responsable de la part du fluage de dessiccation qui résulte d'un effet de structure, appelé aussi «micro-cracking effect» par les anglo-saxons, et que nous appellerons ici: «fluage structural». Il est défini comme la différence entre le retrait de dessiccation potentiel d'une éprouvette qui ne fissurerait pas et le retrait mesuré expérimentalement. Nous proposons ici une méthode expérimentale simple, qui met à profit les courbes expérimentales de retrait de dessiccation en fonction de la perte en poids et qui permet d'encadrer et de préciser certaines propriétés du fluage de dessiccation structural. Nous verrons que cette méthode se heurte, elle aussi, dans l'interprétation des résultats, au choix de la loi de comportement permettant de traiter les non linéarités induites par la fissuration de peau du béton. Enfin, pour valider les hypothèses que nous avons prises, nous appuierons notre démarche sur une modélisation probabiliste de la fissuration du béton issue des travaux de Rossi, «couplée» avec la prise en compte du séchage du matériau béton dans un sens que nous préciserons. Nous verrons que cette modélisation permet de retrouver, avec un accord satisfaisant, les courbes de retrait en fonction de la perte en poids. Qui plus est, les résultats des simulations sont très riches d'enseignements, tant sur l'espacement que sur l'épaisseur et la profondeur des fissures qui apparaissent sur les essais de retrait et de fluage de dessiccation.

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Abbreviations

subscript 0:

Reference state of the studied variable

t:

Time

x:

Spatial parameter

Ω, δΩ:

Elementary volume and surface of elementary volume

S:

Specimen section

R:

Specimen radius

C:

Water content in kg/m3

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. EDF SEPTEN-Basic Design Department of the Equipment and Construction Division of Électricité de France, Villeurbanne, France

    L. Granger

  2. Commissariat à l'Énergie Atonique (CEA), Paris, France

    J. -M. Torrenti

  3. Laboratoire Central des Ponts et Chaussées (LCPC), Paris, France

    P. Acker

Authors
  1. L. Granger
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  2. J. -M. Torrenti
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  3. P. Acker
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Additional information

Editorial note Dr. L. Granger is a RILEM Affiliate Member. He is active in Technical Committee 160-MLN on Methodology for Life prediction of concrete structures in Nuclear power plants. Dr. J.-M. Torrenti works at the CEA, which is a RILEM Titular Member. Dr. P. Acker is a RILEM Senior Member. Dr. Acker is the Secretary of TC 161-GMC, Modelling the behaviour of Concrete in Service: a Guide for the Engineer. He is active in Technical Committee 107-CSP on Creep and Shrinkage Prediction models and 119-TCE on Avoidance of Thermal Cracking at Early ages. He is a member of the Editorial Group of TC 090-FMA on Fracture Mechanics of concrete-Applications, and a Corresponding Member of TCs 114-CCS on Computer programmes for Creep and Shrinkage prediction models and 123-MME on Use of Microstructural Models and Expert systems for cementitious materials. Dr. Acker is the RILEM National Delegate for France.

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Granger, L., Torrenti, J.M. & Acker, P. Thoughts about drying shrinkage: Experimental results and quantification of structural drying creep. Mat. Struct. 30, 588–598 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02486900

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