Cracking Mechanism and Life-Cycle Performance Evaluation of Early-Age Concrete Based on Environment-Damage Coupling
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Concrete is accelerating its transition towards green and low-carbon development, but its performance throughout its entire life cycle is significantly influenced by environmental changes, which remains a key technical challenge currently faced. The effects of early-age concrete tensile damage on thermal conductivity and moisture transport properties, as well as their coupling mechanism, remain unclear, leading to severe cracking. To explore the cracking mechanism of early-age concrete under the coupled conditions of environment and damage and to evaluate its performance throughout its lifecycle, this article conducts comparative experiments on the performance of concrete under high temperature, varying humidity, and damage conditions in the early age stage. The variation law of temperature, humidity, and strain of concrete is studied, and the evolution of microstructure and composition of concrete is explored. The response of porosity to ambient humidity exhibits opposite trends between restrained and unrestrained specimens, with rates of change of +0.0353%/RH and -0.0245%/RH, respectively. Furthermore, the study identified a critical turning point in ambient relative humidity (50% RH), which significantly alters the degree of hydration (Ca/Si ratio) of the concrete. The research results may provide theoretical and technical support for cracking risk assessment and crack control throughout the entire life cycle of concrete thin-walled structures.
Source: Materials
DOI: 10.3390/ma19061256
Language: English
Subfield: Civil and Structural Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
SDG: Climate action
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,137
Awards: G2789404838, G3269715473, G4056062238
OpenAlex ID: W7140108597