APPLICATION OF INNOVATIVE MATERIALS IN PRECAST CONCRETE STRUCTURES

Abstract

Construction industry contributes essentially to Germany’s gross domestic product (GDP). In 2015 construction investments amounted around 300 billion Euro corresponding to a share of 10% of total GDP. Because of the essential importance of construction industry there are many activities aiming on reduction of construction costs and improvement of durability and sustainability. Recent tendencies in precast concrete industry include application of innovative materials like self-compacting concrete, fiber reinforced concrete, textile reinforced concrete, carbon concrete composite and strain hardening cementitious materials. The report describes the material developments and first applications for precast concrete members. By the application of non-metallic reinforcement, such as carbon meshes and carbon bars, there is no corrosion risk for the reinforcement resulting in an essentially lower concrete cover and depth of structural members. However, the use of carbon reinforcement requires new design concepts and new construction methods. By solving these problems there is a big chance for precast concrete industry to enhance their market share.