Influence of initial curing temperature on the long-term strength of concrete

Abstract

The growth of concrete strength is markedly influenced by curing temperature and age. In this paper, the reason why final strength difference occurs between concrete cured under various isothermal temperatures is analysed from a microreaction mechanism angle. Based on an available long-term strength predicting model, a modified model is proposed that could quantify the initial temperature's impact on the long-term and limiting strength. Moreover, experimental data available in the literature are collected and utilised to regress and confirm the parameter value in this new model. The results of analysis for the model indicate that the initial 4 h temperature determines concrete's final strength if neglecting other non-temperature factors.