Abstract
The fatigue and durability characteristics of structural expanded polystyrene concrete (EPS) are especially important when it was applied for structural elements in long-term service. In order to study the fatigue and durability behavior of structural EPS concrete, the long-term cyclic loading experiments and wetting–drying (W-D) cyclic experiments were conducted, respectively. The structural EPS concrete was found to have a relatively large damping and a fairly low dynamic elastic modulus under long-term cyclic load, which illustrated that it had a better energy absorption effect and toughness than plain concrete of the same strength level. Even if fine cracks appeared during the cyclic loading process, the relevant dynamic performance remained stable, which indicated that the structural EPS concrete had superior fatigue stability. In W-D cyclic experiments, the structural EPS concrete exhibited superior sulfate resistance. During the erosion test process, there was a positive correlation between the mass change and the evolution of the compressive strength of the structural EPS concrete, which indicated that ΔmB could be substituted for Δf to evaluate the degree of the structural EPS concrete eroded by sulfate attack. The study focuses on the fatigue performance and sulfate resistance of structural EPS concrete and is of important engineering value for promoting practical long-term operations.
Highlights
expanded polystyrene concrete (EPS) concrete has been widely used in civil engineering structures for insulating layers or blocks [1], semi-structural or structural elements [2], sub-base of pavements, road barriers, floating marine structures, protective layer, and military structures for energy absorbing [3,4,5]
EPS concrete, which indicated that ∆mB could be substituted for ∆f to evaluate the degree of the structural EPS concrete eroded by sulfate attack
Because the sulfate resistance level of the structural EPS concrete was uncertain, Kf was measured every 30 W-D cycles until Kf was below 75% from the 30th cycle
Summary
EPS concrete has been widely used in civil engineering structures for insulating layers or blocks [1], semi-structural or structural elements [2], sub-base of pavements, road barriers, floating marine structures, protective layer, and military structures for energy absorbing [3,4,5]. Experimental researches on EPS concrete began in 1972, and were mainly focused on the mixing process, fluidity, and strength [7,8,9]. Properties, including fatigue performance and durability, should be considered, especially when EPS concretes are designed in practical applications for long-term service. Researches on the dynamic properties of EPS concrete were mainly focused on dynamic compressive/tensile performance [10,11] and energy absorption properties under drastic instantaneous impact [4,5]. EPS concrete could be designed to endure cyclic loadings, such as traffic loads, and its dynamic properties would not be the same as those measured in other conditions [12]. It is important to study the dynamic properties of EPS concrete under cyclic loadings. The accumulative vibration number reported in this paper was 100,000 times
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
