Larger Crack Widths Research Articles

Evaluation of the interface shear strength of concrete containing treated and untreated reclaimed asphalt pavement aggregates

Concrete production significantly contributes to carbon emissions and depletes natural resources, promoting increased interest in substituting traditional materials with recycled alternatives. This shift necessitates a thorough examination of recycled materials’ performance in concrete applications. This study aims to provide a better understanding of the shear transfer behavior of concrete containing reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) aggregates. To mitigate the potential negative impact of RAP aggregates, mechanical treatment was applied. The effects of RAP inclusion and mechanical treatment on the shear transfer strength of reinforced concrete were investigated. A total of twenty-four push-off specimens were tested to investigate the effects of aggregate replacement and the clamping reinforcement ratio on specimen behavior. Digital image correlation (DIC) was employed to monitor the strains and displacements, allowing for detailed tracking of the interface slip, crack width development, and reinforcement strain. The findings revealed that replacing natural aggregates with RAP aggregates resulted in lower compressive strengths and lower ultimate push-off strengths of the resulting concrete at equivalent effective water-to-cement (w/c) ratios. Specimens with higher reinforcement ratios retained residual strengths up to 77 % of the ultimate strength, even at relatively large slip and crack widths. The clamping reinforcement ratio was identified as the key factor influencing the ultimate and residual strengths for both types of concrete. The experimental results were compared to the strengths calculated by the ACI, PCI, AASHTO, and CSA design equations to evaluate their applicability when different aggregate types are used.

Cooperative effect of hybrid polyethylene-basalt fibers on crack width control and mechanical properties in ECC

Engineered cementitious composite (ECC) reinforced with polyethylene (PE) fiber has large crack width and high production cost, and these two shortcomings affect its application in practical projects. In this study, basalt fiber (BF) was hybrid with PE fiber to achieve cooperative effect, developing a PE/BF-hybrid fiber ECC (PE/BF-HyECC) with tighter crack width and more economic advantages. The impacts of different fiber content on the pore structure, mechanical, and cost performance of PE/BF-HyECC were investigated. The PE/BF-HyECC with positive cooperative effect of 1.5 vol.% PE and 1.0 vol.% BF had higher strength and tighter crack width compared to PE-ECC with 2.0 vol.% PE. Its cost performance ratio was 1.19 to 1.37 times that of PE-ECC with 2.0 vol.% PE. The better performance and higher cost performance of PE/BF-HyECC is expected to expand its practical application.

Effect of variations in concrete quality on the crack width in rigid pavement

Cracks pose a significant issue in rigid pavement, leading to substantial damage. The manual mixing and casting of road pavement concrete underscore the importance of concrete quality as a critical parameter. This study investigates crack behavior by varying concrete quality. Loading is performed statically using line loads, shedding light on the impact of concrete quality on crack development. The concrete to be used has a quality fc' of 15 MPa, 25 MPa, and 35 MPa. The fine aggregate used in this study was Lumajang black sand, while the coarse aggregate used was machine crushed stone, and Portland Composite Cement (PCC) was used in all concrete mixes. The reinforcing steel used had a quality fy of 480 MPa, with a reinforcement ratio of ρ=0.010, which was converted to 5-D16 reinforcement. The subgrade density used to support the specimens had a CBR value of 10 %. Specimen dimensions were 2×0.6×0.2 m for length, width, and thickness. Pavement plates, 30 cm thick, were placed on leveled subgrade soil in a steel box set to achieve a 6 % CBR reading. Hydraulic jacks, monitored by a load cell, applied monotonic static loading with 2 kN intervals, reaching a maximum load of 200 kN. Steel tension and plate settlement were measured using a tension sensor and Linear Variable Differential Transformer (LVDT), respectively. A data logger recorded readings, and crack widths were captured by a digital microscope with 0.01 mm accuracy. Experimental results show that low concrete compressive strength values result in larger crack widths, and vice versa. Cracks also occur at earlier loading of concrete quality fc' 15 MPa. In addition, experiments show that the reinforcement stress value has a significant influence on crack width in specimens with low concrete quality

Experimental and numerical investigation of screw anchors in large crack width

In predicting the capacity of screw anchors under static tensile loading, the Concrete Capacity (CC) method is the state-of-the-art prediction model which covers concrete cone capacities in uncracked and cracked concrete up to 0.3 mm crack width. However, in seismic applications, anchors may be subjected to large crack widths of up to 0.8 mm. With large crack width, the behaviour of small-sized (typically 6 mm) screw anchors has not been studied. In this study, experimental investigations were conducted for a total of 29 anchors in uncracked and cracked concrete with large crack widths up to 0.8 mm. The experimental results showed that the load-carrying capacity of screw anchors significantly dropped resulting in a reduction factor of 0.13–0.47 for cracked concrete with 0.8 mm crack width (significantly lower than 0.7 assumed by the CC method for a crack width of up to 0.3 mm). This paper focused on developing modelling technique for predicting the performance of screw anchors in cracked concrete with a crack width of up to 0.8 mm since screw anchor in cracked concrete has not been studied using finite element analysis. Three-dimensional finite element models were developed for screw anchors in uncracked and cracked concrete and validated by the experimental results. Further, parametric analysis showed that dilation angle and shape factor are the two most influencing parameters among other of the concrete damage plasticity model.

Experimental investigation and analytical prediction of flexural behaviour of reinforced concrete beams with steel fibres extracted from waste tyres

In recent years, studies on the use of car tyre wastes in concrete have gained momentum. Especially, the effect of recycled waste steel wires (RWSWs) from tyres to be mixed into concrete for using in newly designed reinforced concrete buildings on the performance of construction elements is a fairly new research area. In this study, the bending behaviour of 12 reinforced concrete beams was investigated having 1/3 geometric scale, 100 × 150 × 1000 mm in size, and produced with RWSWs additive in different volumetric ratios (1%, 2%, and 3%) under vertical loads. Another main parameter selected in the study was the amount of varying tension reinforcements (2ϕ12, 2ϕ10, and 2ϕ8). The load-carrying, stiffness, ductility, and energy dissipation capacities of the RWSW reinforced bending beams were compared with the primary aim of this study which was to examine and present the contribution of RWSWs on the improvement of the bending performance of the reinforced concrete beams. The results revealed that the mechanical properties of the hybrid beams with RWSWs vary depending on dosages but are comparable with those of the beams-only with the same fibre dosage. A positive effect was obtained for the hybrid beams containing 2–3% RWSWs. Besides, RWSWs were found to be highly well mobilised at larger crack widths, and the post-cracking strength of RWSW mixes was significantly higher. Considering both mechanical properties of the beams and fresh properties such as the workability, 2% of RWSWs is recommended to be utilised in the reinforced concrete beams. On the other hand, the results were compared with the predictions of the methods given in the literature and standards. Moreover, an equation was derived to better predict the capacity of the hybrid beams using RWSWs.

Serviceability behavior of High Strength Concrete I-beams reinforced with Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer bars

Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) bars are anisotropic in nature and have high tensile strength in the fiber direction. The use of High-Strength Concrete (HSC) allows for better use of the high-strength properties of FRP bars. The mechanical properties of FRP bars can yield to large crack widths and deflections. As a result, the design of concrete elements reinforced with FRP materials is often governed by the Serviceability Limit States (SLS). This study investigates the short-term serviceability behavior of FRP RC I-beams. Eight RC I-beams reinforced with carbon-FRP (CFRP) and four steel RC I-beams, for comparison purposes, were tested under two-point loading. Deformations on the concrete and crack widths and spacing are measured and analyzed. A discussion on the main aspects of the SLS of FRP RC is introduced. The service load that fulfills the serviceability requirements, at a cross-section level, ranges between 0.27 and 0.38 times the ultimate load for sections dimensioned to fail in concrete crushing. The determinant criterion is the deflection limitation

Flexural behavior of RC continuous beams having hybrid reinforcement of steel and GFRP bars

Fiber reinforced polymers (FRP) have been considered to be the alternative material to steel in reinforced concrete structures (RC) with the advantages of corrosion resistance, non-conductivity, and high strength-to-weight ratio. FRP-RC beam is featured with higher deformability and larger crack width. However, there is no recognizable ductility in FRP-RC members. Due to the lack of the ductility of FRP-RC beam, it was suggested using hybrid reinforcement of steel and FRP to achieve a preferable strength and ductility. The flexural behavior of the concrete beams reinforced with hybrid reinforcement was investigated through series of six continuous beams. The positive moment GFRP reinforcement ratios of 0.75% and 1.25% were used and the steel reinforcement ratios were ranged to determine the optimum percentage to work efficiently with GFRP. The experimental results showed that increasing GFRP positive moment reinforcement ratio to be more than 1.4 [Formula: see text] increased the flexural capacity of the section but with less ductile behavior. However, increasing the steel positive moment reinforcement ratio leaded to the increase of both the flexural capacity and the ductile behavior in a condition that the steel positive moment reinforcement ratio was [Formula: see text]. It was shown that the flexural capacity predication of the hybrid section using the semi brittle elastic material method to present the de-bonding of moment that occurred at the failure stage had a good accuracy with the experimental results.

Effect of crack width and wet-dry cycles on the chloride penetration resistance of engineered cementitious composite (ECC)

• Influence of crack width and wet-dry cycles on the chloride ingress in cracked ECC was investigated. • Chloride penetration profile as well as the change of total and water-soluble chloride ion content was measured. • The “maximum phenomenon” is observed for both water-soluble and bound chloride ions profiles under wet-dry cycles. • The change of the mineral phases and porosity is related with the chloride binding behaviour. The resistance of cracked ECC against chloride ingress is mainly governed by the accumulated crack width of all the cracks rather than the maximum width of multiple cracks. However, most studies focus on the influence of a single fine crack (<100 μm), which is far smaller than the accumulated crack width. To this end, this study focuses on a relatively large crack width scale. Cracks with widths of 0.1, 0.2 and 0.3 mm were notched on an ECC specimen. Both NaCl solution immersion and wet-dry cycles conditions were applied. Chloride penetration profile as well as the change of total and water-soluble chloride ion content was measured. Relationship between the bound chloride and water-soluble chloride was studied. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) tests were carried out to show the influence of crack width and wet-dry cycles on the changes of the mineral phases, porosity and pore size distribution in the vicinity of the crack.

Simultaneous Detection of Sculpture Defects Based on Vision and Positioning Method

The crack detection and effective maintenance of sculpture cultural relics have attracted more and more attention. However, for surface defects. Autonomous detection is mostly based on vision. The detection range of this type of method is limited to a common defect with a large crack width and easy identification. The conditions are too harsh. In reality, various types of defects usually appear, and they only occupy a small part of the inspection image. In addition, the difference between the parameters and the surrounding image parameters is small, which can easily lead to missed detection and false detection. In addition, most of the current researches only focus on defect detection. Little attention is paid to defect positioning, and this is the indispensable information for repairing and protecting sculptures. Part of the research proposed GPS positioning, but GPS signals are easily lost in a relatively complex geographic environment, and its infrastructure is not reliable and will increase Positioning costs. In this regard, this paper proposes a vision-based defect detection and positioning network method, which can be used in harsh conditions Detect, and locate defects, Which also set A supervised Deep Convolutional Neural Network is calculated. This paper also creates a training method to optimize its performance on the neural network. Experiments show the detection accuracy of this method is 80.7%, and the positioning accuracy of each image is 86% at 0.41 s (in the field. In the test experiment, it is 1200 pixels).

Flexural behavior and design of under-reinforced concrete beams with BFRP and steel bars

This study aims to investigate the flexural behavior of hybrid reinforced concrete beams and study the design methods. Seven concrete beams reinforced with basalt fiber-reinforced polymer (BFRP) bars and steel bars, including six under-reinforced concrete beams and one slightly over-reinforced concrete beam, were constructed and subject to four-point loading. The reinforcement ratio was the main test parameter. The experimental results showed a transition region between the tension and compression failure modes. The upper bound of the reinforcement ratio of this region was determined through a statistical analysis of available data. The under-reinforced concrete beams with BFRP and steel bars yielded large deflections and crack widths, and the deformability factors of these beams were significantly larger than those of over-reinforced concrete beams with hybrid bars reported previously. The American Concrete Institute (ACI) method and Xue’s equation were modified and employed to predict the flexural strength of under-reinforced concrete beams with hybrid bars. The experimental results were utilized to verify the accuracy of existing models to predict the pre-yielding and post-yielding deflections and assess the bond coefficients of the ribbed BFRP bars.

Numerical Simulation of Hydraulic Fracturing in Enhanced Geothermal Systems Considering Thermal Stress Cracks

With the increasing attention to clean and economical energy resources, geothermal energy and enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) have gained much importance in recent years. For the efficient development of deep geothermal reservoirs, it is crucial to understand the mechanical behavior of reservoir rock and its interaction with injected fluid under high-temperature and high confining pressure environments for employing hydraulic stimulation technologies. In the present study, we develop a novel numerical scheme based on the distinct element method (DEM) to simulate the failure behavior of rock by considering the influence of thermal stress cracks and high confining pressure for EGS. The proposed methodology is validated by comparing uniaxial compression tests at various temperatures and biaxial compression tests at different confining pressures with laboratory experimental results. The numerical results indicate a good agreement in terms of failure models and stress-strain curves with those of laboratory experiments. We then apply the developed scheme to the hydraulic fracturing simulations under various temperatures, confining pressures, and injection fluid conditions. Based on our numerical results, the number of hydraulic cracks is proportional to the temperature. At a high-temperature and low confining pressure environment, a complex crack network with large crack width can be observed, whereas the generation of the micro-cracks is suppressed in high confining pressure conditions. In addition, high-viscosity injection fluid tends to induce more hydraulic cracks. Since the crack network in the geothermal reservoir is an essential factor for the efficient production of geothermal energy, the combination of the above factors should be considered in hydraulic fracturing treatment in EGS.

Experimental and analytical study on shear behavior of strain‐hardening cementitious composite beams reinforced with fiber‐reinforced polymer bars

AbstractApplication of fiber‐reinforced polymer (FRP) reinforcement in concrete beams may cause large deflection and crack width, as well as low shear capacity and ductility due to relatively small stiffness of FRP materials. To avoid these unfavorable factors and evaluate the shear behavior of FRP‐reinforced structural members, a high‐performance strain‐hardening cementitious composite (SHCC) is introduced to substitute conventional concrete in reinforced beams, and four‐point bending test is conducted in this study. Six FRP‐reinforced SHCC beams with different transverse reinforcement ratios and shear spans, as well as one concrete reference beam, were tested. According to the test results, the FRP‐reinforced SHCC beam showed enhanced shear carrying capacity and superior ductility compared with the concrete beams. The shear span to effective depth ratio as well as the stirrup ratio has a great influence on the shear behavior of FRP‐reinforced SHCC beams, including the failure mode, load‐carrying capacity, crack propagation, and ductility. Finally, a simplified truss‐strut model for predicting shear carrying capacity of steel or FRP‐reinforced SHCC beams is proposed, and a good agreement is achieved with the experimental results.

Investigation bending behaviors of the slabs with glass fiber reinforced polymer composite and steel bars

Glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) composites have been frequently used in engineering applications in recent years. GFRP composites produced by using glass fiber and epoxy resin have significant advantages such as high strength, lightness, and resistance against corrosion. However, GFRP composites exhibit a more brittle behavior than steel bars. This study aims to investigate both the experimental and numerical bending behavior of slabs with GFRP bars, steel bars, and polypropylene fiber. Within the scope of experimental studies, 5 slabs were built. Two slabs called SS-1 and SS-2 have only steel bars. Two slabs called GFRPS-1 and GFRPS-2 have only GFRP composite bars. A slab called GFRPS-F has both GFRP composite bars and polypropylene fibers. Polypropylene fibers are added to fresh concrete to improve the slab’s ductility. Three-point bending tests have been carried out on the slabs. All slabs are subjected to monotonic increasing distributed loading until collapse. As a result of tests, GFRPS slabs have carried %53 higher load than SS slabs. However, the SS slabs have exhibited a more ductile behavior compared to the GFRPS slabs. GFRPS slabs have more and larger crack width than other slabs. The addition of 5% polypropylene fiber by volume to concrete has a significant contributed to ductility and tensile behavior of slab. The average displacement value of GFRPS-F slab is 22.3% larger than GFRPS slab. GFRPS-F slab has better energy consumption capacity than other slabs. The energy consumption capacity of GFRPS-F slab is 1.34 and 1.38 times that of SS and GFRPS slabs, respectively. The number of cracks in GFRPS-F slab is fewer than GFRPS slabs. The fibers have contributed to the serviceability of the GFRPS slabs by limiting the displacement and the crack width. GFRPS-F exhibits elastoplastic behavior and almost returns to its first position when the loading is stopped. In addition, experimental results are verified with numerical results obtained by using Abaqus software. Finally, it is concluded that GFRP composite bars can be safely used in field concretes, concrete roads, prefabricated panel walls, and slabs.

Application of Superabsorbent Polymer as Self-Healing Agent in Self-Consolidating Concrete for Mitigating Precracking Phenomenon at the Rebar–Concrete Interface

Improved autogenous healing capacity of concrete using superabsorbent polymers (SAPs) was used as an efficient approach for mitigating damage between steel rebar and self-consolidating concrete (SCC). The results for normal concrete (NC) and those for SCC mixtures were compared. Two SAPs with different particle sizes and chemical compositions were used in the experimental program. Results showed that despite the greater reduction effect of SAP with a smaller particle size on compressive strength, SCC containing this type of SAP had the highest bond strength in uncracked specimens, compared with SAP with larger particle sizes, for SAP-modified NC and SCC mixtures. Moreover, results showed that SCC and NC containing SAP had considerably greater healing improvement factors for large crack widths (w≥0.30 mm) compared with mixtures without polymers; almost 46%, 30%, and 24% healing improvement factors were obtained for average bond stress, bond strength, and residual bond stress of SAP-containing concrete mixtures, respectively. Furthermore, complete strength recovery (100% healing improvement factor) was obtained for SCC mixture with w=0.10 mm after a 28-day healing period.

Bond Coefficient kb of Concrete Beams Reinforced with GFRP, CFRP, and Steel Bars

There are several reasons why civil and structural engineers should use Fiber Reinforced Polymer bars in concrete. The primary reason is durability, and other relevant parameters, high strength and, lightweight. Non-corrosive attributes make their use particularly suitable in different situations. Due to low elastic modulus and poor bonding, the use of Fiber Reinforced Polymer results in larger crack widths under serviceability limit state especially beams reinforced with glass fiber bars. The study purpose of this paper is to investigate the kb values. The methodology of this paper is comparing the analytical and experimental results. The investigation included 12 beams, using the four-point load test. The geometrical parameters of tested beams with dimensions: 130×220×2200 mm, reinforced with different diameters, helically-grooved glass fiber bars, and sand-coated carbon fiber bars. The measured cracks were used to assess the current kb values recommended in the design codes and guides. The findings did not support the use of the same kb value for different bars because, in addition to the type of bar, the value of kb is also affected by the type of surface and the diameter of the bar. What is observed based on results shows that CFRP bars have a more constant value depending on the diameter, while GFRP bars have large value changes depending on the diameter. Doi: 10.28991/cej-2021-03091722 Full Text: PDF

ANALYSIS OF THE EFFECT OF SLAB THICKNESS ON CRACK WIDTH IN RIGID PAVEMENT SLABS

Cracks that occur in rigid pavements include longitudinal cracks, transverse cracks, and corner cracks. The relatively large crack width not only spoils the aesthetics of the concrete structural elements but can also lead to structural failure. This study aims to determine the crack width of a rigid pavement concrete slab located above the subgrade which is considered a beam on an elastic foundation, so that a minimum rigid pavement concrete slab thickness can be recommended. The specimen will be observed at various thicknesses to obtain the optimum thickness. The load used is a centralized monotonous load, which represents the load of the truck vehicle. The research limitation is using a test object in the form of a concrete plate measuring 2000x600 mm which is placed on the ground with CBR=6 %. The quality of reinforced concrete slabs is fc'=40 MPa and fy=440.31 MPa. The thickness of the concrete slab varies between 100 mm, 150 mm, and 200 mm. The slab placed on the ground is then given a central loading in the form of a centralized monotonic load. The loading range starts from a load of 2–180 kN with a load interval of 2 kN. The experimental results show that the rigid pavement slab has a bending failure so that the crack pattern that occurs begins with the first crack on the underside of the slab. The crack pattern in terms of slab thickness variation has a similar pattern. The initial crack width on the slab is 0.04 mm. The thicker the slab smaller the crack width at the same load. Based on the maximum allowable crack width=0.3 mm. For loads between (80–100) kN (Road Class I, II, and III), a minimum thickness of rigid pavement slabs (70–80) mm is recommended. For loads between (130–140) kN, the minimum thickness of the rigid pavement slab (105–115) mm is recommended

Preliminary Analysis of the Ductility and Crack-Control Ability of Engineered Cementitious Composite with Superfine Sand and Polypropylene Fiber (SSPP-ECC).

Engineered cementitious composite (ECC) is a potential cement-based material with the abilities of large deformation and crack width control. However, ECC is difficult to popularize in many developing countries because the costs of silica sand and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) fiber with a surface coating are too high for practical engineering. Therefore, we proposed an economical ECC with superfine river sand and polypropylene (PP) fiber (SSPP-ECC) to replace PVA fiber and silica sand. The SSPP-ECC proposed in this paper is a sustainable material using local material ingredients, which has considerable adaptability for large-scale engineering applications. The 16 groups of specimens were prepared through a factorial design method, curing for four-point bending tests. The bending strength, deflection, flexural modulus of elasticity, and crack width were measured and calculated during the test. The factor analysis of the test results shows that the contents of fiber and fly ash had significant effects on the ductility of SSPP-ECC with an extra combined effect at the same time, and a response surface model with high accuracy was fitted to predict the yield length of SSPP-ECC. The ductility of SSPP-ECC was positively related to its crack-control ability and it was shown that the crack width of SSPP-ECC increased significantly with a high content of superfine sand. This paper proposed a reasonable way to utilize superfine sand and provided the mix proportion of SSPP-ECC with characteristics of deformation hardening and multi-cracking, which may cater to the demands of many concrete components on ductility and crack resistance.

Flexural behavior of lightweight concrete beams reinforced with GFRP bars and prestressed with steel strands

AbstractThe present research is focused on developing efficient, durable flexural members by combining the use of lightweight concrete (LWC), fiber‐reinforced polymer (FRP) bars, and prestressing. The use of LWC reduces the structural weight while providing suitable thermal insulation whereas using FRP bars instead of steel reinforcement provides corrosion resistance, light weight, high tensile strength, and fatigue resistance. Both materials possess smaller moduli of elasticity compared to those in materials within conventional construction, which may cause large deflections and excessive crack widths that are addressed via prestressing. Six LWC beam specimens were fabricated and tested, all of which contained FRP bars. Two specimens were not prestressed, one in under‐reinforced and the other in over‐reinforced conditions. The other four specimens contained different configurations of prestressing steel in addition to FRP bars. The experimental results were used to validate nonlinear finite element models in Abaqus. Results showed that of a prestress level of 6 MPa in concrete reduced the beam deflection at failure by 28% and increased the cracking load by three times. Therefore, a relatively small prestress level could compensate for the increase in deflection and possible cracking, which shows the merits of this combination in providing an optimal solution for the structural members of the future.

Temperature development and cracking characteristics of high strength concrete slab at early age

High-strength concrete (HSC) generally is made with high amount of cement which may release large amount of hydration heat at early age. The hydration heat will increase the internal temperature of slab and may cause potential cracking. In this study, slab specimens with a dimension of 600 ✕ 600 ✕ 100 mm were cast with concrete incorporating silica fume for test. The thermistors were embedded in the slabs therein to investigate the interior temperature development. The test variables include water-to-binder ratio (0.25, 0.35, 0.40), the cement replacement ratio of silica fume (RSF; 5 %, 10 %, 15 %) and fly ash (RFA; 10 %, 20 %, 30 %). Test results show that reducing the W/B ratio of HSC will enhance the temperature of first heat peak by hydration. The increase of W/B decrease the appearance time of second heat peak, but increase the corresponding maximum temperature. Increase the RSF or decrease the RFA may decrease the appearance time of second heat peak and increase the maximum central temperature of slab. HSC slab with the range of W/B ratio of 0.25 to 0.40 may occur cracking within 4 hours after casting. Reducing W/B may lead to intensive cracking damage, such as more crack number, and larger crack width and length.

Root Penetration of Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) Stormwater and Sewer Pipes

Two experiments investigated factors influencing root penetration of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipes. Eucalyptus leucoxylon, Allocasuarina littoralis, Lophostemon confertus, Callistemon salignus, Acer palmatum, and Pyrus calleryana seedlings were grown in containers containing 150-mm lengths of sealed 75-mm PVC stormwater pipe with cracks 0.04 mm, 0.66 mm, or 1.48 mm wide on their upper surface. The buried pipes contained water, water and stormwater, soil, or soil and stormwater. There were six replicates and 432 plants. There was no significant difference in the mass of roots entering the pipes for the two larger crack widths with 70% of pipes penetrated and strong growth inside the pipes. While the roots of all species penetrated cracks greater than 0.66 mm, only roots of C. salignus, E. leucoxylon, and L. confertus penetrated 0.04 mm cracks. Roots penetrated 50 to 60% of pipes containing soil, or soil and stormwater, and 40% of pipes containing water, or water and stormwater were penetrated. The plants with roots penetrating pipes containing water and stormwater grew tallest. No roots penetrated the welded caps of the stormwater pipes. A second experiment using E. leucoxylon, Melaleuca ericifolia, Ficus macrophylla, A. littoralis, and Salix fragilis investigated root penetration of different sized holes in polycarbonate plates. The plates, installed in containers with growing medium above and below, had either 2 × 4 mm holes, 8 × 2 mm holes, 127 × 0.5 mm holes, or a mixture of holes (1 × 4 mm, 2 × 2 mm and 32 × 0.5 mm holes), total pore area in all being 25.14 mm2. Below the plates, the growing medium was capillary irrigated with stormwater or water. All species grew through 0.5-mm holes and had strong root growth below the plates. When irrigated with stormwater, all species were taller and had greater biomass, and most species had a greater root mass below the plates. In general and regardless of hole size, the more holes in the plates, the more roots penetrated them. Properly installed PVC pipes are impenetrable, but the width and number of openings in a pipe influence the capacity for penetration and subsequent root growth so protocols minimizing damage to pipes should be enforced. Since species have different capacities for penetrating stormwater pipes, appropriate species selection for urban environments where damaged pipes may occur could reduce incidences of pipe damage.