Low Carbon Bacterial Self-Healing Concrete
A greener and more sustainable option is proposed to shift the construction paradigm of high embedded carbon values in concrete and the frequency of repairs when it cracks. Using low-carbon concrete with a bacterial self-healing agent can reduce the embedded carbon value while adding value to the st...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-12-01
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| Series: | Buildings |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/12/12/2226 |
| _version_ | 1797461097620439040 |
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| author | João Miguel Peres Medeiros Luigi Di Sarno |
| author_facet | João Miguel Peres Medeiros Luigi Di Sarno |
| author_sort | João Miguel Peres Medeiros |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | A greener and more sustainable option is proposed to shift the construction paradigm of high embedded carbon values in concrete and the frequency of repairs when it cracks. Using low-carbon concrete with a bacterial self-healing agent can reduce the embedded carbon value while adding value to the structure. This paper aims to evaluate the interaction of a bacterial self-healing agent on the mechanical properties of low-carbon concrete, specifically 50% Ground Granulated Blast-furnace Slag (GGBS) as an Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) replacement. A range of tests is conducted to test the evolution of mechanical properties throughout the early stages of curing for 7, 14, and 28 days. Such tests included the evaluation of compression, flexural, tensile splitting strength and dynamic elastic modulus. The results of the experiments demonstrate that early stages of GGBS mixes exhibit lower compressive capacity throughout the 28-day mark but also indicate their potential to increase sharply and surpass the control mix values after 28 days. The self-healing agent interacts slightly with the GGBS mixes, further reducing the mechanical properties in the early curing stages. However, GGBS mixes increase sharply after the 28-day mark, with the added benefit of further reducing carbon emissions by extending design life and durability. In theory, the newly developed concrete can seal cracks up to 0.3 mm (up to 0.8 mm if using the maximum dosage) but seal wider cracks from laboratory results. These changes imply that using GGBS as a replacement for OPC is viable for structures that do not require high compressive values in the early curing stages but after the 28-day mark while reducing the carbon emission values substantially, in this case, 40%, or up to 50% if using a self-healing agent. This low-carbon concrete is thus a sustainable and resilient material, especially for retrofitting existing reinforced concrete infrastructure. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T17:15:28Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-9f9dab6234034becab599798efb30871 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2075-5309 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T17:15:28Z |
| publishDate | 2022-12-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Buildings |
| spelling | doaj.art-9f9dab6234034becab599798efb308712023-11-24T13:43:57ZengMDPI AGBuildings2075-53092022-12-011212222610.3390/buildings12122226Low Carbon Bacterial Self-Healing ConcreteJoão Miguel Peres Medeiros0Luigi Di Sarno1Department of Civil Engineering and Industrial Design, School of Engineering, The University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 3BX, UKDepartment of Civil Engineering and Industrial Design, School of Engineering, The University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 3BX, UKA greener and more sustainable option is proposed to shift the construction paradigm of high embedded carbon values in concrete and the frequency of repairs when it cracks. Using low-carbon concrete with a bacterial self-healing agent can reduce the embedded carbon value while adding value to the structure. This paper aims to evaluate the interaction of a bacterial self-healing agent on the mechanical properties of low-carbon concrete, specifically 50% Ground Granulated Blast-furnace Slag (GGBS) as an Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) replacement. A range of tests is conducted to test the evolution of mechanical properties throughout the early stages of curing for 7, 14, and 28 days. Such tests included the evaluation of compression, flexural, tensile splitting strength and dynamic elastic modulus. The results of the experiments demonstrate that early stages of GGBS mixes exhibit lower compressive capacity throughout the 28-day mark but also indicate their potential to increase sharply and surpass the control mix values after 28 days. The self-healing agent interacts slightly with the GGBS mixes, further reducing the mechanical properties in the early curing stages. However, GGBS mixes increase sharply after the 28-day mark, with the added benefit of further reducing carbon emissions by extending design life and durability. In theory, the newly developed concrete can seal cracks up to 0.3 mm (up to 0.8 mm if using the maximum dosage) but seal wider cracks from laboratory results. These changes imply that using GGBS as a replacement for OPC is viable for structures that do not require high compressive values in the early curing stages but after the 28-day mark while reducing the carbon emission values substantially, in this case, 40%, or up to 50% if using a self-healing agent. This low-carbon concrete is thus a sustainable and resilient material, especially for retrofitting existing reinforced concrete infrastructure.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/12/12/2226low-carbon concreteGGBSself-healing agentearly mechanical propertiescompression testtensile splitting test |
| spellingShingle | João Miguel Peres Medeiros Luigi Di Sarno Low Carbon Bacterial Self-Healing Concrete Buildings low-carbon concrete GGBS self-healing agent early mechanical properties compression test tensile splitting test |
| title | Low Carbon Bacterial Self-Healing Concrete |
| title_full | Low Carbon Bacterial Self-Healing Concrete |
| title_fullStr | Low Carbon Bacterial Self-Healing Concrete |
| title_full_unstemmed | Low Carbon Bacterial Self-Healing Concrete |
| title_short | Low Carbon Bacterial Self-Healing Concrete |
| title_sort | low carbon bacterial self healing concrete |
| topic | low-carbon concrete GGBS self-healing agent early mechanical properties compression test tensile splitting test |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/12/12/2226 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT joaomiguelperesmedeiros lowcarbonbacterialselfhealingconcrete AT luigidisarno lowcarbonbacterialselfhealingconcrete |