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The Phase change materials (PCM) have the ability to absorb and release heat as the temperature changes from high to low temperature and vice versa. The use of phase change materials has increased in the construction sector due to the established environmental requirements and the various application benefits, especially in the thermal comfort of building applications and construction of sustainable infrastructure around the world (Berardi and Gallardo, 2019). Over the past decade, many studies have been conducted on the thermal properties of PCM (phase change material), however, few studies have focused on the study effect of PCM on mechanical and physical properties, although of great importance. In this work, three different microencapsulated types of phase change material (PCM) have been studied, while its effect on the mechanical and hydration properties of the cement paste with regard to constant ratio of water to cement ratio has been taken into account. The PCMs that have been studied are the following: Microencapsulated PCM, which is Nextek 24 D, Nextek 57D (Microtek Laboratories) and Croda Therm ME29P (Croda). In this study, various tests were performed on cementitious paste mixed with different doses of PCM to test the effect that PCM has on the cement hydration (under semi-adiabatic and isothermal conditions), the physical properties (setting time, slump flow, density) and the mechanical properties ( compressive strength). The results of this study indicated that both the melting point of the PCM and its amount have a decisive effect on the properties of the cement paste. Finally, the following conclusions have been drawn: • Additions of different dosage levels of the 24D and Croda PCM types showed that an increase in the dosage resulted in impaired mechanical and physical properties such as compressive strength of the cement paste (mechanical) decreased, and the density and random flow decreased (physical). While Nextek 57D did not show a great effect on cement paste according to density and random flow, which gives reduced negative impact on cement paste workability (physical). According to the mechanical properties, Nextek57D PCM with different levels of levels showed immediate positive effect on cement paste compressive strength compared to reference paste (no addition of PCM), and other cement pastes with other PCM types used in this study. • Mikrotek 57D PCM also gives a positive effect at different dose levels compared to two other types of Nextek 24D and Croda PCM regarding the effect of heat flow, which gives rise to hydration heat during the cement hydration process. However, other types of Nextek 24D and Croda in all quantities showed negligible effect on the heat flow during the cement hydration process.

El hormigón armado compuesto de cemento Portland fue inventado hace algo más de un siglo aproximadamente y se ha convertido en el material más utilizado en la construcción. La durabilidad de este hormigón es una de las consideraciones más importantes a ser tenidas en cuenta en el diseño de nuevas estructuras y en la evaluación estructural de las ya existentes. Cuando un hormigón sujeto a un ambientes o cargas que puede degradarlo, como puede ser su uso en puentes y ambientes marinos o si contiene grandes cantidades de alúmina o áridos reciclados, el conocimiento o predicción de su durabilidad es una aspecto crítico para su comportamiento en servicio. Los ensayos no destructivos se han mostrado como unos de los ensayos preceptivos con una importancia económica y social más relevante desde que se han aplicado para la auscultación de la durabilidad de las estructuras de hormigón pertenecientes a la ingeniería civil, donde estos materiales son ampliamente utilizados. En cualquier caso, el uso de las técnicas no destructivas en estos materiales no está suficientemente implementado, hecho este motivado por las características heterogéneas de su microestructura. De todos los métodos no destructivos aplicables para el hormigón, el uso de pulsos ultrasónicos es de gran interés para la caracterización de la microestructura y las propiedades de materiales heterogéneos. El objetivo del presente trabajo es obtener un procedimiento de evaluación del ciclo de vida del hormigón preparado y puesto en servicio para ambientes marinos. Además, será estudiado y analizado la incorporación de varias metodologías (destructivas y non destructivas) para caracterizar el proceso de degradación de morteros y hormigones expuestos a disolución de sulfato de sodio y a exposición en disolución de nitrato amónico. Con esta finalidad, una integración adecuada de diferentes técnicas será usada para la caracterización de propiedades y el seguimiento del proceso de degradación que afectan al hormigón. Como objetivos adicionales, destaca que fueron estudiadas las relaciones entre los parámetros destructivos y no destructivos, así como la relación entre los distintos parámetros no destructivos entre sí. Muchos de los estudios anteriores que han usado la inspección ultrasónica las cuáles fueron utilizadas para determinar la relación agua/cemento del mortero, de la pasta de cemento y del hormigón, o para monitorizar los cambios estructurales, para diferentes relaciones a/c, en el proceso de curado. En este trabajo de investigación fue analizado el efecto que tiene para diferentes relaciones a/c en los parámetros ultrasónicos durante el proceso de degradación. Para este objetivo, se utilizaron un Cemento Portland tipo II A L 42.5 (LPC), y otro sulforresistente tipo I 42.5R/SR (SRPC) que fueron usados en la fabricación de dos marcos de hormigón, los cuales fueron utilizados como hormigón en servicio (caso real). Para el estudio del efecto de la variación de a/c en los parámetros ultrasónicos durante la degradación se utilizaron muestras de mortero con deferentes relaciones agua cemento 0.525- 0.45- 0.375 and 0.30 a partir de LPC para obtener diferentes niveles de degradación. Para monitorizar el proceso de degradación se utilizó la inspección por pulso/eco (1 y 3.5 MHz) para la obtención del parámetro del área del perfil de atenuaciones (APA) el cual fue estimado por L Vergara et al., 2003 y usado por Fuente et al, 2004. Para seguir el proceso de curado de pasta de cemento y morteros, este parámetro ha demostrado una alta sensibilidad para caracterizar los cambios microestructurales de materiales derivados del cemento a lo largo de su curado. El método de transmisión se ha utilizado para la determinación de las velocidades de ondas longitudinales con la frecuencia de 1MHz y transversales con la frecuencia de 500 kHz. La velocidad ultrasónica también ha demostrado la capacidad para seguir los cambios microestructurales de un modo sencillo porque dicho parámetro está relacionado con la variación de las propiedades mecánicas, y bajo ciertas premisas, con la variación de la porosidad. El análisis con la imagen ultrasónica con 2 MHz fue también usada para la consecución de los mismos objetivos. Como métodos destructivos, los ensayos de resistencia a la compresión y flexión fueron los utilizados para determinar la pérdida de actividad resistente de morteros y hormigones, y la porosidad conectada al agua para analizar los cambios en la matriz porosa por el efecto de la difusión de elementos agresivos que penetran en el material provocando su degradación. La porosimetría de mercurio (MIP) fue usada para observar las variaciones del volumen y tamaño de poro y, por último, la microscopía electrónica de barrido (MEB) que fue utilizada para cuantificar y detectar los cambios en la microestructura por el ataque de elementos agresivos. Los resultados obtenidos muestran que, la degradación producida por exposición a sulfato de sodio, tiene dos etapas, en la primera etapa se forma la etringita que llena los poros pero que no produce microfisuración. En esta etapa se observó una variación en los parámetros obtenidos por ejemplo, incremento de la velocidad de la onda ultrasónica, de las resistencias a compresión y a la flexión o la disminución de la porosidad. Esta variación en los parámetros podría indicar una mejora en las prestaciones mecánicas del material objeto de la investigación, pero en realidad esto no es cierto porque los poros están llenos de etringita, provocando una expansión, que es la causa de la degradación en la segunda etapa. En dicha segunda etapa, se produce una microfisuración generalizada por la expansión de la etringita e incrementando su volumen dentro de los poros. Este hecho produjo un cambio en los parámetros medidos que contrastan con la evolución en la primera etapa, disminución de la velocidad de las ondas ultrasónicas, y de las resistencias mecánicas y consecuentemente un aumento de la porosidad. Por otro lado, la degradación por ataque de nitrato amonio tiene una única etapa debida al proceso de descalificación que comienza desde el principio del proceso de exposición y es lineal durante todo el periodo de exposición. Para ambos casos, la integración de las diversas técnicas se revela como satisfactoria para el seguimiento del proceso de degradación, encontrando buenas correlaciones entre los parámetros no destructivos y los parámetros destructivos de técnicas de análisis físico-químico. / Mahmoud, TI. (2013). Evaluation of the degradation process of cement-based materials exposed to aggressive environment by using ultrasonic techniques and physical characterisation [Tesis doctoral]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/27550

<p dir="ltr">Corn, a vital cereal grain extensively used in various industries, exhibits viscoelastic properties when subjected to compressive forces. The effect of moisture content on the mechanical behavior of corn is crucial for understanding its storage, processing, and transportation requirements. Understanding the mechanical properties of bulk corn is crucial for ensuring a smooth flow of grains from the bin, thereby helping to prevent confined space-related accidents such as grain bin entrapment and engulfment, which can occur when workers enter the bin to facilitate grain flow. The objective of this study is to investigate the stress and strain relaxation of different bulk corn kernels qualities. In the first study various qualities of bulk corn, including clean corn, corn with impurities, and moldy corn samples were compressed at 42, 77, 106, and 130 N force levels. The compressive behavior of samples was measured at 13.22, 16.16, 18.93, and 21.70% wet basis moisture contents. The samples were compressed at a strain rate of 1.25mm/min, and the strain was kept constant for 200 s to determine the stress relaxation properties. For moldy corn, the energy absorbed increased with force resulting in clump formation irrespective of the force level. In the clean corn, the energy absorbed increased with moisture content, and formation of clumps was observed at 21.70% moisture content. Solidity decreased with moisture content, resulting in high cohesion at moisture contents 18.93% and 21.70% for clean corn. In corn with impurities, even though the energy absorbed increased with moisture content, no clump formation was observed. This study provides insights into the mechanical behavior of bulk corn under compression, such as solidity and compressive strength. An increase in the compressive strength or a decrease in the solidity of stored shelled corn in a grain bin increases compaction, cohesion, and the formation of clumps, and thereby affects the flow of grains during discharge from the bin. The study also highlights potential risks in grain bins when the kernels are moldy and stored at high moisture content.</p><p dir="ltr">The second study investigates the creep behavior of bulk corn kernels and its relationship with moisture content. Clean corn reconditioned to 16.23%, 19.02%, and 21.63% from the initial moisture content of 10.81% were compressed at 42, 77, 106, and 130 N. The viscoelastic behavior of the sample was measured by fitting the experimental data to a four-element Burgers model to obtain the model parameters E₀, E₁, η₀, and η₁. The results showed that the ranges of the elastic modulus (E₀) increase with an increase in moisture content, indicating an increase in compaction and elastic deformation of the sample. Retarded elastic modulus (E₁) values were also high at high moisture content, implying a high absorption of energy. The viscous component shows a dominance of the elastic component due to the low value of η₁ at high moisture content. The findings highlight the importance of considering moisture content in optimizing the handling of corn to enhance safety and efficiency in agricultural operations. Increase in the elastic modulus, retarded elastic modulus, and decrease in the viscous component leads to poor discharge of grains from the bin due to grain bridging or crust, or formation of clump due to out-of-conditioned grain, leading to a potential risk of grain entrapment and engulfment when the grain bin workers get inside the bin. This research contributes to the ongoing efforts to improve grain storage conditions.</p>

Dans un contexte accru d’économie circulaire et de valorisation des matières premières recyclées, les mâchefers d’incinération de déchets non dangereux (MIDND) constituent des déchets granulaires minéraux identifiés comme ressources renouvelables potentiellement valorisables dans la filière construction, notamment dans le domaine des matériaux cimentaires (type mortier/béton). Compte tenu de l'origine et de la nature des granulats de mâchefers, dans une finalité de concourir à une meilleure compatibilité mâchefer/ciment, il apparait essentiel en premier lieu de considérer des fractions minérales de mâchefers au mieux épurées par l’optimisation de l’enlèvement des métaux ferreux, non-ferreux et indésirables. En second temps, tenant compte des spécificités physico-chimiques résultantes des mâchefers, le choix de la base cimentaire constitue le second facteur prépondérant en sus de la nécessité de meilleure qualité de la fraction minérale de mâchefer. Le présent travail doctoral traite spécifiquement de l’apport de l’utilisation d’un ciment sulfo-alumineux dans le contexte de valorisation des mâchefers en matrice cimentaire. Des sables de mâchefers améliorés de fraction 0/2 mm ont été élaborés et utilisés pour l’étude. Dans une première partie, les résultats de formulation de mortiers cimentaires (ciment Portland, noté OPC / ciment sulfo-alumineux, noté CSA) à base de mâchefers en substitution volumique partielle du sable naturel (25, 50 et 75 %) et totale (100 %), mettent en évidence l’apport bénéfique du ciment CSA sur les résistances en compression par comparaison aux mortiers OPC. Une analyse expérimentale du réseau poreux des mortiers à 90 jours révèle que la frange de porosité supérieure à 50 nm est nettement plus faible pour les mortiers CSA. La thèse met en évidence un résultat majeur et pionnier : en interaction mâchefer, le niveau de basicité du milieu réactionnel joue un rôle prépondérant sur le potentiel de dégagement gazeux (hydrogène) après la mise en œuvre et avant la prise. Ce gaz impacte le niveau de porosité de la frange la plus grossière des mortiers durcis. La seconde partie concerne l’étude physique et microstructurale des mortiers soumis à l’attaque à l’eau pure ou à attaque sulfatique pour des substitutions volumiques de 50 et 100 %, avec les témoins pour référentiels. Les observations MEB sur les différentes matrices mettent en évidence une nette moindre sensibilité des mortiers mâchefer/CSA que des mortiers mâchefer/OPC, traduit par des porosités, fissurations et épaisseurs dégradées moindres. / In a world where circular economy and the valorization of raw materials is taking a greater importance, municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) bottom ash is identified as potentially renewable resource in the construction field and more specifically in cementitious materials like mortar and concrete. Given the origin of the bottom ash and in order to have a better cement/MSWI bottom ash compatibility, the fraction used was as refined as possible by removing ferrous, non-ferrous and unwanted materials. The choice of the cement used is a critical factor as well because it affects the quality of the end product since MSWI bottom ash has particular physicochemical properties. The work in this PhD studies the advantages of using a sulfo-aluminate cement to valorize an improved 0/2 mm fraction of bottom ash that has been developed to be used in cementitious matrices. The first part presents the results of the mortar sample mixes containing bottom ash in a substitution by volume of the standard sand. To better highlight the effect of using a sulfo-aluminate (CSA), CSA mortars containing bottom ash were compared to a Portland cement (OPC) mortars, with substitution rates of 25 %, 50 %, 75 % and 100 % were used. A study of the porosity was then conducted at 90 days ; it shows that the pores larger to 50 nm are remarkably less present for CSA mortars. This thesis brings forward a major and innovative result : the level of alkalinity of the mortar plays an important role in the release of hydrogen gas after mixing and before setting. The presence of these gases creates large porosity in the hardened mortar samples. The second part studies the physical and microstructural aspects of the mortars after being immersed in aggressive environments : pure water and sulfate solution. The substitution rates used in this experiment were 50 % and 100 % by volume as well as the reference mortars with no bottom ash. These samples were then studied in the SEM which showed that CSA/bottom ash mortars were clearly less affected than the OPC/bottom ash mortars. This was highlighted by the porosity, the cracking and the depth of degraded zone.

Self-consolidating concrete (SCC) has wide use for placement in congested reinforced concrete structures in recent years. SCC represents one of the most outstanding advances in concrete technology during the last two decades. In the current work a great deal of cognizance pertaining to mechanical properties of SCC and comparison of fracture characteristics of notched and unnotched beams of plain concrete as well as using acoustic emission to understand the localization of crack patterns at different stages has been done. An artificial neural network (ANN) is proposed to predict the 28day compressive strength of a normal and high strength of SCC and HPC with high volume fly ash. The ANN is trained by the data available in literature on normal volume fly ash because data on SCC with high volume fly ash is not available in sufficient quantity. Fracture characteristics of notched and unnotched beams of plain self consolidating concrete using acoustic emission to understand the localization of crack patterns at different stages has been done. Considering this as a platform, further analysis has been done using moment tensor analysis as a new notion to evaluate fracture characteristics in terms of crack orientation, direction of crack propagation at nano and micro levels. Analysis of B-value (b-value based on energy) is also carried out, and this has introduced to a new idea of carrying out the analysis on the basis of energy which gives a clear picture of results when compared with the analysis carried out using amplitudes. Further a new concept is introduced to analyze crack smaller than micro (could be hepto cracks) in solid materials. Each crack formation corresponds to an AE event and is processed and analyzed for crack orientation, crack volume at hepto and micro levels using moment tensor analysis based on energy. Cracks which are tinier than microcracks (could be hepto), are formed in large numbers at very early stages of loading prior to peak load. The volume of hepto and micro cracks is difficult to measure physically, but could be characterized using AE data in moment tensor analysis based on energy. It is conjectured that the ratio of the volume of hepto to that of micro could reach a critical value which could be an indicator of onset of microcracks after the formation of hepto cracks.

This diploma thesis is focused on composition and processing of cellulose fibers and their usage in cementitious composites. It describes key attributes of cellulose fibers, which has to be acquired for effective use in cement composites. There are stated effects of cellulose fibers on concrete properties, such as workability, physical and mechanic attributes and freeze-thaw resistance. In experimental part is designed a mixture with portion of cellulose fibers. There has been performed various tests to define the effect of cellulose fibers. There was designed experiment to determine its alkali resistance for fibers itself, and possible changes in microstructure of fibers were analyzed by optic and electron scanning microscope.

This doctoral thesis is focused on the possibilities of alkali-activated slag (AAS) shrinkage reduction, which would together with the use of waste sludge from waterglass production contribute to wider practical utilization of this interesting material. Besides the influence on AAS dimensional changes also effect of various factors on workability, setting time and mechanical properties was investigated. Obtained results were supported by the application of instrumental techniques like izotermal calorimetry, mercury intrusion porosimetry, scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The results show the possibilities of reduction of AAS drying shrinkage related to its cracking tendency through the combination of increased dose of waterglass and reduced water to slag ratio (w/b), partial replacement of slag by pulverized fly ash or cement by-pass dust and application of organic admixtures, where significant effect on AAS hydration was observed. On the basis of the obtained results concrete mixtures, where the whole activator was replaced by the waste sludge form waterglass production, were designed and optimized in terms of shrinkage, mechanical properties and price. Selected concretes were also tested in semi-operating conditions.

This diploma thesis is focused on building survey and evaluating the state of existing constructions. In theoretical part are described the process of evaluating the state of existing constructions and selected diagnostic methods. The practical part is dealing with performed structural and technical survey of industrial object including evaluation of the strength of concrete and verification of the reinforcement. The last part is focused on a static assessment of selected supporting element of the structure.