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  • Experimental investigation on the variability of the main mechanical properties of concrete produced with coarse recycled concrete aggregates
    Publication . Pacheco, João; De Brito, Jorge; Chastre, Carlos; Evangelista, Luis
    Research on the variability of the properties of recycled aggregate concrete is lacking and is necessary for the development of reliability analyses and code calibration procedures. This paper presents an experimental programme on the within-batch variability of the compressive strength, Young's modulus, and splitting tensile strength of several recycled and natural aggregate concrete mixes. The influence of the recycled concrete aggregates on the mechanical properties and variability of concrete is analysed and discussed and benchmarks with standard predictions for the variability of natural aggregate concrete are made. It was found that full recycled aggregate concrete incorporation did not increase the variability of any of the properties tested, but intermediate ratios of recycled aggregate incorporation did. The properties of high-strength concrete mixes were more variable than that of all other mixes, irrespective of recycled aggregate incorporation. All properties of all compositions were suitably modelled by normal distributions. The coarse recycled aggregates were sourced from concrete waste.
  • Statistical analysis of Portuguese ready-mixed concrete production
    Publication . Pacheco, João; De Brito, Jorge; Chastre, Carlos; Evangelista, Luis
    This paper evaluates and compares the statistics of compressive strength data from three Portuguese ready-mixed concrete plants. A hierarchical model showed that different groups of concrete strength records are not statistically equivalent, even if they were produced in the same plant and using the same concrete composition. This finding is related to autocorrelation. For the same specified strength class, compositions produced less often result in higher average compressive strength and variability. The statistics of one of the plants were quite different from those of the others, even though the concrete of this plant also complied with the specifications. It was found that the average compressive strength of a mix may be quite dependent on the plant that produced it, even if the compressive strength complies with quality control specifications. Conformity with the target slump and strength class was checked following the conformity criteria of EN 206-1 for continuous production. Nonconformity with slump is more frequent than failure to comply with the strength class. A bias factor for reliability analyses was proposed.
  • Scatter of constitutive models of the mechanical properties of concrete: comparison of major international codes
    Publication . Pacheco, João; De Brito, Jorge; Chastre, Carlos; Evangelista, Luis
    An investigation on the scatter of code-type constitutive models that relate compressive strength (f(c)) with tensile strength (f(ct)) and Young's modulus (E-c) of standard concrete specimens is presented. The influence of the mix design on the accuracy of the f(c) vs. f(ct) and f(c) vs. E-c relationships is discussed, with emphasis on the lithological type and morphology of the coarse aggregates. The uncertainty of the constitutive models is analysed in probabilistic terms and random variables that model the uncertainty of the f(c) vs. f(ct) and f(c) vs. E-c relationships are proposed for reliability analyses of serviceability limit states. The suitability of the models proposed is assessed through preliminary conservative estimates of their design values.
  • Durability and shrinkage of concrete with CDW as recycled aggregates: Benefits from superplasticizer’s incorporation and influence of CDW composition
    Publication . Bravo, Miguel; De Brito, Jorge; Evangelista, Luis; Pacheco, João
    The shrinkage and durability properties of a total of 34 concrete mixes with recycled aggregates produced from different untreated construction and demolition waste (CDW) were tested. The effect of a polycarboxylic superplasticizer on the enhancement of these properties is presented, discussed, and compared with the findings of studies on concrete whose recycled aggregates are sourced from concrete. All properties were significantly affected by recycled aggregate incorporation and this effect was strongly dependent on the properties of the recycled aggregates of each specific source. The superplasticizer was less efficient in mixes with CDW than when the recycled aggregates were produced from concrete, the most common source of recycled aggregates in experimental works, despite untreated CDW being more practical and desirable from an industrial and environmental perspective.
  • Probabilistic conversion of the compressive strength of cubes to cylinders of natural and recycled aggregate concrete specimens
    Publication . Pacheco, João; De Brito, Jorge; Chastre, Carlos; Evangelista, Luis
    This paper investigates the effect of recycled coarse aggregate incorporation on the relationship between 150 mm cubic and F 150 mm cylindrical compressive strength (the reference strength of standards) by comparing data from recycled and natural aggregate concrete compositions in which both cubes and cylinders were tested. A conversion factor from cubic to cylindrical strength is proposed in two versions: A deterministic and a probabilistic one. Such factor has not been studied before and researchers have been converting cubic data as if natural aggregate concrete were tested. The probabilistic factor is intended for reliability analyses on the structural behaviour of recycled aggregate concrete using data from laboratory cube tests. It was found that the incorporation of recycled coarse aggregates sourced from concrete waste significantly decreases the expected value of the factor but the factor’s scatter is relatively unaffected.