ABSTRACT

The fact that concrete, especially in massive concrete structures, tends to crack due to volume change during hydration is a problem that has been adressed by engineers for about 100 years. Measures to control cracking have almost been focused on restricting temperature differences within the pour and temperature rise in relation to older adjoining concrete and surrounding. Thus, research were concentrated on e g producing low-heat cement, lowering cement content, and to control the temperature rise. As a consequence, most efforts were made to develope methods for tempera­ ture predictions as well as for examining the thermal properties of the concrete. It is not until recently that engineers with the aid of modern laboratory techniques and the progress of computers have obtained more advanced understanding of the problems with thermal stresses thus including other influencing factors than temperature in analysis of thermal cracking.