ABSTRACT
The first aim of this work was to evaluate the change of concrete mechanical properties induced by pre-loading. In fact, high stress (up to 80% of the maximum load) generally induce concrete microcracking particularly at the interface between aggregates and surrounding cement paste, which likely will influence the concrete mechanical behaviour. In order to evaluate the behaviour of different concrete mixtures the study was carried out by varying the concrete strength class: 15 MPa, typical of old concrete, 30 MPa, that is the most common strength class used today, and 60 MPa, typical of high performance concrete.
