ABSTRACT
The accuracy of thermal stress analysis depends mainly on how the ther mal properties and specially the mechanical properties are described for early ages. It has thus been demonstrated in several reports and articles that criteria, that are purely based on temperature computations, offer only a poor basis for crack prediction in hardening concrete. Therefore, apart from the thermal properties of young concrete defining the temperature development (see Chapters 1 and 4), the influence of restraint and the transient mechanical properties of the young concrete should be considered in analyses providing a base for accurate crack predictions.
