Effect of curing regime on long-term mechanical strength and transport properties of steam-cured concrete

• Published in: Construction & building materials Vol. 255; p. 119407
• Main Authors: Shi, Jinyan, Liu, Baoju, Shen, Shuai, Tan, Jinxia, Dai, Jingdan, Ji, Roujia
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 20.09.2020
• Subjects: Curing regime; Heat damage effect; Long-term performance; Steam-cured concrete; Surface permeability; Curing regime; Long-term performance; Heat damage effect; Steam-cured concrete; Surface permeability
• ISSN: 0950-0618; 1879-0526
• DOI: 10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2020.119407

[Display omitted] •The API was used to quantify the HDE to the concrete by steam-curing.•Step-curing can remission the HDE of steam-cured concrete.•Adequate subsequent curing will have a positive impact on long-term compressive strength and API. Steam curing is a common method of producing prefabricated elements, achieving high early strength to meet economic benefits. However, this rapid curing method is extremely detrimental to the microstructure and long-term performance of concrete. Therefore, choosing an appropriate measure to remission this adverse effect is critical to the development of long-term performances of steam-cured concrete. In this study, two steam-curing regime and four subsequent curing conditions were employed on the curing of concrete. The long-term compressive strength, surface permeability and microstructure were measured to analyze the effects of curing condition on performance of steam-cured concrete. The results indicate that step-curing is beneficial to the formation of pre-structures, thereby improving the long-term mechanical properties and impermeability of steam-cured concrete. Among the four subsequent curing conditions, saturated limestone immersion is most beneficial to the long-term performance of steam-cured concrete, while water immersion is the most unfavorable.