Self-Sensing Concrete

April 24, 2020

Self-sensing concrete is a smart concrete technology that can sense the stress, strain, and damage in itself. It is also called as self-monitoring or piezoresistive or pressure-sensitive or intrinsically smart concrete.

Composition of Self-Sensing Concrete

It is similar to the conventional concrete except the addition of functional fillers. The functional fillers used can be steel fibers, carbon fibers or carbon nanotubes, nickel powder, etc.

Property of this concrete is due to the arrangement of the functional fibers in the concrete.The functional fibers are well dispersed in the concrete matrix, based on which the concrete matrix has a unique and extensive conductive network.

The self-sensing concrete has a complex structure. It is a multiphase and multiscale composite. Self-sensing concrete is a combination of two-phase material at macroscopic level in which the functional fillers are dispersed in the concrete matrix. This functional fillers can exist in fiber, particles and hybrid of fiber and particle form.

The distribution of these fillers forms the conductive network for the concrete. At this stage it does not have a homogeneous structure. This distribution of functional fibers within the concrete matrix is dependent on the geometrical shape of the functional filler, the processing methods and the concentration of the functional filler.

Among all these fillers, carbon fiberprovides a unique benefit to the self-sensing property of the concrete. This combination can detect the stress or strain in the concrete structures before they fail.

The self-sensing concrete can detect even small structural flaws. This application is significant in studying the internal conditions of the structures subjected to earthquakes.

Embedding sensors within the structures usually evaluate unexpected deformations. A sensor is highly expensive and costs even more for its installation. It is when the application of smart concrete finds its place as self-healing concrete is far cheaper compared to sensors.

Smart concrete requires a lot of external force to bend even in smaller amounts. It can store more energy before fracture.

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