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A special issue of Buildings (ISSN 2075-5309). This special issue belongs to the section "Building Materials, and Repair & Renovation".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 August 2024) | Viewed by 18889

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Dr. Hang Lu

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Guest Editor

Louisiana Transportation Research Center, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA
Interests: asphalt/concrete materials; pavement structural analysis; pavement M–E design and calibration
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue focuses on the recent advancements of composite construction in civil engineering.

Composite construction in civil engineering involves the choice of materials for certain structures. The materials and structures in civil engineering are constantly being renewed to adapt to new requirements, and composite construction involves the use of complex materials and structures to replace the traditional ones. Innovations make it possible to improve a structure’s load capacity, lengthen a structure’s longevity, save energy, and become more environmentally friendly, etc.

Composite construction involves the interaction of two or more separate elements acting together and contributing together rather than separately. Relevent materials include those reinforced with fiber, polymers, or chemical additives. Composite structures include sandwiched layers, framed structures, and attachments, etc. Innovations in structures and materials are commonly related and coordinated to achieve the target performance level.

With the introduction of a novel composite materials or structure, the following questions need to be addressed: what is the performance improvement of the new composite construction? What is the mechanism of composite construction? What is the environmental or economic impact of composite construction?

Scholars working in the area of composite construction are welcome to submit papers to answer these questions. This Special Issue offers a platform to showcase your findings, and will encourage the advancement of composite construction research among scholars worldwide.

Research areas may include, but are not limited to, the following:

Performance measurement or mechanical simulation
Interaction of materials or structural components
Formation analysis of composite materials
Longevity estimation
Environmental impact
Life cycle cost analysis (LCCA)

Dr. Hang Lu
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Buildings is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

polymer composites
structural capacity
property measurement
longevity estimation
life cycle cost analysis (LCCA)
mechanical analysis
numerical simulation
interface mechanics
construction technology
environmental impact

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Published Papers (10 papers)

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Research

22 pages, 5300 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effect of Rubber Aggregates on Early-Age Mechanical Properties and Deformation Behaviors of Cement Mortar

by Gaowang Zhang, Hao Du, Junmin Li and Jie Yuan

Buildings 2024, 14(9), 2787; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings14092787 - 4 Sep 2024

Viewed by 1045

Abstract

Rubberized cement-based materials are widely utilized because of their good ductility, impact resistance, and fatigue resistance. This research investigated the effect of the rubber aggregates content, particle size of rubber aggregates, and water–cement ratio on the early-age mechanical properties and deformation behaviors of mortar through laboratory tests, and strength reduction coefficient fitting models were established according to the testing results. The results show that the compressive strength growth rate of cement mortar is about 15% slower than that of flexural strength. The existence of rubber aggregates lowers the strength increase rate of mortar. The reduction coefficient of strength decreases with increasing rubber aggregates content and increases with the age of mortar. Increasing rubber aggregates content and decreasing particle size of rubber aggregate can lower the autogenous shrinkage in the initial stage, but the autogenous shrinkage of the later stage increases as the rubber aggregates content increases, with a turning point between 30 h and 50 h. After 3 days, the dry shrinkage of mortar accounts for about 70–80% of the total shrinkage, and it increases with higher rubber aggregate content, smaller particle size of rubber aggregates, and higher water–cement ratios. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Composite Construction in Civil Engineering)

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22 pages, 7040 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Evaluating the Anti-Skid Performance of Asphalt Pavements with Basalt and Limestone Composite Aggregates: Testing and Prediction

by Yunwei Meng, Zhuochu Chen, Zixiao Wang, Hang Lu, Guangyan Qing, Zhongshuai Liu and Yanhai Wang

Buildings 2024, 14(8), 2339; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings14082339 - 28 Jul 2024

Viewed by 1396

Abstract

This study investigates the skid resistance performance of asphalt mixtures containing composite aggregates of basalt and limestone. The research aimed to predict the service life of the asphalt mixtures and identify the optimal basalt content for enhanced performance. Using an accelerated friction tester, friction indices such as the British pendulum number (BPN), mean texture depth (MTD), and dynamic friction coefficient (Dµ) were measured. The study conducted accelerated wear tests on mixtures with varying basalt contents under different water flow rates and loads. Results indicate that anti-skid performance decreased with increasing water flow, load, and wear cycles, initially showing a sharp decline followed by a gradual stabilization. Orthogonal experiments determined that basalt content had the most significant impact on skid resistance, followed by load and water flow rate. By converting skid resistance and MTD values into IFI values, a four-area diagram was created to illustrate skid resistance deterioration. The four-area IFI diagram also demonstrated that higher basalt content significantly enhances the skid resistance and service life of asphalt mixtures. Cost analysis based on life prediction showed that a 40% basalt content mixture is cost effective while maintaining excellent skid resistance. A test section study further validated that a 40% basalt content ensures good skid resistance, with indoor test predictions aligning closely with field data. Although the test section has been operational for only two years, ongoing monitoring will provide further insights into long-term skid resistance performance. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Composite Construction in Civil Engineering)

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22 pages, 15025 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Bonding Performance and Microstructural Mechanism between Rapid Repair Materials and Old Concrete Pavement

by Kan Bao, Gaowang Zhang, Jiangpeng Lv, Junmin Li, Zexin Chen and Jie Yuan

Buildings 2024, 14(7), 2156; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings14072156 - 12 Jul 2024

Viewed by 958

Abstract

In China, airports predominantly utilize airport cement concrete pavement, which inevitably undergoes deterioration in service. To uphold pavement durability and functionality, and ensure aircraft operational safety, prompt repairs of affected areas are imperative. Therefore, ordinary Portland cement mortars were used as the control group to compare and analyze the bonding performances of two common airport pavement repair materials: modified Portland cement mortars and phosphate cement mortars. Meanwhile, through microscopic experiments, the microscopic characteristics of the interfacial transition zone (ITZ) were studied, and the interface bonding mechanism was analyzed. The research results indicate that the interface bonding strength between phosphate cement mortar and old concrete pavement is the highest. This was because the elements in phosphate cement penetrated the old concrete pavement through hydration reactions, forming van der Waals forces and chemical bonding forces. In addition, the research results indicated that the presence of old concrete pavement made the three repair materials produce similar sidewall effects with the old concrete pavement, leading to a low hydration degree of the repair materials. However, the chemical bonding and penetrating structure of phosphate cement compensated for the weakening effect of the ITZ in the repair materials. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Composite Construction in Civil Engineering)

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17 pages, 4857 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Study of Void Detection Beneath Concrete Pavement Panels through Numerical Simulation

by Jie Yuan, Huacheng Jiao, Biao Wu, Fei Liu, Wenhao Li, Hao Du and Jie Li

Buildings 2024, 14(7), 1956; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings14071956 - 27 Jun 2024

Viewed by 942

Abstract

In the structure of composite pavement, the formation of voids beneath concrete panels poses significant risks to structural integrity and operational safety. Ground-Penetrating Radar (GPR) detection serves as an effective method for identifying voids beneath concrete pavement panels. This paper focuses on analyzing the morphological features of GPR echo signals. Leveraging the GprMax numerical simulation software, a numerical simulation model for void conditions in concrete pavement is established by setting reasonable pavement structure parameters, signal parameters, and model space parameters. The reliability of the numerical simulation model is validated based on field data from full-scale test sites with pre-fabricated voids. Various void conditions, including different void thicknesses, sizes, shapes, and filling mediums, are analyzed. The main conclusions of the study are as follows: the correlation coefficient between measured and simulated signals is above 0.8; a noticeable distinction exists between echo signals from intact and voided structures; signals exhibit similar phase and time delays for different void thicknesses and sizes but significant differences are observed in the A-scan signal intensity, the signal intensity, and the width of the B-scan signal; the impact of void shape on GPR echo signals mainly manifests in the variation of void thickness at different measurement points; and the relationship between the dielectric properties of the void-filling medium and the surrounding environment dictates the phase and time delay characteristics of the echo signal. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Composite Construction in Civil Engineering)

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20 pages, 24751 KiB

Open AccessArticle

An Investigation of the Behaviors and Characteristics of the Interfacial Bonding Capacity between Cement Emulsified Asphalt Composite Binder and Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement

by Kangfeng Zheng, Qing Yang, Xin Qiu, Wenyi Xu, Huiqiong Liu and Zijun Chen

Buildings 2024, 14(5), 1217; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings14051217 - 25 Apr 2024

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 949

Abstract

The interfacial bonding capacity between cement emulsified asphalt composite binder (CEACB) and reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) plays a critical role in improving the pavement performance of cold recycled asphalt emulsion mixtures (CRAEMs). This study aims to investigate the formation and development of the interfacial bonding capacity between CEACB and RAP. First, the dynamic wettability and the spreading behaviors of CEACB on RAP surfaces were explored according to the surface free energy theory. Second, digital image processing (DIP) technology was employed to recognize interfacial failure patterns. Lastly, the influence of internal and external factors on the interfacial bonding capacity between CEACB and RAP during the curing process was analyzed via grey relational analysis (GRA). The results indicate that a moderate cement content with a mass ratio of asphalt to cement equivalent to 1.0 can significantly enhance the wettability of CEACB on RAP surfaces. By appropriately prolonging the curing time and controlling the curing temperature, it is possible to increase the bonding strength between CEACB and RAP. Additionally, a strong correlation exists between initial wettability and ultimate bonding capacity during the bonding strength curing process. The good wettability that developed in the initial stage of interfacial strength formation relates to the decreased spalling rate of CEACB on the RAP surface. This study is not only devoted to understanding the mechanisms that can enhance CRAEM performance but also provides important guidance for practical engineering applications of cold recycled asphalt pavements. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Composite Construction in Civil Engineering)

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23 pages, 9284 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Experimental Analysis of Mechanical Behavior of Timber-Concrete Composite Beams with Different Connecting Systems

by Radovan Cvetković, Slobodan Ranković, Tatjana Kočetov Mišulić and Danijel Kukaras

Buildings 2024, 14(1), 79; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings14010079 - 27 Dec 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1620

Abstract

Timber-concrete composite structures are innovative structural systems which have become the subject of extensive research and practical usage, primarily due to their attractive mechanical properties. This article deals with the experimental procedure and the analysis of the mechanical behavior of two different series of timber-concrete composite beams with the same span and geometry of cross-sections. In the first BF-series, the screws were used as a connecting system between the timber and concrete parts, whereas in the BN-series the combination of notches and screws, as a more complex system, was used for the same purpose. Both series were exposed to loading up to a failure by means of the standard four-point bending test. The mechanical behavior of the BF and BN-series beams was analyzed by a comparative analysis referring to: the correlation of the failure loading and the deflection, mechanisms of failure, the strain development across the height of mid-span’s and support’s cross-sections, the horizontal displacement in the timber-concrete interlayer at the support zones, the value of shear stresses and the calculated values of the effective bending stiffness of the beams. The differences in bearing capacity between both series of beams were negligible (about 5%), the effective bending stiffness of BF beams is lower for 32.86% compared to the BN-series and the average value of deflections in BF-series beams is twice as high than in the BN-series. The BN-series beams showed better mechanical behavior in aspects of development of shear stresses in support zones, exhibiting lower shear stress values with an average of 40%. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Composite Construction in Civil Engineering)

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19 pages, 14970 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Influences of Carbonated Recycled Concrete Fines on Cement Hydration

by Jiake Zhang, Liupeng Zhang, Boyang Xu and Jie Yuan

Buildings 2023, 13(4), 926; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13040926 - 31 Mar 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2236

Abstract

The preparation of recycled concrete aggregate generates a lot of fines, which are obstacles for implementing the recycled concrete aggregate. In this work, carbonation treatment is applied to improve the properties of recycled concrete fine, and the influences of carbonated recycled concrete fine (CRCF) on cement hydration process are evaluated. Both fresh and hardened properties of the cement paste samples replacing 0 to 30% of the CRCF are measured. The results reveal that the addition of CRCF obviously accelerates the hydration process of cement, especially during the early stage, and the initial and final setting times of the cement paste containing 30% CRCF are both reduced by approximately 25% compared to the control. The CRCF improves the strength gain of cement, and that influence becomes obvious with longer curing; the relative compressive strength of cement paste containing 30% CRCF is increased by 18% relative to the control after being cured for 28 days. At the same time, the early hydration of cement paste is accelerated with the addition of CRCF and the total hydration heat after 48 h of cement paste is significantly decreased with the addition of CRCF. Specifically, the total hydration heat after 48 h of cement paste with 30% CRCF is less than 50% of that with 0% CRCF. Besides that, CRCF consumes CH in cement paste and improves the pore structure of hardened cement paste. The morphology of hydrated samples shows that the shape of ettringite formed within the control sample with 0% CRCF is longer than those of the other ones formed in cement paste with CRCF, and the length decreases as the CRCF contents increase. In addition, the sample containing 30% CRCF does not show the particles, which means that CRCF reduces the ettringite forming in hardened paste samples. Thus, the findings from this work provide a better understanding of the field of waste concrete reuse. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Composite Construction in Civil Engineering)

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20 pages, 9507 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Use of MD Simulation for Investigating Diffusion Behaviors between Virgin Asphalt and Recycled Asphalt Mastic

by Shuqi Chen, Qing Yang, Xin Qiu, Ke Liu, Shanglin Xiao and Wenyi Xu

Buildings 2023, 13(4), 862; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13040862 - 25 Mar 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1744

Abstract

The study aims at investigating diffusion behaviors between virgin asphalt and recycled asphalt mastic (RAM) at an atomistic scale. Firstly, a mutual diffusion model of virgin asphalt–RAM considering the actual mass ratio of filler to asphalt binder (F/A) condition was developed by molecular dynamic (MD)simulation. Secondly, the indexes of relative concentration (RC), radial distribution function (RDF) and mean square displacement (MSD) were used to analyze the molecular arrangement characteristics of polar components in the diffusion processes at different temperatures. Then, the blending efficiency of virgin asphalt–RAM was evaluated by Fick’s second law and the binding energy. The results indicate that the reliability of the RAM model was validated by thermodynamics properties. The results of RC and RDF show that the diffusion direction of virgin asphalt–RAM is not changed by the presence of mineral fillers. However, it will inhibit the occurrence of diffusion behaviors, and the aggregation of molecules in the blending zone increases due to the adsorption of mineral fillers, which would become a barrier to molecular diffusion. The development of MSD indicates that the diffusion coefficients of molecules in both virgin–aged asphalt and virgin asphalt–RAM are on the rise with the increase in temperature. Compared with the virgin–aged asphalt, the molecular migration speed in virgin asphalt–RAM is relatively slow. According to Fick’s second law and the binding energy, diffusion behaviors are dominated by the nonpolar components. The existence of mineral fillers has the greatest effect on the nonpolar components in diffusion. It is suggested that rejuvenator containing more aromatic components should be added or the temperature controlled within 433.15–443.15 K to promote blending efficiency. The research results contribute to a deeper understanding about diffusion behaviors of virgin asphalt–RAM, serving as a benchmark for further study of rejuvenation using computational experiments. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Composite Construction in Civil Engineering)

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14 pages, 8685 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Horizontal Distribution of Temperature Effect in Rubberized Concrete Pavement: A Case Study

by Gaowang Zhang, Jiake Zhang, Jie Yuan and Shijiang Ye

Buildings 2023, 13(3), 686; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13030686 - 6 Mar 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2136

Abstract

Temperature distribution and the deformation behavior under temperature are important parameters in the design and evaluation of concrete pavements. In this paper, in order to study the horizontal distribution of the temperature effect on rubberized concrete pavement (RCP), the distribution differences of temperature, temperature gradient and strain at different horizontal locations were analyzed based on fiber Bragg grating test technology. The relationships between temperature and strain and between temperature gradient and strain were also investigated. The results show that within a cycle of temperature or temperature gradient change, the time of temperature increase or temperature gradient increase is only 1/4 of the whole cycle, significantly less than the time of the temperature or temperature gradient decrease. Comparing the center, edges and corner of the pavement, the horizontal distribution of temperature and temperature gradients in the RCP is uneven, and the greatest negative temperature gradient is experienced at the corner of the pavement, which is 25 °C·m⁻¹ greater than the temperature gradient at the center. The negative temperature gradient at the corner of the concrete pavement exacerbates the bottom deformation at the center and edge of the pavement, especially in the X-axis direction at the center and in the Y-axis and Z-axis directions at the edge. The relationships between temperature and horizontal strain at the center and edge of the RCP have a significant hysteresis effect and are markedly stronger than those at the corner. Moreover, when the temperature gradient is less than −23.4 °C·m⁻¹ or greater than 14.5 °C·m⁻¹, the curling effect at the edge of the RCP is more obvious. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Composite Construction in Civil Engineering)

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19 pages, 4626 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Study on the Properties and Benefits of a Composite Separator Layer in Airport Cement Concrete Pavement

by Hang Lu, Ce Zhao, Jie Yuan, Wei Yin, Yanhai Wang and Rui Xiao

Buildings 2022, 12(12), 2190; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings12122190 - 10 Dec 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2159

Abstract

A composite separator layer in Portland cement concrete pavement, formed by a lower bearing layer and micro surfacing, was seldom used in airport pavement, but it has great application potential. This paper studied the properties of the composite separator layer and its benefits for pavement. The basic properties investigated in the study were resilient modulus and interlayer property between the separator layer and concrete. The resilient modulus of the micro surfacing was tested to calculate the modulus of the whole separation layer. The interlayer shearing test was done on core specimens using a self-developed facility that can apply load in the normal direction. Shearing test results show that temperature affects the shape of the shearing curve and normal stress linearly affects the stable shear force. Additionally, an in-situ erosion test was carried out to prove the anti-scouring property of the separator layer. Furthermore, a finite element model (FEM) model was established to study the influence of the composite separator layer. The FEM employed the modulus test results and the measured interlayer characteristic. The interlayer characteristic was simplified into a two-stage constitutional model. Monitored data on the mechanical response of the pavement structure in an airport validated the FEM model. Results show that the separator layer reduces the chance of contraction crack under the sudden temperature drop in the concrete slab before sawing. FEM results show that though the separator layer slightly increases the tensile stress of concrete, the tensile stress is greatly reduced if the slab develops voids in the future. The most significant benefit of the separation layer is it reduces the chance of void occurrence so that the lifespan of pavement with a separator layer is improved compared to regular pavements which frequently have voids beneath the slab. With the finite element model results and cumulative fatigue life equations, the separator layer was estimated to elongate the pavement service life for years, depending on the time voids appear. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Composite Construction in Civil Engineering)

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