The fly ash microspheres (FAMs) formed during the mineral transformation stage in coal combustion are hollow spherical particles with a density less than water. This paper presents the results of X-ray micro-computed tomography and an automatic image analysis system of the porosity in the structure of hardened concrete with microspheres. Concrete mixtures with ordinary Portland cement and two substitution rates of cement by microspheres—5% and 10%—are investigated. For all considered mixes, a constant water/binder ratio (w/b) equal to 0.50 was used. The distribution of the air voids and the compressive strength of the concrete were tested after 28 days. With the increasing mass of cement replacement by FAMs, the compressive strength decreases after 28 days. The total volume of the air voids in hardened concrete with fly ash microspheres tested by X-ray varies from 5.1% to 7.4%. The closed pores constitute more than 80% of the total content of air pores. The study proves that the use of microspheres grains with specific dimensions has a significant impact on concrete porosity. Their application in concrete technology can be an alternative aeration solution for fresh concrete mixes and an effective method for utilization.

The amount of fly ash from the incineration of sewage sludge is increasing all over the world, and its utilization is becoming a serious environmental problem. In the study, a type of sewage sludge ash (SSA) collected directly from the municipal sewage treatment plant was used. Five levels of cement replacement (2.5%, 5%, 7.5%, 10% and 20%) and unchanged water-to-binder (w/b) ratio (0.55) were used. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the effect of sewage sludge ash (SSA) on the hydration heat process of cement mortars. The heat of the hydration of cement mortars was monitored by the isothermal calorimetric method for 7 days at 23 °C. The analysis of chemical composition and particle size distribution was performed on the tested material. The tests carried out have shown that SSA particles have irregular grain morphology and, taking into account the chemical composition consists mainly of oxides such as CaO, P2O5, SiO2 and Al2O3. The concentration of these compounds affects the hydration process of cement mortars doped with SSA. In turn, the content of selected heavy metals in the tested ash should not pose a threat to the environment. Calorimetric studies proved that the hydration process is influenced by the presence of SSA in cement mortars. The studies showed that the rate of heat generation decreased (especially in the initial setting period) with the increasing replacement of cement by SSA, which also reduced the amount of total heat compared to the control cement mortar. With increasing mass of the replacement of cement with SSA up to 20%, the 7-day compressive strength of the mortar samples decreases.

The paper deals with a concept of a practical computation method to simulate the temperature distribution in an extradosed bridge deck. The main goal of the study is to develop a feasible model of hardening of concrete consistent with in-situ measurement capabilities. The presented investigations include laboratory tests of high performance concrete, measurements of temperature evolution in the bridge deck and above all, numerical simulations of temperature field in a concrete box bridge girder. A thermal conductivity equation in the author’s program, using finite difference method has been solved. New approach for identification of the model parameters and boundary conditions (heat transfer coefficients) has been proposed. The numerical results are verified by means of a wide set of experimental tests carried out on three stages of the extradosed bridge studies. A high agreement between the concrete temperature distribution in the time and space domain was obtained. The temperature history of concrete hardening, supplemented with maturity method equations, made it possible to estimate an early-age compressive strength of the cast-in-place concrete. The proposed solution could be applied in a Structural Health Monitoring system for concrete objects.

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The paper presents the maturity curve for estimating the in-place early-age compressive strength of concrete. The development of appropriate maturity curve is a complex process. It is important to correctly determine the datum temperature and activation energy, which can be obtained in mortar tests. This paper describes an investigation of the accuracy of the maturity method to estimate the strength when different way to rate constant and maturity function are analysed. High performance concrete used for construction of extradosed bridge was tested. The developed curve was implemented to predict the concrete strength at three construction stages, in summer, autumn and early spring.