Smart concretes and structures: A review

Abstract

Smart concretes and structures are intelligent systems that have properties different from normal concrete, such as selfsensing and self-healing properties, or have the ability to react upon an external stimulus, such as stress and temperature. The ''smartness'' of concrete and structures is achieved through material composition design, special processing, introduction of other functional components, or modification of the microstructure. They are designed to meet specific requirements through tailored properties for improving serviceability, safety, reliability, longevity, and durability of the infrastructures and reducing the life-cycle costs of the infrastructures. This article reviews the recent researches of various smart concretes and structures, with attentions to their principles, fabrication, and properties. Future challenges in the development and applications of smart concretes and structures are also discussed.

Electrostatic self-assembled carbon nanotube/nano carbon black composite fillers reinforced cement-based materials with multifunctionality

“…resistivity strain gauges, optic sensors, piezoelectric ceramic, shape memory alloy and fiber reinforced polymer bar, etc.) into or onto the concrete structures [4][5][6][7][8]. However, these sensors have some drawbacks including low sensitivity, high cost, short lifespan and poor antiinterference performance, which make it difficult to utilize monitoring technology to a large scale in the realistic projects [9,10].…”

Static and Dynamic Strain Monitoring of Reinforced Concrete Components through Embedded Carbon Nanotube Cement-Based Sensors

“…They consist of concentric cylindrical graphene sheets of nanometric diameters and lengths up to some micrometers [13][14][15]. Their dispersion into a cementitious matrix enhances the electrical properties of the original materials, providing them with self-sensing capabilities [16][17][18]. The self-monitoring ability is achieved through the correlation of strains or stresses of the material to electrical features, such as electrical resistance or impedance [19][20][21][22].…”

Nonlinear Analysis for the Crack Control of SMA Smart Concrete Beam Based on a Bidirectional B-Spline QR Method

“…With the continuous progress of material science, smart concrete provides a new and effective method to solve this problem. From the 1980s till now, many special functions of smart concrete are derived, including self-test, self-adjustment, self-cleaning, and self-healing [2][3][4][5]. The concrete added with new intelligent materials can effectively control crack expansion and even cause cracks to close, so as to improve the service life of the concrete.…”