SMART CEMENT-BASED COMPOSITES – A REVIEW

Dhanada K Mishra(1, 2), Jing Yu(1) and Christopher K Y Leung(1)

(1)
Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong
(2)
KMBB College of Engineering and Technology, Biju Patnaik University of Technology
(BPUT), India

Introduction

Use of smart cement-based composites is becoming increasingly critical for enhanced durability
and serviceability of structures. In addition, self-sensing and self-healing cement-based materials
have been subject of increasing research interest. Addition of carbon fibres, carbon nano-tubes
and various nano-powders such as nano-silica, carbon black and graphite giving cement-based
matrix electrical properties that can be used for self-sensing has been known for over decade and
a half. More recently, the strong capacity of Fiber Reinforced Cement-based Composites (FRCCs)
for autogenous healing in addition to crack-width control (especially in the case of Strain-
Hardening Cement-based Composites or SHCCs) has been reported by many researchers.
Similarly, the application of different mineral and bio-additive based materials to accelerate
autonomic self-healing of cracks has been noted with great interest. Designing for serviceability
based on durability performance of the materials used in concrete structures is often neglected.
Compliance with provisions prescribed by codes and standards for different exposure conditions
mainly related to cover thickness, water/binder ratio and minimum binder content are often the
only design approach employed. With durability performance testing becoming more
sophisticated, detailed service life design is being demanded in most important infrastructure
projects. The present review is focused on identifying field applications and highlighting the
Performance Driven Design Approach (PDDA) for tailoring material solutions for the problems
likely to be faced by the civil engineering infrastructure of the future. One of the real-life case
studies presented in this paper illustrates the minimal cost implications of adopting latest smart
material for a durable, reliable and safe infrastructure. Identifying critical challenges faced by the
industry and developing solutions for the same is going to help bridge the gap between research
and adoption. The paper discusses the implication of these technologies for the Indian scenario.

Keywords

Smart Concrete, High Performance Concrete, Faber-Reinforced Concrete, SHCC, Durability,

Self-sensing, Self-healing, Service Life

Introduction

Development works that takes into account of the requirements of resources requirements of
future generations while meeting the needs of the present is defined as ‘Sustainable Development’
[1]. Continued exponential increase in greenhouse gas emissions even after Kyoto protocol
having come to effect indicates serious potential consequences of climate change and its impact
on global efforts towards sustainability. The construction industry directly contributes to 6% of
global GDP. The construction industry also accounts for 25-40% of the carbon emissions and is
the largest user of raw materials [2]. Several global mega-trends such as threat of climate change,
rapid demographic shifts and a growing demand for resilient and sustainable infrastructure would
enhance its importance further. Specifically, a global infrastructure investment of 3.3 trillion USD
per year is needed in the years from 2016 through 2030 to meet projected demand. Structural
performance is dependent on the constituent materials, addressing the challenges from both
lengthening the service life of existing structures and constructing resilient structural systems
against sudden overload and gradual degradation is the need of the hour. These challenges call for

16th NCB International Seminar on Cement, Concrete and Building Materials

03 - 06 December 2019, New Delhi, INDIA
high performance construction materials with high strength and ductility, light weight, excellent
durability, good constructability, as well as low cost and minimum environmental impact.

Concrete is arguably the most ubiquitous construction material being used in the modern world. It
is the foremost engineering material in terms of global consumption, at about 20 billion metric
tons or around 2.5 metric tons per person on an annual basis in 2013 [2]. Concrete uses abundant,
widely available and low-cost ingredients for its production, and has several practical advantages.
These include adequate compressive strength, castability, and comparatively low carbon footprint
among others. However, plain concrete has been known for its brittle fracture behavior and
insufficient durability under service loading from the beginning [4]. The inclusion of steel
reinforcements makes concrete more effective for practical construction applications. However,
from the point of view of improving the durability, sustainability and resiliency of infrastructures,
concrete needs to be imparted with properties such as self-sensing of damage and self-repair after
damage, which are contemporary areas of focused scientific research efforts world-wide [5, 6].

The American Society of Civil engineers (ASCE) in its latest report card [3] on American
infrastructure has given it a D+ and estimates that the country will need almost 2.4 trillion US
dollars in additional investment to repair and rehabilitate much of its existing infrastructure by
2025. If such demands keep being neglected for long it would not be late when we might observe
a major disaster such as collapse of a bridge. One such example is shown in Figure 1, which is a
photograph of recent catastrophic collapse of the 51-year-old Morandi bridge in Italy which
claimed many lives.

Fig. 1: Collapse of the 51-year-old Morandi bridge, Genoa, Italy on Aug 14th, 2018. Photo
courtesy - Michele Ferraris

The aging of infrastructure and declining investment in repair and maintenance as well as
replacement of infrastructure in Italy in recent years was a major cause of the incident. In
addition, the likelihood of such incidents in future calls for renewed emphasis on structural health
monitoring specifically towards realization of smart monitoring as well as a focus on
serviceability of structures using materials of assured durability performance. For countries with
rapid infrastructure development over last 2-3 decades, such as China and India, it calls attention
to the burden of maintenance, repair and rehabilitation or renewal as the case may be in coming
decades. Some estimate the costs of repair and rehabilitation to outpace the cost of all new
construction globally ([7, 8]).

Smart Infrastructure

An artificial intelligence powered future, with personalized learning objects surrounding human
population has been a common theme for predicting the future of human civilization. It is

16th NCB International Seminar on Cement, Concrete and Building Materials

03 - 06 December 2019, New Delhi, INDIA
estimated that by end of this decade around 50 billion devices may be internet enabled and
connected to the web. Dramatic decrease of the sensors cost is the major reason behind such
prediction [9]. All aspects of modern life from entertainment, various forms of transportation,
communication among ourselves, including home and office environment ranging from security
to power supply is expected to be integrated using these gadgets. An urban area that uses various
electronic data collected through sensors to supply information to manage assets and resources
effectively is often described as a smart city. Often a smart city would integrate various aspects of
human life revolving around civil structures such as accessible and reliable transportation
network, smart building structures and digital infrastructure connecting various segments to
accessibility and financial network. Figure 2 shows a schematic of the current trend that applies
variously to a range of structures from smart homes as well as smart cities with its focus mainly
on the idea of Structural Health Monitoring (SHM), Structural Self Repair (SSR), Structural
Energy Harvesting (SHE) and Structural Vibration Control (SVC). These four discrete systems
that need to be integrated or synthesized to form what would be the hallmark of a futuristic
infrastructure [10].

Fig. 2: Integration of Structural Health Monitoring (SHM), Structural Vibration Control

(SVC), Structural Self Repair (SSR) and Structural Energy Harvesting (SHE) in design of
Smart Civil Structures [10]

Hong Kong, being Asia’s world city is planning to become a smart, green and resilient city by
2030 [11], though similar plans may also drafted for other modern cities globally. While the
detailed planning document emphasizes many aspects of the smart city, the lack of emphasis on
use of innovative construction materials or technology is quite glaring yet typical. As early as in
1995, ‘Intelligent Materials’ were discussed with great anticipation to transform multiple domains
ranging from aerospace and biomedical engineering to civil infrastructure [12]. There are a large
number of innovations available today that promise to fulfill these ideas to make inanimate
objects more life-like. Yet that promise remains to be fully realized due to lack of industry
demand as evident from above. One reason for such lack of ‘demand’ or ‘industry pull’ would be
the absence of initiatives to overhaul the design process of structural elements. In this literature
review, we will emphasize on recent and relevant development towards realization of
serviceability design through smart materials.

Smart Civil Infrastructure

A smart structure is a general term defined as a system containing multi-functional parts that can
perform sensing, control and actuation. Whereas a smart building is a part of the smart city that
automatically controls the building's operations such as heating, ventilation, air conditioning,
lighting, security and health management among others. Besides the advent of technologies such

16th NCB International Seminar on Cement, Concrete and Building Materials

03 - 06 December 2019, New Delhi, INDIA
as Internet of Things (IoT), the construction of smart structures is impossible without availability
of smart materials. In tandem with the expectation for smart structures, smart materials are
expected to contribute to both sensing and actuation functions as well as self-repair functions ([5,
13, 14]).

The Integrated Structures and Design Philosophy (ISMD) (Figure 3) ([15]-[16]) links materials
engineering, structural engineering, and infrastructure system operations through common design
parameters to meet overall infrastructure system performance requirements. The performance
driven design approach, applied to address the needs for building sustainable and resilient
infrastructure of the future, requires one to focus on the following five material characteristics
([17, 18]) - a) green or environment friendly; b) having tensile and compressive ductility in
addition to strength; c) exhibiting damage tolerance when overloaded; d) being durable and with
controlled crack width for structural serviceability; e) self-repairing ability when damaged.

Self-Healing by Tailoring Material Properties

The idea of crack width control is embedded in the design code of Reinforced Concrete (RC)
structures. Many RC design standards ([19-21]) limit the crack width to 0.15 - 0.4mm dependent
on the exposed environment to assure the durability of RC structures to be built in these
environments. This is achieved by strategically increasing the content of steel reinforcement. It is
reported that water permeability in concrete increases by five to six orders of magnitude when the
crack width is 0.3 mm compared to un-cracked material. Similarly, the chloride diffusivity
increases by 2 to 10 times depending on the initial concrete composition [22]. The threshold level
for increased ingress rate, for instance in the case of conventional reinforced concrete is about 0.1
mm beyond which the coefficient of water permeability increases exponentially for cementitious
materials ([23, 24]). In service conditions, the tensile strain can be up to 0.1%, thus, the concrete
(cover) is almost always cracked. Therefore, irrespective of the material composition the
deleterious materials can seep through concrete unhindered. Hence, controlling the crack width is
important to ensure long life of the structures. This can be controlled in following two ways a)
Intrinsically designing crack width control (Note: there is no way in normal RC or Fiber
Reinforced Concrete (FRC) concrete to intrinsically control the crack width), and b) Incorporating
a secondary system to seal cracks.

Fig. 3: Integrated Materials Design Framework for Sustainable Infrastructure Combining

Performance Driven Design Approach (PDDA) Integrated Structures and Materials Design
Philosophy (ISMD) [16]

16th NCB International Seminar on Cement, Concrete and Building Materials

03 - 06 December 2019, New Delhi, INDIA
Controlling Crack Widths Using Strain-Hardening Cementitious Composites

Strain-Hardening Cementitious Composites (SHCC) are special case of fiber reinforced concrete.
In SHCC usually contains short PVA/PET fibers approximately 2% by volume. SHCC are
designed are intrinsically designed to show controlled cracking with small widths and narrow
spacing thus, form multiple cracks during failure. The strain-hardening nature stems from the
formation of successive cracks at higher resistance, even in a uniform tensile deformation field
([25, 26]). SHCC is a high performance case of fiber reinforced concrete that is systematically
designed based on micromechanics to ‘engineer’ the material property according to the structural
needs ([26-29]). This is in contrast with traditional concrete design which is empirical and relying
on trial and error. Important aspects (objectives) that decide the mix design for SHCC are often
required tensile strength, crack width requirement (maximum/average) and tensile strain capacity.
To engineer SHCC for a specific need, material microstructure is generally tuned (basis of
design). These material parameters are then tailored to design the material behavior at nano- and
micro length scales. Scale-linking is then used to predict the macroscopic composite material
behavior, thus tuning the microstructure would optimize desired structural behavior based on the
application. As a result, with this systematic micromechanics-based approach, number of
experiments could be significantly reduced and resulting design framework is very efficient as
compared to that of traditional concrete mix. The parameters which are often altered are classified
into 3 classes: a) matrix properties includes matrix flaw size and distribution, matrix toughness; b)
fiber properties. such as fiber geometric and mechanical properties, fiber content, and c) fiber-
matrix interfacial chemical and frictional bond. Optimum design of SHCC involves tuning these
parameters to minimize the difference between observed and expected macroscopic material
properties and to ensure multiple cracking and strain hardening behavior. Typical behavior of the
SHCC in tension is shown in Figure 4. It can be observed from Figure 4 that SHCC has the ability
to reach strain capacities of 3-5% under tensile loading (several hundred times than the value of
traditional concrete) at the same time maintaining crack widths below 60 μm ([30-33]). In
comparison, ordinary fiber reinforced concrete which is designed through trial and error does not
show any strain hardening behavior under direct tension.

Fig. 4: Typical Tensile behavior of Strain-Hardening Cementitious Composites (Adapted

from [34])

The strain hardening behavior of SHCC under direct tension looks very similar to that of metals
but is due to a completely different reason [29, 35]. This is achieved by the formation of multiple
micro-cracks. In order to achieve the multiple micro-cracking behavior, SHCC must be designed
to satisfy the following strength and energy criteria [36] (Equations 1 and 2).

16th NCB International Seminar on Cement, Concrete and Building Materials

03 - 06 December 2019, New Delhi, INDIA
The strength criterion as shown in Eqn. 1 requires that the maximum fiber bridging stress (σ0)
must be greater than the matrix first cracking strength (σcs). The σcs depends on the (maximum)
pre-existing matrix flaw size and the matrix fracture toughness (K m) [37] Whereas the energy
criterion (Equation 2) requires that the crack tip toughness (J tip = Km2/Em) be less than the
complimentary energy (J’b). The J’b is calculated from the bridging stress versus crack opening
curve. Em is the matrix elastic modulus and σ0 is the maximum bridging stress corresponding to
the crack opening δ0. The composite material should be tailored to maximize the difference
between Jtip and J’b in order to ensure saturated multiple cracking behavior. If a material does not
satisfy energy and strength criterion, strain-hardening behavior will be terminated and a single
localized fracture will occur, resulting in tension-softening.

Strength Criterion: (1)

Energy Criterion: ∫ ( ) (2)

Equations 1 and 2 indicate that strain hardening is material property. The strain hardening in itself
could not control the crack width. It is possible to tune relationship by tailoring the micro-
mechanical properties (such as length, thickness, surface characteristics, bonding of fiber and
binder) of the fibers, so that is less than 60 µm. The material would then exhibit multiple fine
cracks with width below about 60 µm during failure irrespective of testing configuration, structure
size or geometry. The multiple cracking in SHCC leads to dissipation of energy higher than that
of normal concrete under the same condition. This feature of SHCC can be exploited in designing
structural elements to directly improve the earthquake resistance of buildings, or retrofitting in
order to enhance seismic resistance [30]. In addition, inherent crack width control is a major
benefit of this class of material which may be exploited in improving durability through the
control of crack width to small values. As compared to RC concrete a properly designed SHCC,
the crack width can be controlled to 0.06mm or below, which will have a major effect on water
permeability and chloride diffusivity. Moreover, when the crack width is below 0.1mm, self-
healing can be possible ([38, 39]). The use of SHCC is therefore a feasible method for
constructing durable structures and as repair mortar [40].

Engineering Self-Healing to Fill Cracks

According to [41] there are four possible drivers for commercialization of self-healing technology
- applications for which repair is intrinsically very costly but the demands on reliability are very
high, applications where performance has to be guaranteed for a long period over 40 years or
more, applications where a very high reliability is required and applications where a high surface
quality is highly appreciated.

Cementitious materials have intrinsic ability to undergo self-healing, and it was first reported by
the French Academy of Science in 1836 [42]. This ability can be enhanced by the integration of
chemical and biochemical strategies. Self-healing concrete using capsule releases chemical
agents when cracks form and help sealing the cracks [43]. Li et al [44] demonstrated laboratory
scale feasibility of passive self-healing phenomenon using hollow glass tubes filled with chemical
compound. Others have reviewed the self-healing using supplementary cementitious materials
[45] and [46].

Autonomous-healing of cracks (Figure 5) was also demonstrated by bacterial activities [47, 48]
followed by Jonkers et al. [49] ,Tittelboom et al. [50-52], Jongvivatsakul et al. [53]. Bacterial self-
healing attempts to mimic the natural processes marine biology i.e. to generate calcium carbonate
through bacterial activities. This bio-concrete would encapsulate bacteria spores that would be
activated when cracking takes place in concrete. When adequate moisture is available these
bacteria can rapidly absorb oxygen present in concrete (which would have otherwise helped in
corrosion of reinforcing steel), and generate calcium carbonate that seals the crack. Shape

16th NCB International Seminar on Cement, Concrete and Building Materials

03 - 06 December 2019, New Delhi, INDIA
Memory Alloys (SMA) is known to return back to their original shapes given external stimuli
such as heat has been used to engineer self-healing concrete [54]. Drawback of using SMA
materials is the cost as they are very expensive to be used in concrete structures however recently
Ferrous SMAs has been developed which made it possible to use them as reinforcing steel either
as rods or fibers in concrete which can carry the tensile stress and facilitate self-repair by closing
cracks when required. Other potential techniques to incorporate self-healing that are being
pursued are a) Use of mineral admixtures to encourage self-healing in concrete [46] and b) Use of
super-absorbent polymers which can release additional moisture that will encourage self-healing
along with shrinkable polymer tendons for crack closure etc. [5].

Fig. 5: Schematic Illustration of (a) Chemical Encapsulation Self-Healing Approach, (b)

Bacteria additive Self-Healing Approach, (c) Mineral Admixtures based, (d) Chemical in
Glass Tubing, and (e) Intrinsic Self-Healing with self-controlled tight crack width [8].

According to Li et al [8], for a practical concrete material with effective autogenous self-healing
functionality, the following six attributes are important which are Pervasiveness meaning ready
for activation when and where needed, Stability meaning to remain active over the service life of
a structure that may span decades, Economics meaning economically feasible for the highly cost-
sensitive construction industry in which large volumes of materials are used daily, Reliability
meaning consistent self-healing in a broad range of typical concrete structure environments,
Quality meaning recovered transport and mechanical properties as good as pre-damage level and
Repeatability or the ability to self-repair for multiple damage events.

Autogenous self-healing, i.e. cracks are filled with self-healing compound in natural environment
without any external agent, fulfils all those criteria. One of the reasons for autogenous self-healing
in concrete is pockets of unreacted binder, which is exposed to natural environment when a new
crack is formed. Due to further hydration in (favorable) natural environment autogenous self-
healing not only causes crack to seal but also mechanical recovery of the elements [8, 55, 56]. The
other major cause of autogenous self-healing stems from the carbonation of calcium hydroxide
which is a product of cement hydration. In contact with moisture and atmospheric carbon dioxide,
calcium oxide converts in to calcium carbonate which helps fill the cracks leading to self-healing.
Autogenous self-healing is limited to crack width of approximate 100 microns due to reaction
kinetics [55]. SHCC are the perfect way to ‘engineer’ autogenous healing in any cementitious
structure due to intrinsic crack control. Combined with modern structural health monitoring
techniques that use advanced sensors, remote data acquisition systems and sophisticated decision
making algorithms based on real time data analytic, the above mentioned self-sensing and self-

16th NCB International Seminar on Cement, Concrete and Building Materials

03 - 06 December 2019, New Delhi, INDIA
healing concrete materials can revolutionize the way civil engineering infrastructures are planned,
built, maintained and demolished.

Self-Sensing for Durability Enhancement

Through Smart Monitoring

As described in ISMD, due to interdependence of material properties and the constituents with the
structural behavior, it is possible to modify the properties (design) based on the long term data of
the macro structural behavior [57]. Smart Monitoring is attractive option to understand macro
scale behavior of materials when structure undergoes extreme loading through multiple hazards
and during its lifetime. The hazards have inherited uncertainty (in temporal and spatial
distribution) associated with them. Through careful measurement of sensor data, it is possible not
only to quantify the hazards but also the impact on health (even for new materials) without past
knowledge [58-61]. Combining and optimizing the installation of different classes of sensors with
an advanced and smart data management system can lead to an effective smart health monitoring
system referred to as smart monitoring in this text. The general objectives of smart monitoring are
durable structures through prognosis. The general objective of smart monitoring is fulfilled
through a) Condition Assessment b) Source Discrimination c) Damage Localization d) Severity
Assessment of the interrogated structure [62, 63]. Physically a smart monitoring system usually
consists of point-based sensors, which provides local measurement. Using denser networks and
advanced algorithms, the results could be interpolated (extrapolated) within the structural
members. Based on the objective the complexity of the smart monitoring network is modelled for
a given structural element is different [57, 62].

Irrespective of the working principle of the sensing system 3 key aspects defining the success of
an effective smart system are the automation of a) Detection b) Localization and c) Quantification
of the damage [57, 59, 64]. Where Detection is defined as the ability of the sensing network in
discriminating damage in a structure. In other words, a sensing network with detection capability
is expected to determine that damage is present. This is the first level of complexity in designing
smart infrastructures. Localization is a level 2 complexity of a sensing network which involves
determining the accurate geometric location in where the damage has taken place. The hardest of
all is the level 3 complexity that deals with quantification of the damage. (In other words, a
sensing system quantifies the severity of the damage that is present in the structure) [57, 59, 60,
64, 65]. There are 2 ways to achieve smart sensing in concrete a) Functional Fillers b) Distributed
Sensing System. It will be discussed in the next sections.

Through Supplementary (Functional) Fillers

Conductivity is one of the fundamental material property that quantifies the ability of the material
to carry a current when placed in an electrical field. With conductivities ranging from 10^-3 to
10^-6 S/cm, cementitious materials are classified as semiconductors [66]. In cementitious
composites, the current generated by an electric field is based on ionic conduction through the
constituent material. Under an applied steady electric field, the ions in pore water are mobilized to
create current thus the electric response of the cementitious material strongly dependent on the
constituent material. Conductivity of concrete depends on the constituent materials, while certain
fillers are also used in concrete to improve packing density. Specific functional fillers can also
improve the conductivity without adversely affecting the properties of concrete. Most common
materials are metals (in the form of fibers steel fiber, Nickel powder) and carbon based materials
(such as graphite powder, Carbon Nano Tubes (CNT) [67], Carbon Black (CB) [5, 68, 69]. One of
these constituents was first used in 1998 to create an electrically conducting and self-sensing
concrete containing carbon fiber, which was patented in the US [70]. This could be used to
measure stress and strain as well as other parameters of the concrete by measuring electrical
characteristics such as impedance, resistivity or conductivity. Applications in traffic monitoring
for example was successfully implemented [68]. This case study is discussed in detail later.

16th NCB International Seminar on Cement, Concrete and Building Materials

03 - 06 December 2019, New Delhi, INDIA
Serviceability and Life Cycle Cost

Service life design of concrete structures has not received much attention from researchers for
structural design as compared to the strength and safety calculations of structures against working
load and accidental overload (as in the case of natural disasters like earthquakes or floods). Since
real life structures are designed for a period ranging between 50 to 100 years and occasionally up
to 200 years or more depending on the importance of the structure (e.g., nuclear power plants), it
is difficult to accurately model all the degradation processes for construction materials making up
these structures. It is also not possible to have sufficiently long-term field data for many materials
(e.g., high performance concrete) in use today as the expected service life is longer than the time
such materials have been available. Various environmental processes cause degradation in
concrete especially in particular reinforced concrete due to corrosion of the steel reinforcements,
accelerated aging test may not be able to capture all those processes. Most design codes only
provide prescriptive design requirements such as limits on water/cement ratio, crack width,
deflection etc. for different exposure conditions due to reliance on available laboratory and field
data. Only recently codes such as the European fib 34 Model code for service life design have
started addressing explicit performance-based design approach to service life (fib Task Group 5.6,
2006) [71]. Thus use of self-sensing and self-healing material in a long-term and robust structural
health monitoring scheme can help overcome the aforementioned challenges [72]. It may even
allow for continuous learning and prescribing appropriate repair and maintenance regimes as
illustrated schematically in Figure 6 and also by following real life examples. The Figure 6 shows
the project cost (left Y axis in solid lines) and structural performance (right Y axis in dotted line)
of a typical infrastructure over its service life. In this conceptual case, 2 cases are studied a) a
structure element made of HPCC with the capability of Smart Monitoring dubbed as ‘HPCC+SM’
in Figure 10 while in other case the structure is made of Normal Materials devoid of any smart
monitoring is dubbed as NM in Figure 6. Due to additional high performance material and sensing
system when the structure is constructed the cost of ‘HPCC+SM’ is higher than that of NM.
However, as time goes by structure deteriorates shown as drop in the structural performance, and
then it is repaired shown as sudden rise in cost of the structure. For ‘HPCC+SM’ due to high
performance material known for its durable properties the average time period between which the
drop is observed is structural performance is expectedly lower and due to smart monitoring
optimal structural use and repair strategy (time, technique) can be determined without detailed
inspection reduces the intensity of the damage thus cost incurred in repairs. It should be noted the
actual material cost (if HPCC is used) and sensing hardware (if installed) is only a fraction of the
initial project cost. As repair and maintenance, cost adds up with time. The life cycle cost can be
several times the initial project cost consequently the ‘HPCC+SM’ outperforms NM in terms of
cost during the service life cycle as illustrated in Figure 6.

Two real life examples involving self-sensing and self-healing smart materials and a case study of
the Global Graduate Tower under construction at HKUST campus would be used to illustrate the
potential of these new class of materials and the gap that still exists between research and practice.
Coupled with innovative performance based design approach, the use of these materials can
potentially transform the construction industry in the future.

Fig. 6: Schematic depiction of life cycle cost against desired performance (After [73])

16th NCB International Seminar on Cement, Concrete and Building Materials

03 - 06 December 2019, New Delhi, INDIA
Life Cycle Analysis of Michigan Bridge-Deck

The SHCC link slab built on a Michigan bridge (shown in Figure 7) has been studied for its life
cycle performance in detail and continues to be subject of active monitoring and research [74-76].
Michigan has extremely harsh winters requiring repeated application of salt to melt the snow on
roads and bridges. The salt results in rapid chloride penetration and short life of reinforced
concrete bridge structures requiring frequent repairs. The joints are particularly vulnerable to this
damage. In order to demonstrate the potential of SHCC with its tight crack width control and
capacity for self-healing, a novel link slab was used to repair the bridge on Grove Street over
inter-state highway I-94 (Fig 11a and b). It was expected that the high resistance to cracking in
SHCC and its ability to accommodate deformation imposed by shrinkage, thermal variation, and
live load will lead to crack free decks, effectively prolonging the life of bridge decks while
minimizing the cost and inconvenience to the motorist public of periodic maintenance. The life
cycle analysis of the SHCC link-slab showed about 40% savings in energy consumption as well
as greenhouse gas emission. Use of the latest version of green High Volume Fly Ash (HVFA)
SHCC [30, 77] can enhance these savings by another 30% in energy and approximately 50% in
CO2 emission while recycling solid wastes. For SHCC, approximately 75% of the cost comes
from PVA fibers. Compared to earlier SHCC mix, HVFA-SHCC show a reduction of 20% in the
cost of the matrix.

Road using Self-Sensing Concrete for Traffic Detection

One of the most successful applications of self-sensing concrete was demonstrated by a test
section in Minnesota Road Research Facility near Albertville, Minnesota [68, 78]. The electrical
resistance of the composite using carbon nanotube (CNT) fibers would change proportionally to
the level of compressive stress. Both pre-cast and cast-in-place self-sensing concrete were used.
The system works very well and can be used for real time online detection of vehicles passing.
Although this particular example illustrates use of smart material for specific task of traffic
detection, it can as easily be used for long-term health monitoring of the road or bridge or
building structures.

Fig. 7: Photographs of Highway Bridge in South-West Michigan where a SHCC link-slab

was used in place of Convention Bridge Deck Joint and the SHCC patch surface [75].

16th NCB International Seminar on Cement, Concrete and Building Materials

03 - 06 December 2019, New Delhi, INDIA
Self-Healing Porous Asphalt Concrete

The self-healing ability of porous asphaltic concrete containing about 8% steel wool was
demonstrated in Netherlands initially in the laboratory and subsequently in the field [79](Liu,
2014). The advantage of porous asphaltic concrete to absorb water as well as noise to reduce run-
off and improve comfort of driving was negated by its tendency towards higher maintenance
demand. By incorporating steel wool which made the material electrically conducting, it was
demonstrated that repair of micro-cracks can be undertaken by inductive heating. More
importantly an estimate by the government’s public works department shows that even if the
initial material cost increases by 100%, the overall savings by extending the service life of the
roads, because of reduced major maintenance cost and the savings in reduced disruption of traffic,
was substantial [80].

HKUST Global Graduate Tower – A case study on Cost

A 8 story reinforced concrete framed structure being constructed on the HKUST campus is
analyzed as a real life case study to examine the cost implication of using advanced smart
construction material such as High Performance Cement Composites (HPCC) instead of the
regular concrete. The elevation of the building is shown in Figure 8. The total built-up area is
10,331 m2 with an estimated 7158 m3 of concrete to be used as per the Bill of Quantities (BoQ).
At a cost of HK$1130/m3 of concrete [81] and initial construction cost of HK $18000/m2 of built-
up area [81] the material cost of the project is about 4.35 % of the project cost. The Life Cycle
Cost over a design service life of 50 years of a typical Hong Kong high rise reinforced concrete
framed building being 2.8 to 3.5 [82], the actual cost fraction of concrete in the whole life cost of
the building would be between 1-2 %. Therefore, an increase of even 8 fold (current cost
differential between SHCC and concrete) in the material cost would at best escalate initial project
cost by about 20 % which would be about 4-7 % of the whole life cost. The benefit on the other
hand could be a significant increase is service life, lower repair and maintenance cost, better
performance in face of natural disaster and lower environmental cost.

Research Gaps

With initial estimate of US$900 billion of planned investments ranging from ports in Pakistan and
Sri Lanka to high-speed railways in east Africa to gas pipelines crossing central Asia, the China’s
‘One Belt, One Road’ project is arguably the largest overseas investment drive ever launched by a
single country. General Electric predicts investment in the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) is
expected to top US$60 trillion during the next 15 years [9]. In comparison the investment required
in research under-way in the field of green ‘Smart Concrete’ is minuscule. Similarly, if all the
planned projects decide to utilize available green and smart concrete technologies in the interest
of longer service life and smaller carbon

16th NCB International Seminar on Cement, Concrete and Building Materials

03 - 06 December 2019, New Delhi, INDIA
Fig. 8 Perspective view of the Global Graduate Tower building (Courtesy - FMO, HKUST)

footprint, the increase in the initial cost of such projects are likely to be well under 10% and in
some cases actually save money over the life cycle of the asset [83] . If investment in research and
use of materials like self-sensing, self-healing smart concrete does not keep pace with the
investment of gigantic sums in infrastructure and technology, it will be a missed opportunity with
significant consequences for the environment, quality of life and global economy at large. For
such a future move to be possible, the research gaps are identified in the following areas:

1. Production of Smart Cementitious Materials for 3-D printing [84, 85]

Automation, robotics and 3-D printing are new technologies that are transforming the labor
intensive conservative construction industry. Designing smart cement based materials for such
technologies is a key research challenge and area of active research at present.

2. Smart Materials with Functional Fillers [5]

Use of novel nano-materials such as nano-silica, graphene, carbon nano-tuber and custom-
designed micro-fibers such as surface treated PVA fibers are an important area of research with
gaps between the cost and value add to get return on the investment. Niche applications such as
the repairs requiring long life, short disruption illustrate one such case.

3. Sensor Design and Integration in SHM including fiber optic [65, 86 - 88] and innovative
signal processing [60, 62, 64]

Typically, in a smart structure, sensor response is relied upon for data driven quantitative and
qualitative decision making. It is going to be a challenge to design functional and sensitive
sensing system to enable smart monitoring in various structural members.

4. Self-Healing under Real Life Conditions [8]

A major gap exists between the demonstration of self-healing in the laboratory and its application
in the field. Some commercial products using bacterial formulations are being lunched in the
market which will result in wider adoption in future.

5. Self-Sensing under Complex Stress/Environmental Fields

16th NCB International Seminar on Cement, Concrete and Building Materials

03 - 06 December 2019, New Delhi, INDIA
Real life structures are complex and are often subjected to multi-axial stress conditions. Use of
self-sensing materials in cost effective way under such environment is a challenge for researchers.

6. Multi-Functionality of Smart Material and Interactions [89], [90]

While properties such as self-sensing and self-healing have been demonstrated independently,
their interaction is relatively less understood. This is an important area of future research.

Summary and Conclusions

Global growth in infrastructure is outpacing investment while underpinning overall economic

growth. As being noticed in mature economies such as United States, Europe and Japan,
investment required for repair and maintenance is starting to exceed investment in new
infrastructures [8]. Emerging economies like India and China where bulk of the new infrastructure
is being built or being planned need to take note of this trend. To achieve sustainability as well as
resilience is going to be the main challenge for these mega infrastructure projects of the future
[17]. Smart cementitious materials cover a very broad category of materials that includes both
self-sensing and self-healing concrete with built in high performance. In this context conclusions
from the review of the latest innovations in construction can be summarized as follows:
1. Major innovations in construction materials technology such as self-sensing of damage and
self-healing or self-repair ability can be critical to enhanced service life. It can also give better
return on investment in terms of lower life cycle costs and smaller carbon footprint.
2. Newer smart cementitious materials have the potential to simultaneously ensure sustainability
and resilience in the new generation infrastructure. In order for this potential to be realized in
practice, Life Cycle cost of a projects should be taken into account not just initial construction
cost. This can be solved through appropriate policy change and intervention by research
community.
3. Smart materials with self-sensing and self-healing abilities facilitate designed service life at a
life cycle cost known a priori. In laboratory studies, self-sensing materials have shown
excellent mechanical property and durability, long service life, as well as easy installation and
maintenance.
4. Autogenous self-healing property of cementitious materials, which has been known for a very
long time, is being exploited and enhanced deliberately using different strategies such as
bacterial and mineral additives as well as crack width control using custom-designed fibers
reinforced composites.
5. Cement materials with both these characteristics (self-healing and self-sensing) as well as
greenness stemming from use of high volume industrial wastes have wide potential
applications in civil infrastructures.
6. Self-sensing and self-healing materials would be helpful for ensuring structural integrity and
safety, extending the lifespan of structures, improving the traffic safety and efficiency,
decreasing the resource and energy consumption etc.
7. The real life examples and case study cited in this paper clearly demonstrate the need for
performance driven design of self-sensing and self-healing materials with specific
functionalities to serve specific requirements.
8. It is also seen that the total project cost whether in terms of initial construction cost or whole
life cost is not affected as strongly by the material cost as is widely believed.

Thus, the future possibilities are bright for self-healing and self-sensing smart cementitious
materials and their applications.

Acknowledgements

Avik K. Das gratefully acknowledges the support of his doctoral studies by the Hong Kong
Research Grant Council through the Hong Kong PhD Fellowship Scheme; while Jing Yu

16th NCB International Seminar on Cement, Concrete and Building Materials

03 - 06 December 2019, New Delhi, INDIA
gratefully acknowledges the support by the Hong Kong Innovation and Technology Commission
through the Technology Talent Scheme. Dhanada K. Mishra thanks KMBB College of
Engineering and Technology, Bhubaneswar, India for permitting his sabbatical to work as a
visiting research scholar at HKUST.

References

[1] I. Borowy, Defining Sustainable Development for Our Common Future: A History of the
World Commission on Environment and Development (Brundtland Commission), 1st ed.
(Routledge 2014).
[2] M.F. Ashby, "Chapter 1 - Introduction: Material Dependence," in Materials and Environment,
2nd ed. (Butterworth-Heinemann 2013):1-14, https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-385971-
6.00001-4
[3] ASCE, "Infrastructure Report Card," American Society of Civil Engineers, 2017,
https://web.archive.org/save/https://www.infrastructurereportcard.org/
[4] P.K. Mehta and P.J. M. Monteiro, Concrete: Microstructure, Properties, and Materials, 4th
Edition, (McGraw-Hill Education, 2014).
[5] B. Han, X. Yu and J. Ou, Self-Sensing Concrete in Smart Structures, 1st ed. (Butterworth-
Heinemann, August 2014): https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-800517-0.12001-5
[6] B. Han, L. Zhang and J. Ou, Smart and Multifunctional Concrete Toward Sustainable
Infrastructures, 1st ed. (Springer, 2017): https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-4349-9
[7] B. Suryanto, W.J. McCarter, G. Starrs, and G.V. Ludford-Jones, "Electrochemical immittance
spectroscopy applied to a hybrid PVA/steel fiber engineered cementitious composite," Materials
& Design 105 (September 2016):179-189, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matdes.2016.05.037
[8] V. Li and E. Herbert, "Robust Self-Healing Concrete for Sustainable Infrastructure," Journal
of Advanced Concrete Technology 10, no. 6 (June 2012): 207-218, https://10.3151/jact.10.207
[9] Wintergreen Research, "Internet of Things (IoT) Market Shares, Strategies, and Forecasts
2017 to 2023," Forbes 4195998 (March 2017):
https://web.archive.org/web/20181027163111/https://www.reportsnreports.com/reports/944711-
internet-of-things-iot-market-shares-strategies-and-forecasts-worldwide-2017-to-2023.html
[10] Y. Xu and J. He, Smart Civil Structures, 1st Edition, CRC Press, (March 2017):1-714, ISBN
9781498743990.
[11] Hong Kong Planning Department, "Hong Kong 2030+: A Smart, Green and Resilient City
Strategy," (Jan 2016): https://web.archive.org/web/20181025005919/https://www.hk2030plus.hk/
[12] C.A. Rogers, "Intelligent Materials," Scientific American 273, no. 3, (Sept 1995): 154-161.
[13] H. Mihashi and T. Nishiwaki, "Development of Engineered Self-Healing and Self-Repairing
Concrete-State-of-the-Art Report," Journal of Advanced Concrete Technology 10, no.5 (May
2012): 170-184, https://doi.org/10.3151/jact.10.170
[14] M. Sun, W.J. Staszewski and R.N. Swamy, "Smart Sensing Technologies for Structural
Health Monitoring of Civil Engineering Structures," Advances in Civil Engineering 2010, no.
2010, (May 2010): 239-251, https://doi.org/10.1155/2010/724962
[15] V. Li, "Tailoring ECC for Special Attributes: A Review," Int J Concr Struct Mater 6, no. 3
(September 2012), 135-144, https://doi.org/10.1007/s40069-012-0018-8
[16] V. Li, "Integrated structures and materials design," Mater Struct 40, no. 4 (May 2007): 387-
396, https:/doi.org/10.1617/s11527-006-9146-4
[17] V.C. Li, "Re-engineering concrete for resilient and sustainable infrastructure," (in Proc of
Institute of Civil Engineers, Hong Kong, April 2015).
[18] T. Peng, L. Lemay and J. Hansen, "Resilience is the new sustainability," Concrete in Focus,
National Ready Mixed Concrete Association, (Spring 2012): 11-29.
[19] A.S. Beletich, Design Handbook For Reinforced Concrete Elements, 2nd ed. (UNSW Press,
2003), https://trove.nla.gov.au/version/46381959
[20] A.J. Threlfall, Designed and Detailed: Eurocode 2, (Concrete Society, 2009).
[21] Hong Kong Building Department, Code of Practice for Structural Use of Concrete, (2013).

16th NCB International Seminar on Cement, Concrete and Building Materials

03 - 06 December 2019, New Delhi, INDIA
[22] A. Djerbi, S. Bonnet, A. Khelidj, and V. Baroghel-Bouny, "Influence of traversing crack on
chloride diffusion into concrete," Cement and Concrete Research 38, no. 6 (June 2008): 877-883,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2007.10.007
[23] K. Wang, D.C. Jansen, S.P. Shah, and A.F. Karr, "Permeability study of cracked concrete,"
Cement and Concrete Research 27, no. 3 (March 1997): 381-393, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0008-
8846(97)00031-8
[24] M.D. Lepech and V.C. Li, "Water permeability of engineered cementitious composites,"
Cement and Concrete Composites 31, no. 10 (November 2009): 744-753,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2009.07.002
[25] J. Yu, C. Lu, Y. Chen, and C.K.Y. Leung, "Experimental determination of crack-bridging
constitutive relations of hybrid-fiber Strain-Hardening Cementitious Composites using digital
image processing," Construction and Building Materials 173 (June 2018): 359-367,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2018.03.185
[26] V.C. Li and C.K.Y. Leung, "Steady-State and Multiple Cracking of Short Random Fiber
Composites," J Eng Mech 118, no. 11 (November 1992): 2246-2264.
[27] V.C. Li and T. Kanda, "Engineered cementitious composites for structural applications," J
Mater Civ Eng 10, no. 2, (April 1998): 66-69.
[28] V.C. Li, "From Micromechanics to Structural Engineering - The Design Of Cementitious
Composites For Civil Engineering Applications," J. of Struc. mechanics and Earthquake
Engineering 10, No.2, (1993): 37-48.
[29] V.C. Li, S. Wang, and C. Wu, "Tensile Strain-Hardening Behavior of PVA-ECC," ACI
Materials Journal 98, no 6, (Nov-Dec 2001): 483-492.
[30] J. Yu, H. Li, C.K.Y. Leung, X. Lin, J.Y.K. Lam, I.M.L. Sham and K. Shih, "Matrix Design
for Waterproof Engineered Cementitious Composites (ECCs)," Construction and Building
Materials 139 (May 2017 ): 438-446, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2017.02.076
[31] X. Lin, J. Yu, H. Li, J.Y.K. Lam, K. Shih, I.M.L. Sham and C.K.Y. Leung, "Recycling
Polyethylene Terephthalate Wastes as Short Fibers in Strain-Hardening Cementitious Composites
(SHCC)," Journal of Hazardous Materials 357 (September 2018): 40-52,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2018.05.046.
[32] C. Lu, J. Yu and C.K.Y. Leung, "Tensile Performance And Impact Resistance Of Strain
Hardening Cementitious Composites (SHCC) with Recycled Fibers," Construction and Building
Materials 171 (May 2018): 566-576, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2018.03.108
[33] J. Yu, J. Yao, X. Lin, H. Li, J.Y.K. Lam, C.K.Y. Leung, I.M.L. Sham and K. Shih, "Tensile
performance of sustainable Strain-Hardening Cementitious Composites with hybrid PVA and
recycled PET fibers," Cement and Concrete Research 107 (May 2018): 110-123,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2018.02.013
[34] B.H. Weimann and V.C. Li, "Hygral Behavior of Engineered Cementitious Composites
(ECC)," International Journal for Restoration of Buildings and Monuments 9, no. 5 (2003): 513-
534.
[35] C.K.Y. Leung and Q. Cao, "Development Of Pseudo-Ductile Permanent Formwork For
Durable Concrete Structures," Materials and Structures/Materiaux et Constructions 43, no. 7
(August 2010), 993-1007, https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-009-9561-4.
[36] C.K.Y. Leung, "Design Criteria for Pseudo-Ductile Fiber Composites," ASCE Journal of
Engineering Mechanics 122, no 1, (Jan 1996): 10-18.
[37] C. Lu, V.C. Li and C.K.Y. Leung, "Flaw Characterization And Correlation With Cracking
Strength In Engineered Cementitious Composites (ECC)," Cement and Concrete Research 107
(May 2018 ): 64-74, https://doi-org.lib.ezproxy.ust.hk/10.1016/j.cemconres.2018.02.024
[38] V.C. Li and E. Yang, "Self-Healing in Concrete Materials," (in Self-healing Materials - An
Alternative Approach To 20 Centuries Of Materials Science, ed. S. van der Zwaag, Springer, the
Netherlands 2007), pp. 161– 194.
[39] Y. Yang, E. Yang and V.C. Li, "Autogenous Healing of Engineered Cementitious
Composites at Early Age," Cement and Concrete Research 41, no. 2 (February 2011): 176-183,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2010.11.002
[40] L. Hou, J. Wang, T. Huang, C. Shen, F. Aslani and D. Chen, "Flexural Behaviour of
Corroded Reinforced Concrete Beams Repaired With Ultra-High Toughness Cementitious

16th NCB International Seminar on Cement, Concrete and Building Materials

03 - 06 December 2019, New Delhi, INDIA
Composite," Construction and Building Materials 211 (June 2019): 1127-1137,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2019.03.214
[41] S. Zwaag (Ed), Self-Healing Materials: An Alternative Approach to 20th Centuries of
Materials Science, (Springer, 2008), https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-6250-6
[42] RILEM, "Self-Healing Phenomena in Cement-Based Materials: State-of-the-Art Report of
RILEM Technical Committee 221-SHC: Self-Healing Phenomena in Cement-Based Materials,"
State-of-the-Art Report of RILEM Technical Committee 221-SHC: Self-Healing Phenomena in
Cement-Based Materials, vol. 11 (March 2013), https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6624-2
[43] C. Dry, "Passive Smart Materials for Sensing and Actuation," J Intell Mater Syst Struct 4, no.
3 (January 2019): 420-425, https://doi.org/10.1177/1045389X9300400318
[44] V.C. Li, Y.M. Lim, and Y.W Chan, "Feasibility Study of a Passive Smart Self-healing
Cementitious Composite," Composites Part B: Engineering 29, no 6 (November 1998): 819-827.
[45] M. Sahmaran, G. Yildirim and T.K. Erdem, "Self-Healing Capability of Cementitious
Composites Incorporating Different Supplementary Cementitious Materials," Cement and
Concrete Composites, 35, no. 1 (January 2013): 89-101,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2012.08.013
[46] T. Ahn and T. Kishi, "Crack Self-healing Behavior of Cementitious Composites
Incorporating Various Mineral Admixtures," Journal of Advanced Concrete Technology 8, no. 2
(June 2010): 171-186, https://doi.org/10.3151/jact.8.171
[47] U.K. Gollapudi, C.L. Knutson, S.S. Bang and M.R. Islam, "A New Method for Controlling
Leaching Through Permeable Channels," Chemosphere 30, no. 4 (February 1995): 695-705,
https://doi.org/10.1016/0045-6535(94)00435-W.
[48] Z. Jiang, J. Li and W. Li, "Preparation and Autolytic Behavior of Autolytic Mineral
Microsphere For Self-Healing Cementitious Materials," Cement and Concrete Composites,(April
2019 ):, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2019.04.004
[49] S. Sangadji. "Porous Network Concrete: A Bio-Inspired Building Component To Make
Concrete Structures Self-Healing" (PhD diss., TU Delft, March 2015).
[50] K. Van Tittelboom, N. De Belie, D. Van Loo and P. Jacobs, "Self-healing efficiency of
cementitious materials containing tubular capsules filled with healing agent," Cement and
Concrete Composites 33, no. 4 (April 2011), 497-505,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2011.01.004
[51] K. Van Tittelboom and N. De Belie, "Self-Healing in Cementitious Materials - A Review,"
Materials 6, no. 6 (May 2013): 2182-2217, https://doi.org/10.3390/ma6062182
[52] K. Van Tittelboom, N. De Belie, W. De Muynck, and W. Verstraete, "Use of Bacteria to
Repair Cracks in Concrete," Cem Concr Res 40, no. 1 (January 2010): 157-166,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2009.08.025
[53] P. Jongvivatsakul, K. Janprasit, P. Nuaklong, W. Pungrasmi, and S. Likitlersuang,
"Investigation of the Crack Healing Performance in Mortar Using Microbially Induced Calcium
Carbonate Precipitation (MICP) Method," Construction and Building Materials 212 (July 2019):
737-744, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2019.04.035
[54] M.A.E.M. Ali and M.L. Nehdi, "Innovative Crack-Healing Hybrid Fiber Reinforced
Engineered Cementitious Composite," Construction and Building Materials 150 (September
2017): 689-702, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2017.06.023
[55] E. Herbert. "Development and Application of Self-healing Engineered Cementitious
Composites (ECC) for Durable and Sustainable Infrastructure" (PhD diss., University of
Michigan, 2016).
[56] A.R. Suleiman, A.J. Nelson, and M.L. Nehdi, "Visualization and Quantification of Crack
Self-Healing In Cement-Based Materials Incorporating Different Minerals," Cement and Concrete
Composites 103 (October 2019 ): 49-58, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2019.04.026
[57] M.L. Wang, J.P. Lynch, and H. Sohn (Eds), Sensor Technologies for Civil Infrastructures,
Volume 1: Sensing Hardware and Data Collection Methods for Performance Assessment, 1st ed.
(Woodhead Publishing 2014).
[58] A.K. Das, T.T. Lai, C.W. Chan, and C.K.Y. Leung, "A New Non-Linear Framework For
Localization of Acoustic Sources," Structural Health Monitoring 18, no. 2 (April 2019): 590-601,
https://doi.org/10.1177/1475921718762154

16th NCB International Seminar on Cement, Concrete and Building Materials

03 - 06 December 2019, New Delhi, INDIA
[59] A.K. Das and C.K.Y. Leung, "A New Power-Based Method To Determine The First Arrival
Information Of An Acoustic Emission Wave," Structural Health Monitoring, (April
2019):1475921718815058, https://doi.org/10.1177/1475921718815058.
[60] A.K. Das, D. Suthar, and C.K.Y. Leung, "Machine Learning Based Crack Mode
Classification From Unlabeled Acoustic Emission Waveform Features," Cement and Concrete
Research 121 (July 2019): 42-57, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2019.03.001
[61] C.K.Y. Leung, K.T. Wan, and L. Chen, "A Novel Optical Fiber Sensor for Steel Corrosion in
Concrete Structures," Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) 8, no. 3 (Mar 2008): 1960-1976,
https://doi.org/10.3390/s8031960
[62] A.K. Das. '"Experimental Study of Cracking Process in Steel Fiber Reinforced Concrete
Beam Members," (M Phil Thesis, HKUST, 2017).
[63] V.G.M. Annamdas, S. Bhalla, and C.K. Soh, "Applications of Structural Health Monitoring
Technology In Asia," Structural Health Monitoring 16, no. 3 (June 2016): 324-346,
https://doi.org/10.1177/1475921716653278.
[64] A.K. Das and C.K.Y. Leung, "Power Spectral Entropy (PSE) as a Qualitative Damage
Indicator," (in Proceedings of EWSHM 2018, Manchestor, United Kingdom, 2018).
[65] C. Leung, K. Wan, D. Inaudi, X. Bao, W. Habel, Z. Zhou, J. Ou, M. Ghandehari, H. Wu, and
M. Imai, "Review: Optical Fiber Sensors for Civil Engineering Applications," Mater Struct 48,
no. 4 (November 2013): 871-906, https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-013-0201-7
[66] P. Azarsa and R. Gupta, "Electrical Resistivity of Concrete for Durability Evaluation: A
Review," Advances in Materials Science and Engineering 2017, (May 2017),
https://doi.org/10.1155/2017/8453095
[67] S. Gupta, J.G. Gonzalez, and K.J. Loh, "Self-sensing Concrete Enabled By Nano-Engineered
Cement-Aggregate Interfaces," Structural Health Monitoring 16, no. 3 (February 2019): 309-
https://doi.org/10.1177/1475921716643867
[68] B. Han, K. Zhang, T. Burnham, E. Kwon, and X. Yu, "Integration and Road Tests of a Self-
Sensing CNT Concrete Pavement System for Traffic Detection," Smart Materials and Structures
22, no. 1 (December 2012), https://doi.org/10.1088/0964-1726/22/1/015020
[69] L. Shi, Y. Lu and Y. Bai, "Mechanical and Electrical Characterisation of Steel Fiber and
Carbon Black Engineered Cementitious Composites," Procedia Engineering 188 (2018): 325-
332, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2017.04.491
[70] D.D.L. Chung, "Composite Material Strain/stress Sensor," US Patent no. US5817944 A
(1998).
[71] fib Task Group 5.6, "Model Code for Service Life Design," (February 2006).
[72] van Zijl, Gideon P. A. G., and V. Slowik, "A Framework for Durability Design with Strain-
Hardening Cement-Based Composites (SHCC): State-of-the-Art Report of the RILEM Technical
Committee 240-FDS," (RILEM State of the Art Report vol. 22, 2017),
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1013-6
[73] K. Brugel, "Is There a Market for Self-Healing Cement based Materials?", (in Proceedings of
the First International Conference on Self-Healing Materials, Noordwijk aan ZeeNoordwijk aan
Zee, The Netherlands, April 2007).
[74] M.D. Lepech and V.C. Li, "Design and Field Demonstration of ECC Link Slabs for Jointless
Bridge Decks," (in proceedings of Third International Conference on Construction Materials:
Performance, Innovations and Structural Implications - CONMAT '05, Vancouver, Canada,
2005).
[75] V.C. Li, G. Fischer, Y. Kim, M. Lepech, S. Qian, M. Weimann, and S. Wang,"Durable Link
Slabs for Jointless Bridge Decks Based on Strain-Hardening Cementitious Composites."
University of Michigan Research Report RC-1438, Michigan Department of Transportion,
(November 2003),
https://web.archive.org/web/20190704131712/https://www.michigan.gov/documents/mdot_rc-
1438_83611_7.pdf
[76] G.A. Keoleian, A. Kendall, V.M. Smith, R.F. Chandler, J.E. Dettling, M.D. Lepech, and
V.C. Li, "Life Cycle Modeling of Concrete Bridge Design: Comparison of Engineered
Cementitious Composite Link Slabs and Conventional Steel Expansion Joints," J Infrastruct Syst
11, no. 1 (March 2005): 51-60, https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)1076-0342(2005)11:1(51)

16th NCB International Seminar on Cement, Concrete and Building Materials

03 - 06 December 2019, New Delhi, INDIA
[77] J. Yu and C.K.Y. Leung, "Strength Improvement of Strain-Hardening Cementitious
Composites with Ultrahigh-Volume Fly Ash," J Mater Civ Eng 29, no. 9, (September 2017),
https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)MT.1943-5533.0001987.
[78] B. Han, X. Yu and E. Kwon, "A Self-Sensing Carbon Nanotube/Cement Composite for
Traffic Monitoring," Nanotechnology 20, no. 44 (October 2009), 445501,
https://doi.org/10.1088/0957-4484/20/44/445501
[79] Q. Liu, W. Yu, E. Schlangen, and G. van Bochove, "Unravelling Porous Asphalt Concrete
With Induction Heating," Construction and Building Materials, vol. 71 (November 2014 ): 152-
157, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2014.08.048.
[80] N.L. Agency, "Self Healing Materials Concept and Applications," Ministry of Economic
Afffairs, Agriculture and Innovation, Publication number 3ISHM1101, 2nd ed. (June 2011),
https://web.archive.org/web/20190704130300/https://www.betase.nl/downloads/Self-healing-
materials-2011.pdf
[81] RLB Hong Kong Report," Hong Kong Report: Quaterly Construction Cost Update,"
(December 2018), https://web.archive.org/web/20190704125421/https://www.rlb.com/wp-
content/uploads/2017/10/RLB-Construction-Cost-Update-HK-Q3-2017.pdf
[82] S. Humphrey, A. Amato, and R. Frewer, "Whole Life Comparison of High Rise Residential
Blocks in Hong Kong," (Report for Hong Kong Housing Authority, Hong Kong, SAR China,
2004),
https://web.archive.org/web/20190704130011/https://www.housingauthority.gov.hk/hdw/ihc/pdf/
wlchrrr.pdf
[83] J. Yu, C. Lu, C.K.Y. Leung, and G. Li, "Mechanical Properties of Green Structural Concrete
with Ultrahigh-Volume Fly Ash," Constr Build Mater 147 (August 2017) 510-518,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2017.04.188
[84] Y.W.D. Tay, B. Panda, S.C. Paul, N.A. Noor Mohamed, M.J. Tan, and K.F. Leong, "3D
Printing Trends in Building and Construction Industry: A Review," Virtual and Physical
Prototyping 12, no. 3 (May 2017): 261-276, https://doi.org/10.1080/17452759.2017.1326724
[85] J. Romeo, "Building the Future: How 3D Printing will Revolutionize the Construction
Industry," Plast Eng 74, no. 3 (March 2018): 16-21, https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1941-
9635.2018.tb01853.x
[86] Y. Yao and B. Glisic, "Detection of Steel Fatigue Cracks with Strain Sensing Sheets Based
on Large Area Electronics," Sensors 15, no. 4 (April 2015): 8088-8108,
https://doi.org/10.3390/s150408088
[87] C.K.Y. Leung, "Fiber Optic Sensors in Concrete: The Future?" NDT and E International 34,
no. 2 (March 2001), 85-94, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0963-8695(00)00033-5
[88] C.K.Y. Leung, N. Elvin, N. Olson, T.F. Morse, and Y. He, "A Novel Distributed Optical
Crack Sensor for Concrete Structures," Eng Fract Mech 65, no. 2-3 (January 2000): 133-148,
https://doi.org/10.1016/S0013-7944(99)00112-5
[89] C. Lu, Z. Lu, Z. Li, and C.K.Y. Leung, "Effect of Graphene Oxide on the Mechanical
Behavior of Strain Hardening Cementitious Composites," Construction and Building Materials
120 (September 2016 ): 457-464, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2016.05.122
[90] J. Yu. "Multi-Scale Study on Strain-Hardening Cementitious Composites with Hybrid
Fibers" (PhD diss., HKUST, August 2017).

16th NCB International Seminar on Cement, Concrete and Building Materials

03 - 06 December 2019, New Delhi, INDIA