Plastic Shrinkage Cracking in Internally Cured Mixtures Made with Pre-wetted Lightweight Aggregate

Published

February 1, 2010

Author(s)

Ryan Henkensiefken, Peter Briatka, Dale P. Bentz, Tommy Nantung, Jason Weiss

Abstract

The incorporation of pre-wetted lightweight aggregates (LWA) has been used to reduce the shrinkage cracking associated with self-desiccation in the hardened state. Little research however exists which shows the influence of internal curing on the formation of plastic shrinkage cracks. The paper presents a background on the formation of plastic shrinkage cracks and then presents results from a study that examined mortar and concrete systems with pre-wetted LWA. Specifically the results indicate that the incorporation of pre-wetted LWA can reduce the settlement and formation of plastic shrinkage cracks. It is shown that water will preferentially leave the LWA thus resulting in a system which remains more saturated.

Citation

Concrete International

Volume

32

Issue

2

Pub Type

Journals

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Keywords

Evaporation, Internal Curing, Plastic Shrinkage, Lightweight Aggregates, Settlement, Shrinkage Cracking.

Citation

Henkensiefken, R. , Briatka, P. , Bentz, D. , Nantung, T. and Weiss, J. (2010), Plastic Shrinkage Cracking in Internally Cured Mixtures Made with Pre-wetted Lightweight Aggregate, Concrete International, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=901532 (Accessed October 20, 2025)