Factors affecting the plastic shrinkage cracking of high-strength concrete

Tests were developed to quantify parameters affecting the plastic shrinkage cracking of high-strength concrete of 28-day cube strength in excess of 70 MPa. The parameters measured were tensile stress-strain performance during the first 5 h after mixing and negative pore pressure development and free shrinkage during the first 24 h. Eight high-strength mixes were used containing a variety of supplementary cementing materials such as microsilica, pulverised fuel ash, granulated slag and metakaolin. Two types of superplasticers were included. Plastic shrinkage cracking was assessed using restrained ring tests in which measurements were taken using sealed samples and samples exposed to wind. The research has shown that there is no simple relationship between early age stress-strain curves, negative pore pressure, early age shrinkage and macrocracking in adverse conditions but two factors were always present when plastic cracking was observed, these being microsilica and wind