In recent decades, the utilization of mineral and chemical admixtures in concrete technology has led to changes in the formulation and mix design which has, in turn, made the concrete stronger and more durable. Light weight concrete (LWC) is an excellent solution in terms of decreasing the dead load of the structure, while self-compacting concrete (SCC) eases the pouring and removes construction problems. Combining the advantages of LWC and SCC is a new field of research. Considering its light weight of structure and ease of placement, Light-weight self-compacting concrete (LWSCC) may be the answer to the increasing construction requirements of slender and more heavily reinforced structural elements. Twenty one laboratory experimental investigations on the mix proportion, density and mechanical properties of LWSCC have been published in the last 12 years and these are analyzed in this study. The collected information is used to investigate the mix proportions including the chemical and mineral admixtures, light weight and normal weight aggregates, fillers, cement and water. Analyzed results are presented in terms of statistical expressions. It is very helpful for future research to choose the proper components with different ratios and curing conditions to attain the desired concrete grade according to the planned application.

Wrapping technology is one of the effective ways of strengthening concrete elements. Several researchers reported the effectiveness of Glass fiber reinforced polymers and carbon fiber reinforced polymers for improving the strength of the concrete elements. Wrapping on three sides is one of the effective methods for strengthening the beams supporting slabs. Available literatures on the strength enhancement of “U” wrapped concrete elements subjected to torsional loads do not give a detailed insight, whereas this investigation is an attempt to address the issues with ferrocement “U” wrap. Ferrocement “U” wraps are preferred over FRPs because of its cost factor. The “U” wraps are found to provide better torque carrying capacity under all states of torsion while under reinforced members provide better toughness over other states of torsion. Similarly completely over reinforced beams provide more torque resisting capacity than the others. Increase of torsional capacity is more prominent in states of torsion while improvement in torsional strength with number of mesh layers in ferrocement “U” wrap is minimal.

The urgency of global climate change has drawn significant attention to the building industry over the last few years. Today, the building sector is responsible for the emission of about 23–40% of the world greenhouse gases. This is plausible owing to the various non environmental friendly materials used by modern building industry and the palpable contemporary design construct. Unlike modern buildings, traditional building materials are proven to be earth conscious and have nearly zero carbon footprints. Yet, the modernist building sector with its insatiable drive for autonomy has relegated lessons from traditional building to being primitive. Moreover, the absence of objects of industrialisation has been defined as forming conformity with poverty. Hence, this research seeks to scientifically examine Adobe as one of the traditional building materials. In that vein, the environmental impact of the use of adobe will be studied. The study also purports to adequately examine the advantages and disadvantages of the use of adobe in modern construction. Methodologically, owing to the aims of this research, a qualitative computer based simulation approach is adopted. A typical traditional Adobe building in Louroujina—North Cyprus, will be simulated through a parametric computer based simulation done using Revit Architecture, with a green studio plug-in. Software acknowledge by the United State Department of Energy (DOE 2015). This simulation procedure models the carbon emission of the building and the yearly energy consumption. Summarily, this paper posits that the successful fusion of traditional building materials such as Adobe and modern design construct will not only give birth to earth conscious building, but will also be energy efficient. Moreover, it will be a substitute building material the building industry can adopt at as a contributing solution to the omniscient global warming malady.

The objective of this study was to assess the present state of the reinforced concrete poles of fence at the former Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II-Birkenau concentration and extermination camp. The poles were subjected to renovation about 10 years ago. After this time some deficiencies of applied renovation method were noticed. Cracks appeared between fresh and original part of concrete cover. Analysis of the reasons of these failures was performed and a modification of used restoration method was proposed to overcome this deficiency. The modification consists in application of sacrificial anodes mounted outside the pole, in soil and inside the concrete cover.

Highlights • The use of research data banks supports innovation processes particularly in SME. • Future trends in a specific industry can be interpreted by the Technology-S-Curve concept. • Data on projects can be assessed using a matrix-based approach. • A research portfolio as 4-field matrix serves as Future-Matrix in ideation. • This kind of portfolio analysis provides ideas for radical and incremental innovations. Today’s plastics are increasingly compounded using renewable fibres. Such composites raised the interest of the massively bulk-plastics consuming building industry. However, “green” products are still rare and their development constitutes a challenge particularly for small companies. Our study evaluated European scientific projects in composites from which we derived a Research Portfolio serving as future matrix for ideation. It was found that research databanks can serve as basis for strategic innovation planning. We were able to identify several appropriate future technologies and material applications in the field of bio-based plastics composites. Our methodology particularly supports manufacturers with less formalized innovation processes.

An assessment of corrosion conditions, aimed at the detection of the most suitable intervention method, of the reinforced concrete elements of Torre Velasca, which, from the late 1950s, characterises the skyline of the city centre of Milan, was carried out. The facades of the Tower are marked by the presence of structural elements coated with thick and dense layers of render and mortar. In-situ and laboratory analyses showed that the high thickness and compactness of the coating played a positive role in preventing the propagation of carbonation and of corrosion. It was estimated that after 50 years most rebars embedded in concrete were either still passive or free from actively-propagating corrosion. Hence it was concluded that most of the original concrete and coating could be preserved without further protection. However, this repair strategy could be compromised by the risk of loss of adhesion of the coating to the underlying concrete, and this crucial aspect should be better investigated in the design of the repair work.

In order to evaluate the risk of the source and quantity of cement SO3 on the expansion properties of mortars, this paper studied the influence of Gypsum, Bassanite and clinker sulfate on the cement paste expansion and the formation of delayed ettringite. The investigation covers the mortar cured at 20 °C and 80 °C and stored in water. In contradiction to many studies, the results showed that the cement produced with high sulfur clinker had lower expansion than that produced with classical gypsum or high soluble Bassanite. In addition to that, we have detected that the percentage of SO3, in the cement, could increase the risk of DEF if it surpasses the level of 3.5%. Also, the curing temperature at 80 °C affects the microstructure of concrete by generating cracks in the cement paste.

In the urban area, the heat island phenomenon and hot nights when the temperature does not fall below 25 °C outdoors are becoming environmental problems. Pavements cover a high percentage of the urban area and largely affect the development of the urban heat island phenomenon. The authors have developed water retaining pavements with several cement-based grouting materials poured into voids of open graded asphalt pavements (porous asphalt pavements) to reduce the surface temperature in the hot summer climate. The cement-based grouting materials consist of cement, ceramic waste powder, and fly ash or natural zeolite. In field measurements conducted in the summer season, all of the water retaining pavements reduced the surface temperature by 10 °C and more, when the porous asphalt pavement reached over 60 °C. Especially, one of the water retaining pavements, which uses ultra-rapid hardening cement, ceramic waste powder, and natural zeolite, reduced the surface temperature by about 20 °C. In this paper, the details of the cement-based grouting materials used in the field tests are described. Also, the field test results on the thermal performance of the water retaining pavements are reported.

The technique of assessing the quality of the painted surface of cement concrete. The technique is based on acceptance sampling quality and is to determine the average and standard deviation (SD) of quantitative assessments of various quality parameters and calculating the real defect level (percentage of defective surface of the total area) for each indicator. The formulas for calculating the defect level. The critical fraction nonconforming surface area coverage for individual properties.