Utilizing a Particle Packing Approach for an Illinois-Specific, Nonproprietary, Low-Shrinkage UHPC

Project Details
STATE

IL

SOURCE

RIP

START DATE

07/01/21

END DATE

06/30/24

RESEARCHERS

Nishant Garg, Mathew Gombeda

SPONSORS

Illinois DOT

KEYWORDS

Building materials, Costs, Durability, Mix design, Optimization, Particles, Piles (Supports), Strength of materials, Ultra high performance concrete (UHPC)

Project description

The objective of the project is to develop optimum mix designs of UHPC for general use in the state of Illinois. The main goal of pursuing this research is to facilitate the production of non-proprietary UHPC having optimal particle packing and made with locally available materials, which include fine aggregates (e.g., sand, silica powder, and fine quartz), cement, chemical and mineral admixtures, and steel fibers. In fact, to advance UHPC applications in the United States, and specifically in IDOT, two conditions need to be met: the cost of UHPC raw materials must be reduced to less than $1000/yd³, compared to the cost of about $2000/yd³ for prebagged materials, and structural systems must be developed to capitalize on the unique capabilities of UHPC to allow for reduction of member weight by about 50% while maintaining adequate strength and stiffness and preserving the high durability of the material.
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