Numerical and experimental study of transient heat transfer through concrete.

Abstract

The increase in temperature of developing concrete as a result of heat liberated by cementing reactions is the primary cause for thermally induced cracks in large concrete elements. It is very essential, in engineering to predict the temperature rises in order to be able to minimise the potential of crack formation. This thesis covers the experimental determination of the heat of hydration curve using the adiabatic calorimeter and experimental determination of transient heat transfer obtained from measurement of temperature variations in concrete at its early ages of hydration. The measured temperature profiles from a one-dimensional heat transfer scenario are then compared with the predicted temperature profiles. The adiabatic hydration curve of a concrete beam sample is used as input into a numerical technique known as the Green Element Method for the calculation of temperature profiles. Time-based boundary conditions are imposed on the equation governing the model and will be solved using the Green Element Method coded in Fortran Power Station 4.0.