Development and Structural Evaluation of Cement-less UHPC for Sustainable Concrete Applications

This Data Management Plan (DMP) is created for research application No. 1.1.1.9/LZP/1/24/148 "Development and Structural Evaluation of Cement-less UHPC for Sustainable Concrete Applications". supported by Activity 1.1.1.9 "Post-doctoral Research" of the Specific Objective 1.1.1 "Strengthening research and innovative capacities and introduction of advanced technologies in the common R&D system" of the European Union's Cohesion Policy Programme for 2021-2027. The main goal of this postdoctoral project is the development of cement-less ultra-high performance concrete (CL-UHPC) using ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) replacement and wheat straw ash (WSA) as a cost-efficient cement and silica fume replacements, lime-based activator with calcium formate (CF) accelerator, and recycled steel fiber (RSF) as structural reinforcement. While designed to offer a sustainable and economical alternative, the long-term performance of CL-UHPC still requires further investigation. Additionally, its fire spalling behavior, a known concern for UHPC, will be assessed for the first time in this study. Two strategies to mitigate fire spalling will be used: a two-stage hot air curing process and the inclusion of polypropylene fibers (PF). The research will investigate the bond strength of lap spliced bars in CL-UHPC by testing reinforced concrete beams, whereas OpenSees shall be employed to model them. Existing development length models will be assessed, and nonlinear fiber-based modeling will be conducted using OpenSees. Additionally, the structural application of CL-UHPC will be explored in RC deep beams. ABAQUS will be utilized for numerical modeling to analyze the performance of deep beams.

The main objectives of the project will be:

1) Optimization of the mix proportions of CL-UHPC: development of a novel CL-UHPC composition by integrating WSA and RSF; identification of the optimal mix proportions by evaluating compressive strength, uniaxial tensile strength, and flowability.

2) Assessment of the durability of CL-UHPC: evaluation of the CL-UHPC formulations by measuring resistivity, porosity, sorptivity, and resistance to chloride migration to assess the quality of the cementitious materials.

3) Evaluation of the fire endurance of CL-UHPC: investigation of the fire-spalling behavior of CL-UHPC; assessment using two options - (1) two-stage hot air curing process and (2) addition of PF.

4) Investigation of bond behavior of lap spliced bars in CL-UHPC: assessment of the bond behavior and existing development equations of lap spliced bars in CL-UHPC; tests with varying parameters such as lap splice length and cover-to-diameter ratio.

5) Exploration of the performance of CL-UHPC in deep beams: examination of the shear span-to-depth ratio and the size of circular web openings; ABAQUS calculations to predict the response of CL-UHPC with and without openings.

6) Calculations of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA): evaluation of the environmental impacts associated with the raw material extraction, production, use, and disposal of CL-UHPC.

Research project will be implemented at Institute of Sustainable Building Materials and Engineering Systems, Riga Technical University (Latvia).

The purpose of the DMP is to outline the strategy for data collection, storing, and sharing at all the stages of research project implementation while ensuring compliance with the legal and ethical requirements. DMP will include bibliographic and experimental data arranged in datasets distinguished by relevant research activities.