Research lines
The mission of the group is to perform the research directly serving societal challenges.
The main challenges in the area of concrete structures are the assessment and strengthening of existing structures, upscaling innovative concretes to minimize material use and waste. and the integration of new technologies, including artificial intelligence and sensor technology, to enhance the safety and sustainability of concrete structures. Therefore, the research activities of the group are mainly focused on three research lines:
- assessment of existing concrete structures
- The group is famous for the research on failure mechanisms, especially shear failure, development of non-destructive techniques such as acoustic emission for damage detection (monitoring), and on assessing and developing guidelines for proof loading of existing structures.
- upscaling of new concrete materials
- Group activities are focused on developing safe procedures for the structural application of new types of concretes in order to serve societal demands. For example, using Ultra High Performance Fibre Reinforced Concrete (UHPFRC) for developing a fast and safe procedure for the replacement of existing bridges, using UHPFRC and bendable concrete (SHCC) for strengthening and repair or “green” (geopolymer) concrete as more sustainable building material. Current interest of the group is to investigate and develop a guideline for a safe structural application of these materials in reinforced and pre-stressed elements and structures.
- data-driven concrete science.
The group has led and collaborated on numerous (inter)national projects to improve both existing and new concrete structures, conducting most of the research in the Stevinlab, in partnership with other knowledge institutions, industry, and government agencies
