EFFECT OF AUTOGENOUS SHRINKAGE STRAIN ON THERMAL STRESS OF CONCRETE GRAVITY DAMS IN CONSTRUCTION STAGE

Abstract

 In concrete dams, the control of thermal stress caused by hydration heat of cement is an important issue. For that reason, various studies have been conducted for thermal crack control for a long time. In recent years, with the development of analytical methods, it has become possible to examine the thermal stress in the design and construction stages in detail. On the other hand, it has been made clear that, even with lean mixed dam concrete, autogenous shrinkage should not be ignored depending on the type of cement and mix proportion. In this study, the effect of the autogenous shrinkage strain on thermal stress in construction stage of concrete gravity dams was experimentally and analytically investigated. As a result, it has been made clear that autogenous shrinkage strain can be a cause of thermal cracking in concrete gravity dams during construction stage.