CoTM 6203 Advanced Construction

Material & Equipment Management

2. General advanced construction

materials
 Introduction

• Materials science and engineering is a multidisciplinary area that

covers all engineering materials such as metals, ceramics, plastics,
composites, and nanomaterials.
Civil engineers deal mostly with steel, concrete, timber, soils,
and their properties
 Material Science are interested in different alloys and
composite materials.
 Advanced materials

• With rapid economic development and the scarcity of natural resources,

the use of
Synthetic materials (e.g., polymers, composites),
 Industrial by-products (e.g., slag, fly ash),
Recycled materials and their combinations with traditional materials (e.g., concrete and
soils) has recently become more prevalent in civil engineering projects.

• Hence, there is a growing need for civil engineers/Architects to learn

more about these advanced materials tied with traditional materials.
 Civil engineering projects

• Civil engineering mainly deals with the design and construction of civil
infrastructure (e.g., dams, embankments, roads, buildings and bridges)
and the provision of services such as water supply and sewerage.
• Those projects involve the use of various materials for design and
construction.
• It is commonly expected that civil engineers have an in-depth
knowledge of these conventional and advanced materials to select
the materials to carry out the design and construction.
 Widely used materials in civil engineering

• Concrete and steel are the two most used materials in civil engineering
for construction of buildings and bridges.
• Timber is still being used as a building material, especially in housing
where the loadings are relatively small in magnitude.
• Aggregates and asphalt/bitumen are used widely in roadwork.
 Widely used …

• Geosynthetics are becoming increasingly popular in roadwork

and slopes, and new products are coming into the market
every year.
• Metals, polymers, and composites also have their place in civil
engineering construction.
 Innovation in materials

• Vast quantities of materials consumed in civil engineering, So

radically new primary or commodity materials will emerge in the
near future.
• High value-added materials produced in small volumes using
advanced manufacturing processes may offer unique benefits
• Radical displacement of the main materials: concrete, steel,
brick, stone, glass and polymers might be needed.
 Innovation in …

• Concrete technology has exploited numerous chemical additives which

modify, for example, workability or allow air-entrainment to improve
frost resistance.
• Now days, Civil engineering and construction are among the largest end-
uses of polymers (plastics and rubbers), mostly in non-structural
applications such as membranes, geotextiles, fibres, coatings, adhesives
and sealants.
 Example of remarkable discoveries
• Among the most remarkable and unexpected discovery of new forms of pure
carbon materials: the
• Fullerenes:-carbon atom connected by single or double bond formed closed mesh
• Most recently graphene:- carbon consisting single layer of atoms arranged in a
two- dimensional honeycomb nanostructure
• Carbon nanotubes:-are the stiffest materials yet known (stiffer than
diamond), and at least on the small scale the strongest.
 Example of …
• Innovations in materials from many fields will diffuse into civil
engineering over time.
• Examples can be found in
Energy technology (photoactive materials for solar energy conversion);
 Sensor materials for structural health monitoring; and in
 Super hydrophilic photocatalytic coatings for self-cleaning surfaces such as flat
glass or superhydrophobic surfaces to shed water.
 Classification of Materials
• Materials are broadly classified, based on chemical makeup and
atomic structure, into 3 basic categories:
1. Metals
2. Ceramics, and
3. Polymers
• In addition to the 3 basic types of materials, composites and
nanomaterials are also considered due to their importance in civil
engineering applications.
 Metals

• Metals are generally made up of one or more metallic elements such as

iron, copper, aluminum, and magnesium.
• A small amount of nonmetallic elements such as carbon, nitrogen, and
oxygen may also be present.
• The product of a combination of metallic elements and presence of a
small amount of nonmetallic elements is called an alloy.
• All metals are mostly crystalline, the atoms in metals are arranged in an
orderly fashion, and hence, the density of metals is higher as compared
to the amorphous ceramics and polymers.
 Metals
• Metals are good conductors of electricity and heat.
• Steel, an alloy of iron, is widely used in structural frameworks for
buildings due to its excellent mechanical properties.
• However, corrosion in certain metals, including steels, is a serious
problem that affects their longevity and widespread applications.
 Ceramics
• Ceramics are generally composed of metallic and nonmetallic elements like
oxides (Al2O3), carbides (SiC), and nitrides (Si3N4) and include glass, cement,
and clay.
• The strength, hardness, and stiffness of ceramics are high, but they are very
brittle (poor ductility).
• These materials are widely used as insulating materials due to their high
resistance to heat.
 Ceramics

• They also possess high resistance to electricity.

• In modern buildings, the use of glass as "curtain walls" has been
steadily increasing.
• Corrosion is not a problem with ceramics, so they are widely used
as coating materials on metals to withstand aggressive corrosive
environments.
 Polymers

• Polymers are long-chain molecules, and they contain elements such

as carbon (backbone for polymers), hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen.
• Polymers can be natural or synthetic (e.g., polyvinyl chloride (PVC),
polyethylene, nylon, and polycarbonate).
• The use of polymers in engineering applications has grown rapidly
due to their attractive properties, such as their light weight and easy
fabrication.
• However, their mechanical strength is inferior to metals and ceramics.
 Polymers
• Low melting points, unsuitable in high-temperature applications.
• Polymers, commonly known as plastics, are commercially available in
different forms, such as
 Fibers,
Foams, and
Sheets, which have engineering applications.

• Polymers can be classified into 2 groups, i.e., thermoplastic and

thermosetting polymers based primarily on their response to heat.
• Thermoplastic polymers (example, polyethylene) will turn soft when
heated but regain their properties when cooled.
 Polymers

• Thermosetting polymers like synthetic rubbers, such as

neoprene (polychloroprene) - used in electrical insulation,
and Viton (fluoropolymer)- commonly used in O-rings, the
materials become hard and rigid upon heating.
• This process is irreversible, which is due to chemical reactions
involved during the heating process.
 Composites

• Composite materials are made up of 2 or more of the basic materials

(metals, ceramics, and polymers).
• The purpose of making composite materials is to combine the attractive
properties of the basic materials.
• For example, fiberglass and carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) are
composite materials, where fiberglass is composed of glass fibers (ceramic)
and polymers, and CFRP is made of carbon fibers and polymers.
• These materials have low densities and exhibit high strength and ductility.
 Composites classifications

• Basically, there are 2 types of composites: metal-matrix and fiber-reinforced.

• Metal-matrix composites are an incorporation of ceramics in a metal matrix,
for example, alumina-reinforced aluminum.
• Fiber-reinforced composites contain fiber materials (glass, carbon) in a
polymer matrix (polyester, vinylester).
• The function of the fibers is to provide tensile strength and stiffness, whereas
the polymer matrix transfers the applied force to the fiber and also provides
high compressive strength.
 Nanomaterials
• Materials that are in nanoscale (<100 nm; 1 nm = 10-9m) are called nanomaterials.
• This classification is based on the size but not the chemical makeup.
• Hence, nanomaterials can be metals, ceramics, polymers, or composites.
• As the particle/grain size becomes smaller, the properties of the materials may
change drastically.
• For example,
Electrical insulators become conductors,
Chemically stable materials become combustible, and
 Opaque materials become transparent.
 Nanomaterials
• Although nanomaterials have been widely researched for medical use, they
have also found applications in the construction industry, such as durable
concrete and self-cleaning windows.
• The mechanical properties of concrete can be improved by adding a small
amount of nano-silica or carbon nanotubes.
• Nano powder of titanium dioxide is added to paints for its self-cleaning (break
down dirt), sterilizing, and excellent reflective (block UV light) properties.
• Nanocomposite coatings also provide corrosion, heat, and fire protection.
 Characterization of Materials

• Microscopy has played a major role in the development of advanced

materials.
• Microstructural features such as grain size and shape, distribution of
secondary phases, dislocations, and inclusions can be identified and
quantified, using microscopes.
• The most widely used microscopes for materials characterization are optical
and electron microscopes.
• The atomic force microscope (AFM) is a recent addition to microscopes,
which can be used to study the topography of materials at nanoscale.
• Crystallinity in materials can be identified using x-ray diffraction (XRD)
technique.
 Classifications based on their functions

• According to the functions of materials, they can be

divided into structural materials and functional materials:
1. Structural Materials: mainly used as load-bearing
members, such as the materials used for beams, plates
and columns.
2. Functional Materials: mainly possessing some special
functions in construction, such as waterproof, ornamental
and heat-insulating functions, etc.
 Recent advances in material technology

• Civil engineering materials have resulted in the

development of better quality, more economical, and
safer materials.
• These materials are commonly referred to as High-
Performance Materials (HPM).
 Glimpses(Brief look) of HPM

• Existing materials were enhanced by changing their

molecular structures or including additives to improve
quality, economy, and performance.
• superplasticizers have made a breakthrough in the concrete
industry, allowing the production of much stronger
concrete.
• Joints made of elastomeric materials have improved the
safety of high-rise structures in earthquake-active areas.
 Selection criteria
• Material engineers are responsible for the selection,
specification, and quality control of materials to be used
in a job considering the following criteria:
1. Economic factors
2. Mechanical properties
3. Non-mechanical properties
4. Production/construction considerations
5. Aesthetic properties
6. Environmental quality-“sustainability”.
 1. Economic factors
• The economics of the material selection process are
affected by much more than just the cost of the material.
• Factors that should be considered in the selection of the
material include:-
– Availability and cost of raw materials
– Manufacturing costs
– Transportation
– Placing
– Maintenance
 2. Mechanical Properties
• The mechanical behavior of materials is the
response of the material to external loads.
• All materials deform in response to loads; however,
the specific response of a material depends on its
properties, the magnitude and type of load, and the
geometry of the element.
Stress–Strain Relations
• Linearity and elasticity should not be confused.
• A linear material’s stress–strain relation follows a straight
line. Applied force and change in shape is direct relationship
• An elastic material returns to its original shape when the load
is removed and reacts instantaneously to changes in load.
• Large strain and deformation history

Linear elastic Non-Linear elastic

Stress–strain relationships for
cement paste, aggregate and
concrete
 Mechanical …
• Modulus of elasticity or Young’s modulus, E: is for a
homogeneous, isotropic, and linear elastic material, the
proportional constant between normal stress and normal
strain of an axially loaded member.
• Poisson’s ratio: The ratio of the lateral strain to the
axial strain.
– In the axial tension test, as the material is elongated, there is
a reduction of the cross section in the lateral direction.
– In the axial compression test, the opposite is true.
 3. Non-mechanical Properties
• Non-mechanical properties refer to characteristics of
the material, other than load response, that affect
selection, use, and performance.
• There are several types of properties that are of
interest to engineers, but those of the greatest concern
to civil engineers are density, thermal properties, and
surface characteristics.
 Thermal Expansion
• Practically all materials expand as temperature increases
and contract as temperature falls.
• The amount of expansion per unit length due to one unit
of temperature increase is a material constant and is
expressed as the coefficient of thermal expansion.
• Joints are used in buildings, bridges, concrete pavements,
and various structures to accommodate this thermal
effect.
 Surface Characteristics

• The surface properties of materials of

interest to civil engineers include corrosion
and degradation, the ability of the material to
resist abrasion and wear, and surface texture.
 4. Production and Construction
• Production considerations include the availability of the material
and the ability to fabricate the material into the desired shapes
and required specifications.
• Construction considerations address all the factors that relate to
the ability to fabricate and erect the structure on site.
• One of the primary factors is the availability of a trained work
force.
 5. Aesthetic characteristics

• The aesthetic characteristics of a material refer to the

appearance of the material.
• Generally, these characteristics are the responsibility of
the architect.
• However, the civil engineer is responsible for working with
the architect to ensure that the aesthetic characteristics
of the facility are compatible with the structural
requirements.
 6. Sustainable
• All materials have their origin in the natural resources of the planet; all
consume energy in primary manufacture, in conversion to components and
products, and in transportation through the supply chain to the user.
• During service life, the processes of deterioration and cumulative damage
entail further expenditures in maintenance and conservation; and ultimately in
replacement and disposal.
• From the perspective of sustainability, we consider how to analyse the entire
life-cycle costs of materials to provide a basis for rational choices in
materials selection and usage.
 Sustainable …
• One important aspect of this analysis concerns the energy costs of
material manufacture (sometimes called the embodied energy).
• Thus there are large differences in the energy required to transform
raw materials (metal ores, other minerals, oil and gas feedstocks) to
primary materials such as iron and steel, aluminium, cement, plastics and
rubbers.
• These primary energy costs are of course reflected in the prices of the
materials, but it is useful to identify the embodied energy
unambiguously.
Figure: Embodied energy of materials (based on data from Hammond and Jones, 2008)
 Sustainable …
• Sustainable design is the philosophy of designing physical objects,
the built environment and services to comply with the principles of
economic, social, and ecological sustainability.
• While sustainable design is a philosophy, implementation of the
concept requires direct and measureable actions.
– To this end the Green Building Council developed the Leadership
in Environment and Energy Design(LEED), building rating system.
 Sustainable …
• Based on the cumulative rating the project is awarded a
status of Certified, Silver, Gold or Platinum.
• For new construction and major renovations the rating areas
include:
– Sustainable sites
– Water efficiency
– Energy and atmosphere
– Materials and resources
– Indoor environmental quality
– Innovation in design
– Regional priority