3D IMAGE ANALYSIS OF CT DATA OF CONCRETE CYLINDER SUNDERGOING DELAYED ETTRINGTIE FORMATION

Abstract

The strains in a concrete caused by delayed ettringite formation (DEF) are conventionally expressed in terms of the one-dimensional linear expansion. However, concrete is not a homogeneous material, and differences in the volume change between the inert aggregates and the reactive cement paste will produce variations in local displacements that cannot be detected by the linear expansion variable. With CT slices offered by Simultaneous neutron and X-ray computed tomography (SNXCT), this thesis applies image analysis algorithms to quantify the distortion of cylinder over time due to delayed ettringite formation. The research reported in this thesis concerned the development of several MATLAB programs to apply image analysis algorithms to quantify the distortion of cylinder over time in terms of summary variables. These included mean radial expansion, deviation from circularity, vertical tilt angle and rotation, void area fraction and the displacement of microbead internal reference points.