Designing metallic surfaces in contact with hardening fresh concrete: A review

Abstract

Concrete, a commonly used material in the construction industry, interacts with metallic surfaces such as formwork during pouring and reinforced bar during lifespan. Formworks are designed to minimize hardened concrete adherence in order to avoid wall defects after formwork removal. In opposite, reinforced bar designs aim at maximizing their adherence to concrete for optimizing the transmission of mechanical solicitations. The present review investigates the surface properties that govern bonding of freshly poured concrete onto metallic surfaces. Identifying the underlying mechanisms of adhesion highlighted the importance of substrate characteristics (roughness, composition), concrete curing and compaction), and interfacial additives (release agents, wetting). This paper addresses the basic requirements in designing a functional surface interacting with concrete and emphasizes today challenges.

Investigation on pull‐out behavior and interface critical parameters of polymer fibers embedded in concrete and their correlation with particular fiber properties

“…The high bond strength can be traced not only to high mechanical properties but also to the chemical bonding through Van‐der‐Waals‐forces and hydrogen bonds. Good wetting abilities indicate better micro‐surface interaction 66,67 . In addition, PEEK's high polarity enables the cement suspension to flow into small surface undercuts.…”

Characterizing tribological behavior of fresh concrete against formwork surfaces

“…The surface geometry is significantly altered during casting by the concrete movement against the formworks, especially for non-lubricated surfaces. Surface topography is a factor that significantly affects the performance of formworks [40,41,50]. This factor is used in this research study to probe and quantify the wear of formwork plates.…”

The counterbalance of the adverse side effects of releasing agent on the properties of cementitious materials with nano-particles

“…Engineers recommend high-quality releasing agents (RA's), which were pragmatic to the surface of concrete formwork. The RAs for formwork prevent sticking while presenting perfect adhesion to the formwork and reducing air bubbles get stuck on the surface during the concrete pouring [4][5][6][7].…”