Advanced Functional Cement-Based Materials for Smart Applications

Dear Colleagues,

Cement-based materials are the most used construction materials in the world, ubiquitous in various engineering constructions such as civil engineering, transportation, water conservancy, etc. Modern cement-based materials have made significant progress in terms of scientific research, technological innovation, and construction techniques, owing to developments in nanotechnology and intelligent and multifunctional designs, rendering them smarter for various applications.

In recent years, diverse advanced functional cement-based materials have been designed and proposed for benefiting infrastructure engineering. However, there are still many challenges and research gaps that urgently need to be addressed. The strength and durability of cementitious composites are largely influenced by factors such as the geometry, size, and shape of the surface pores, as well as capillary action and the exposure environment. Functional coatings and surface treatments greatly enhance the properties of these composites, such as fire resistance, improved durability, high mechanical strength, weather resistance, water resistance, and light reflectivity.

This Special Issue focuses on recent advances in terms of material designs, concepts, mechanisms, and practices related to advanced functional cement-based materials, solving challenges in scientific innovation and applications. Original research and reviews are welcome on, but not limited to, the following topics:

• Intelligent design and advanced manufacturing techniques;
• Conductive cement-based materials for multifunctional applications;
• Microencapsulation of phase-change materials and applications in heat-stored cement-based materials;
• Fiber coating technology in cement-based materials;
• Nano-modified cement-based materials;
• Numerical simulation and model optimization;
• Surface treatment of cementitious composites;
• Functional coatings in cement-based composites.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Yushi Liu
Dr. Kunyang Yu
Dr. Zilong Wang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Coatings is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.