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Reinforced Concrete: Mechanical Properties and Materials Design

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A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Construction and Building Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 September 2026 | Viewed by 3726

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Editors

Prof. Dr. Zhi Ge

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Guest Editor

School of Qilu Transportation, Shandong University, Jinan 250002, China
Interests: cement-based materials; concrete microstructure; solid waste recycling

Prof. Dr. Feng Zhang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

School of Qilu Transportation, Shandong University, Jinan 250002, China
Interests: structural engineering; FRP strengthening and retrofitting; prestressed concrete structure
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to invite you to this Special Issue addressing critical advances in reinforced concrete. With rapid urbanization and climate challenges, innovative solutions for durable and sustainable concrete infrastructure have become globally imperative.

This Special Issue aims to consolidate cutting-edge research on mechanics-based design approaches for reinforced concrete structures. The topic directly aligns with the journal's scope of advanced construction materials.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

High-performance concrete fracture mechanics.
Corrosion-resistant reinforcement technologies.
Seismic resilience design methodologies.
Digital twin applications in structural health monitoring.
Life-cycle assessment of sustainable concrete systems.
Seawater sea-sand concrete.
Compression casting concrete.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Prof. Dr. Zhi Ge
Prof. Dr. Feng Zhang
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-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Materials is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly 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.

Keywords

reinforced concrete
structural mechanics
seismic design
durability
sustainable materials
fiber-reinforced concrete
computational modelling
structural optimization
non-destructive testing
life-cycle assessment

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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28 pages, 4135 KB

Open AccessArticle

Mechanical and Bond Performance of Alkali-Activated Slag Concrete Incorporating Natural and Recycled Diatoms

by Carlos Parra, Isabel Miñano Belmonte, Mariano Calabuig Soler, Francisco Benito, Carlos Rodriguez, Víctor Martinez Pacheco, José María Mateo, Elvira Carrión and Pilar Hidalgo Torrano

Materials 2026, 19(9), 1815; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma19091815 - 29 Apr 2026

Viewed by 398

Abstract

Alkali-activated concrete can reduce reliance on Portland cement by valorizing industrial by-products. This study evaluates slag-based alkali-activated concretes incorporating natural diatomaceous earth (M2, M3) and residual diatomaceous earth from industrial filtration (V6–V7), benchmarked against an OPC reference. The experimental program measures compressive, tensile and flexural strengths and elastic modulus, and examines steel–concrete bond behavior through bond stress–slip response at multiple slip levels. Member-level performance is assessed using reinforced beams tested under four-point bending, and cracking is compared in the constant-moment region using crack number and average spacing derived from post-test observations. Results show that diatom-based alkali-activated mixtures can achieve mechanical performance comparable to OPC concrete, with clear dependence on diatom source and mixture design. Bond response is markedly mixture-dependent and cannot be inferred from compressive strength alone. All beams exhibited flexural behavior suitable for structural applications, with the RV6 mixture providing the most favorable overall response among the tested members. These findings support the feasibility of residual diatomaceous earth as a viable component in structural alkali-activated concretes. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Reinforced Concrete: Mechanical Properties and Materials Design)

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17 pages, 2057 KB

Open AccessArticle

Experimental Investigation into the Connection Performance of Reinforcement Sleeves Utilizing MPC Grouting Materials

by Hao Shu and Lu Chen

Materials 2026, 19(8), 1661; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma19081661 - 21 Apr 2026

Viewed by 411

Abstract

With the vigorous promotion of the modernization of China’s construction industry, the proportion of prefabricated buildings in new construction projects has increased steadily. Grouted sleeve connection is a mainstream joining method for prefabricated components, and the performance of grouting materials is crucial to connection reliability. In this study, a modified polyurethane composite (MPC) was developed as a novel sleeve grouting material, and seven grouted splice specimens with different steel bar strength grades and anchorage lengths were fabricated for uniaxial tensile tests. The mechanical properties of MPC and the connection performance of specimens were systematically investigated, and the effects of steel bar strength grade and anchorage length on ultimate load, average bond strength, and strain characteristics were quantitatively analyzed. The results show that MPC has excellent fluidity, and its mechanical strengths meet the specified requirements. Increasing steel bar strength grade and anchorage length significantly improves ultimate load: at a 6d anchorage length, the ultimate load of the S600 series (HRB600E) is 44.85% higher than that of the S400 series (HRB400E); extending the S400 series’ anchorage length from 4d to 8d increases ultimate load by 50.61%. Average bond strength decreases with increasing anchorage length (S400-MPC-8d is 24.70% lower than S400-MPC-4d) but increases with higher steel bar strength grade (S600-MPC-6d is 32.37% higher than S400-MPC-6d). The sleeve remains elastic during the test, ensuring safety. Prediction formulas for average bond strength under slip failure were established, with good agreement between predicted and experimental results. For both HRB400E and HTRB600E steel bars, considering safety and installation errors, a critical anchorage length of 8d is recommended for engineering design. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Reinforced Concrete: Mechanical Properties and Materials Design)

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17 pages, 1440 KB

Open AccessArticle

Mechanical and Environmental Performance of Concrete Incorporating Post-Consumer Plastics and E-Waste

by Madiha Ammari, Halil Sezen and Jose Castro

Materials 2026, 19(6), 1259; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma19061259 - 23 Mar 2026

Viewed by 1291

Abstract

A significant portion of plastic products is not accepted by curbside recycling companies and goes to landfills or incineration, causing an adverse impact on the environment. This study investigated the effects of utilizing post-consumer plastic and e-waste in concrete. A plastic product made of thermoplastic polypropylene (PP) was ground into fine particles and used for 10% volumetric replacement of sand, while bare printed circuit boards (PCBs) were pulverized into powder and used for 10% cement replacement by mass. This study introduces a unique utilization of grounded powder PCBs by partially replacing cement in concrete. Furthermore, reinforced concrete beams with the replacements were constructed and tested under flexure for structural behavior evaluation. The results of this study show an average of 11% reduction in both the compressive strength of concrete and the maximum load capacity of the beams incorporating plastic products. A life cycle assessment study was conducted using a functional unit of 1.0 cubic yard concrete production. The system boundary for the environmental assessment of the concrete in this study includes only the production phase, which is from the cradle to the end gate of the ready-mix concrete plant. The environmental impact estimation of a 10% reduction in constituents of concrete showed a 10% reduction in most LCA measures where cement was replaced compared to a 1% effect for the fine aggregate replacement. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Reinforced Concrete: Mechanical Properties and Materials Design)

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22 pages, 6583 KB

Open AccessArticle

Flexural Fracture Behavior and Mechanical Properties of SAP-PVA Fiber-Reinforced Concrete

by Xiaozhu Hu, Yanjun Wang, Faxiang Xie and Wenhao Cao

Materials 2026, 19(1), 203; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma19010203 - 5 Jan 2026

Viewed by 601

Abstract

To investigate the fracture behavior of super-absorbent polymer (SAP) internally cured polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) fiber-reinforced concrete (SAP-PVAC), three-point bending tests were carried out. This study systematically examined the effects of (1) PVA fiber content and (2) initial crack-depth-to-beam-height ratios (a₀/D) on the failure modes, fracture toughness (K_IC), and residual flexural tensile strength (f_R,1) of SAP-PVAC beams. The test results demonstrate that SAP particles have a weakening effect on concrete strength (reduce about 6%). Still, the addition of PVA fibers can effectively improve the crack-resistance performance of SAP-PVAC and significantly increase the residual flexural tensile strength by 4.5–42%. The softening performance of the concrete is affected by the initial crack-height ratio. An increase in a₀/D leads to an obvious increase in the crack opening displacement but has little impact on the fracture toughness, while the fracture energy shows a downward trend. SEM microscopic analysis reveals that the synergistic effect of SAP and PVA fibers exhibits a positive promoting effect on the toughening and crack resistance of SAP-PVAC specimens. These results establish a theoretical framework for SAP-PVAC fracture assessment and provide actionable guidelines for its shrinkage-crack mitigation structure engineering applications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Reinforced Concrete: Mechanical Properties and Materials Design)

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Review

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19 pages, 4203 KB

Open AccessReview

A Review of the Current Status and Development Trends of Compression Casting Concrete

by Xiangfeng Xu, Yang Yu, Haozhe Han, Shuo Xu and Feng Zhang

Materials 2026, 19(9), 1737; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma19091737 - 24 Apr 2026

Viewed by 334

Abstract

This paper presents a systematic review of compression casting concrete (CCC) based on a comprehensive literature retrieval from the Web of Science, covering publications from 2020 to 2026. CCC applies pressure on fresh concrete to expel excess internal water and air, driving the cement paste to fully penetrate the aggregate pores, which can significantly optimize the micro- and macro-properties of concrete. With environmental friendliness and resource-saving merits, CCC has become a global research hotspot in the field of civil engineering and construction. Research contributions have been made by scholars from China, Australia, Pakistan, France, the UK, India, Italy and other regions. This paper systematically elaborates the basic principles and core advantages of the compression casting technology, focusing on the analysis of key research directions, including mechanical properties, ductility improvement, durability, solid waste resource utilization (waste rubber particles, recycled concrete aggregates), compression-casting-reinforced concrete members and special-purpose preparation equipment. It analyzes the advantages and disadvantages from both micro and macro perspectives and demonstrates the engineering application feasibility and development potential of this technology. It is concluded that the mechanical properties of CCC with compressive strength exceeding 60 MPa still require further in-depth investigation, compression casting technology improves the utilization efficiency of red mud, durability research on CCC remains insufficient, and specialized equipment for large-scale reinforced concrete CCC members needs further development. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Reinforced Concrete: Mechanical Properties and Materials Design)

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