See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/274097938

Ultrahigh performance concrete-properties, applications and perspectives

Article  in  Science China Technological Sciences · April 2015

DOI: 10.1007/s11431-015-5769-4

CITATIONS READS

12 2,200

3 authors:

Chunping Gu Guang Ye
Zhejiang University of Technology Delft University of Technology
19 PUBLICATIONS   27 CITATIONS    303 PUBLICATIONS   3,425 CITATIONS   

SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE

Wei Sun
Southeast University (China)
261 PUBLICATIONS   3,189 CITATIONS   

SEE PROFILE

Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects:

Long-term performance of geopolymer concrete systems for production of environment friendly building materials II View project

Development and Application of Key Technologies for Crack Detection of Bridge Structures Based on Smart Phone View project

All content following this page was uploaded by Chunping Gu on 29 May 2015.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

 SCIENCE CHINA
Technological Sciences
• Review • April 2015 Vol.58 No.4: 587–599
doi: 10.1007/s11431-015-5769-4

Ultrahigh performance concrete–properties, applications

and perspectives
GU ChunPing1,2, YE Guang2 & SUN Wei1,3,4*
1
School of Materials Science & Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing 211189, China;
2
Microlab, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Delft University of Technology, Delft 2628 CN, the Netherlands;
3
Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Construction Materials, Nanjing 211189, China;
4
Collaborative Innovation Center for Advanced Civil Engineering Materials, Nanjing 211189, China

Received May 15, 2014; accepted January 6, 2015

Over the last twenty years, remarkable advances have taken place in the research and application of ultra-high performance
concrete (UHPC), which exhibits outstanding mechanical properties and excellent durability. It has shown great potential for
the next generation infrastructure construction from the sustainability point of view. This paper will give an overview on
UHPC, with particular focus on the properties, applications and perspectives. After several decades of development, several
types of commercial UHPC materials are available in the market, and the properties of UHPC have been characterized by nu-
merous experimental and field tests. Generally speaking, the performance (e.g. mechanical properties and durability) of UHPC
is much better than normal concrete (NC) and high performance concrete (HPC). Therefore, the uses of UHPC are growing all
over the world, in both fields of new construction and retrofitting. Nevertheless, it is still a special material and technology,
which is not worldwide accepted. So some application prospects of UHPC are briefly introduced in the paper, and the efforts,
which have to be made to turn UHPC into a widespread ‘regular’ technology, are discussed. This paper aims to help designers,
engineers, architects and infrastructure owners to know the capacities of UHPC and thus to increase the applications of this
material.

UHPC, characteristics, durability, applications, perspectives

Citation: Gu C P, Ye G, Sun W. Ultrahigh performance concrete–properties, applications and perspectives. Sci China Tech Sci, 2015, 58: 587599, doi:
10.1007/s11431-015-5769-4

1 Introduction and economical applications in various structures. It is

strongly believed that UHPC is well suited for the next gen-
eration infrastructure construction.
Within the last several decades amazing progress has been
The applications of UHPC are increasing in the recent
made in concrete technology. One of the breakthroughs is
years in Europe, North America, Japan, Korea and Australia.
the development of ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC)
While, in some other countries, such as China, only limited
with compressive strength more than 150 MPa and a re-
applications were realized. In order to encourage the use of
markable increase in durability even compared with high-
UHPC, it is of great significance to make UHPC to be
performance concrete (HPC). The excellent performance of
known and accepted by more people. In this paper a general
UHPC makes itself a high potential material for sustainable
introduction on UHPC is provided. The latest information
on the definition, development, composition, microstructure,
general characteristics, durability and some applications of
*Corresponding author (email: sunwei@seu.edu.cn)

© Science China Press and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2015 tech.scichina.com link.springer.com
588 Gu C P, et al. Sci China Tech Sci
UHPC is summarized. The perspectives on the development
of UHPC are also discussed.
2 Definition and development of UHPC
UHPC is a new generation of cementitious material with
very high strength, ductility and durability. According to
AFGC (French Association for Civil Engineering) recom-
mendations [1], it is defined as a concrete with a character-
istic compressive strength between 150 and 250 MPa. (Steel)
fibers are added in order to achieve the ductile behavior
under tension, and if possible, to dispense with the use of
conventional active or passive reinforcement.
Generally speaking, the development of UHPC could be
divided into four stages in terms of time, i.e. before 1980s;
1980s; 1990s and after 2000.
Before 1980s, because of the lack of the advanced tech-
nologies, UHPC could only be prepared in the lab with
some special methods, such as vacuum mixing and heat
curing. At that time, researchers tried different kinds of
methods to make the concrete denser and more compact, so
that the strength of concrete could be improved. It was re-
ported that the concrete with compressive strength up to 510
MPa could be prepared with vacuum mixing and high tem-
perature curing [2]. Although very high compressive
strength could be achieved, the preparation of UHPC was
very difficult and energy-consuming at that time.
In the early 1980s, the micro-defect-free cement (MDF)
was invented [3]. It is a type of cement paste prepared with
cement and special polymers, using a very low water to
cement ratio (w/c). The design principle of MDF is to re-
move all the defects in the cement paste. The compressive
strength of MDP could exceed 200 MPa. But, because of
the expensive raw material and complicated preparation
process, this material only has very few applications. In
spite that MDF had drawbacks, its design principle was
passed along. After the invention of MDF, DSP material
(densified system containing homogeneously arranged ul-
trafine particles) was prepared in Denmark by Bache [4].
The defects in DSP were reduced by improving the particle
parking density. Superplasticizers and micro-silica were
used in this material, along with the heat and pressure cur-
ing. The maximum compressive strength of DSP could be
up to 345 MPa. With the increasing compressive strength,
the concrete becomes more brittle, which is the major prob-
lem for concrete with high strength. Hence, steel fibers be-
gan to be used for preparing UHPC in the 1980s. Two good
examples are compact reinforced concrete (CRC) and slurry
infiltrated fiber concrete (SIFCON), which occurred after
DSP, and reinforced with high volume of steel fibers. Both
CRC and SIFCON exhibit excellent mechanical properties
and durability. However, due to the lack of effective super-
plasticizers, they both have workability problems. So they
are very difficult to be used for in-situ concrete construc-
April (2015) Vol.58 No.4
tions. Only few cases of practical applications of CRC and
SIFCON were reported, and they were only used for part of
structures, such as balconies and staircases. Full-scale
structural use of these materials was not realized. To sum up,
in this period, the particle parking theory was firstly used
for UHPC design, and silica fume (SF) and steel fibers be-
gan to be added in UHPC. But UHPCs in this stage all have
their own problems, e.g. workability issues, so their appli-
cations are limited.
In the 1990s, reactive powder concrete (RPC) was de-
veloped [5], which is a major milestone for the development
of UHPC. RPC is composed of very fine powders (cement,
sand, quartz powder and silica fume), steel fibers and su-
perplasticizer. The coarse aggregates are eliminated for en-
hancing the homogeneity of the matrix. By optimizing the
granular packing of the dry fine powders, the compact den-
sity of RPC could be improved, which gives RPC ultra-high
strength and durability. The compressive strength of RPC
ranges from 200 MPa to 800 MPa. It has to be noted that,
thanks to the development of superplasticizers, RPC shows
very excellent workability, which is an essential require-
ment for the large-scale applications of cement-based mate-
rials. This is RPC’s most important advantage compared
with previous UHPCs. In the late 1990s, the first marketed
UHPC, which was named Ductal®, was developed based on
the RPC technology. After that, another marketed UHPC,
BSI/Ceracem® concrete, was developed by group Eiffage
and Sika. In 1997, the world’s first RPC structure, the Sher-
brooke Bridge in Canada, was built. It was the first time that
RPC had been used for building a whole structure. However,
at that time, because of the high material cost, the applica-
tions of RPC were still scarce. In addition, the heat curing
and the milling of quartz sand were very energy-consuming,
which also limited the applications of RPC. So generally
speaking, in the 1990s, RPC was invented and resulted in
commercial UHPCs. Moreover, the first RPC bridge was
built. But all these achievements didn’t lead to wide appli-
cations of UHPC because of high material cost and energy
consumption.
From the 2000s, much progress has been made on the
development of UHPC. Thanks to the progress in mineral
binder technology and increased availability of highly ef-
fective superplasticizers, to prepare and produce UHPC is
no longer a problem. General characteristics and durability
of UHPC also have been widely studied. With the help of
advanced material analysis technologies, the hydration pro-
cess and microstructure development of UHPC also have
been revealed to some extent. Many researchers have pro-
posed numerous formulations for preparing UHPCs. The
researchers’ efforts were focused on reducing the material
cost and improving the sustainability of UHPC. Now,
UHPC can be prepared with a relatively low material cost
and energy consumption. Supplementary cementitious ma-
terials, such as fly ash (FA), slag and silica fume (SF), can
be used for replacing part of cement, which could reduce
 Gu C P, et al.
the usage of cement. Furthermore, UHPC can be prepared
with normal temperature curing now. Because of the emer-
gence of environmental friendly UHPC with relatively low
cost, the applications of UHPC are increasing constantly.
From the 2000s, several countries have engaged in the ap-
plication of UHPC. In France, a lot of outstanding structures
(bridges, facades, slabs…) have been built with UHPC [6].
UHPC also has growing applications in maintenance and
development of US highway infrastructures [7]. In Australia,
a significant activity was developed based on the realization
of bridge structures [8]. In Switzerland, UHPC has been
mostly applied to in-situ reinforcement of structures [9].
UHPC bridges have been built in the Netherlands and Spain
[10,11]. Prototype bridges and structures have been built in
Canada, Germany, Austria, Japan and Korea [7]. In China,
UHPC has been used for producing cover plates, which are
designed for covering the cable trenches along the high
speed railways [12]. With the growing applications of
UHPC, a wide range of different formulations are available
and can be adjusted to meet the individual needs of increas-
ing number of different applications [13]. Delightful
achievements have been made on the application of UHPC,
but there are still barriers that impede the wider applications
of UHPC. Further discussions on the barriers will be given
in Section 7.
3 Composition and microstructure of UHPC
3.1 Composition
After several decades of development, one of the most pop-
ular approaches to prepare UHPC is: High quality cement +
supplementary cementitious materials + low w/c or water to
binder ratio (w/b) + fine aggregates + superplasticizer +
steel (or organic) fibers. The key principle is to improve the
homogeneity and packing density of the mixture. The ho-
mogeneity of the mixture could be improved by eliminating
the coarse aggregates, which results in a more uniform
stress distribution when loaded. The packing density could
Table 1 Examples of composition and properties of NSC, HSC and UHPC [14]
Component (kg/m3)
Portland cement
Coarse aggregate
Sand
Silica fume
Reinforcement/Fibers
Superplasticizer
Water
Other parameters
Maximum aggregate size (mm)
w/c ratio
(by weight)
w/b ratio (by weight)
Sci China Tech Sci April (2015) Vol.58 No.4 589
be maximized by optimizing the particle size distribution of
raw materials. Thus, smaller particles could fill the voids
between the bigger particles. Due to the low w/b and the
pozzolanic reaction of supplementary cementitious materi-
als (especially SF), UHPC could attain a very dense micro-
structure and thus excellent performance. The addition of
steel fibers helps to improve both the tensile strength and
ductility of UHPC.
Tuan [14] compared the composition and properties of
normal strength concrete (NSC), high strength concrete
(HSC) and UHPC. Details are shown in Table 1. Normally,
UHPC has higher cement content, lower w/b and no coarse
aggregate. Depending on the specific application, coarse
aggregates are sometimes used, as well as a variety of
chemical and mineral admixtures.
The initial cost of UHPC far exceeds that of conventional
concrete. Consequently, great efforts have been made on
minimizing material costs without sacrificing the beneficial
properties of UHPC. Through careful selection of the raw
materials, it was possible to produce UHPC with outstand-
ing performance and moderate material costs. The possibil-
ity of replacing SF in UHPC with metakaolin, pulverized
FA, limestone microfiller, siliceous microfiller, micronized
phonolith, or rice husk ash (RHA) has been investigated
[14–16]. Several researches have shown that fine ground
quartz sand could be replaced by well-graded natural sand
with a maximum size of 2–8 mm [12,17]. With the growing
concern on the concept of sustainability, supplementary
cementitious materials, such as FA and slag, have been
widely used to partially replace cement when preparing
UHPC. The volume fraction of steel fiber also could be re-
duced if UHPC is reinforced with conventional steel rebar.
It can be said that, a relatively low cost is possible now to
prepare UHPC. The preparation of UHPC is becoming more
economical and sustainable.
3.2 Microstructure
From material science point of view, the macro properties
NSC HSC UHPC
<400 400 600–1000
≈1000 900 
≈700 600 1000–1200
 40 50–300
designed designed 40–250
 5 10–70
>200 100–150 110–260
19.0–25.5 9.5–12.5 0.15–0.6
0.40–0.70 0.24–0.38 0.14–0.27
 <0.28 <0.27
590 Gu C P, et al. Sci China Tech Sci
of a material are determined by its microstructure, which is
the same case for UHPC. The outstanding mechanical
properties and durability of UHPC result from its very
dense and compact microstructure.
The microstructure of UHPC could be observed by
Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). Figure 1 is a
Backscattering Scanning Electron (BSE) image of a UHPC
paste containing FA and SF. Because of the low w/b, large
amount of unreacted cement and FA particles can be seen in
the image. No visible capillary pores and cracks can be
found, as well as the portlandite (Ca(OH)2) crystals.
Another aspect of the microstructure of UHPC is the pore
structure, i.e. pore size distribution and the total porosity.
Figure 2 shows the pore size distribution of UHPC, HPC
and NC, determined by mercury intrusion porosimetry
(MIP). It can be seen that, compared with HPC and NC, the
main features of UHPC pore structure are the absence of
capillary pores and lower total porosity. The fine pore
structure is the reason why UHPC has a particularly high
resistance to chloride penetration, carbonation and freez-
ing-thawing attack.
Another difference of NC and UHPC in microstructure
lies in the interfacial transition zone (ITZ) between the paste
and aggregate particles. The thickness of ITZ in NC is nor-
mally in the range of 20 to 100 µm. While, the thickness of
this zone in UHPC is found to be very small (2 µm) [14], or
Figure 1 Microstructure of UHPC paste containing FA and SF, w/b=0.18,
28d.
Figure 2 Pore size distribution of UHPC, HPC and NC [18].
April (2015) Vol.58 No.4
even none [19]. Figure 3(a) shows ITZ between the paste
and sand particles in UHPC. It seems that ITZ almost dis-
appears. Nanoindentation tests also showed that ITZ didn’t
exist in UHPC [19]. Figure 3(b) shows the bond between
the steel fiber and the UHPC matrix. It can be seen that the
steel fiber is closely wrapped up by the matrix, showing a
strong bond between them. Hence, the fibers could effec-
tively bridge the cracks and thus improve the ductility of
UHPC.
In addition, it is worthy to be noted that there is large
amount of ultra-high density CSH (UHD-CSH) [20], which
owns higher density than normal hydration products (high
density CSH and low density CSH), in the UHPC paste.
With the help of nanoindentation, Vandamme [20] con-
ducted a series of experiments on nano-mechanical proper-
ties of cement-based materials with different w/c. When the
w/c is very low, for example, w/c=0.15, the percentage of
UHD-CSH in the hydration products is 97%. Almost all the
hydration products are UHD-CSH and the rest are the high
density CSH. The great amount of UHD-CSH is another
reason that UHPC exhibits excellent mechanical properties
and durability. However, the nature of UHD-CSH has not
been clearly revealed. One widely accepted viewpoint is
that UHD-CSH is a nanocomposite of CSH and nano-
(a)
(b)
Figure 3 (a) ITZ between sand and paste in UHPC; (b) ITZ between steel
fiber and paste in UHPC, w/b=0.18, 28d.
 Gu C P, et al. Sci China Tech Sci
Ca(OH)2 [21].
4 General characteristics of UHPC
4.1 Compressive strength
Compressive strength is an important property in the design
of any concrete structure. The typical compressive strength
of UHPC is in the range of 150 to 250 MPa. UHPC shows a
linear elastic behavior until about 70% to 80% of the com-
pressive strength.
The failure of UHPC without fibers is of explosive nature.
There is no descending branch in the stress-strain-diagram
(as shown in Figure 4). The addition of fibers could im-
prove the compressive strength of UHPC. A typical
stress-stain curve for UHPC is shown in Figure 5. Due to
the crack-bridging effect of the fibers the curve has a de-
scending branch. The range of the possible descending de-
pends on the fiber content and fiber orientation.
4.2 Tensile strength
Depending on the content and type of the fibers, the tensile
strength of UHPC is normally in the range of 7 to 15 MPa.
Due to the crack-bridging effect of fibers, the tensile be-
havior of UHPC becomes ductile.
Graybeal [23] proposed an idealized tensile stress-strain
response of UHPC which is shown in Figure 6. This re-
sponse is based on direct tension tests of two UHPCs with
multiple fiber contents. The behavior can be divided into
four phases. Phase I is the elastic phase, when the matrix
Figure 4 Compressive stress-strain-diagram of UHPC without fibers [22].
Figure 5 Compressive stress-strain-diagram of UHPC with fibers [22].
April (2015) Vol.58 No.4 591
Figure 6 Idealized uniaxial tensile response of UHPC [23].
stands the loads. Phase II is the multi-cracking phase,
wherein multiple tightly-spaced cracks form in the UHPC
matrix. The cracks occur when the stress in the matrix ex-
ceeds the tensile strength of matrix. Phase III is the strain
hardening phase. Individual cracks become wider in this
phase, and no new cracks form. Lastly, Phase IV is the
strain softening phase. The cracks begin to localize in this
phase, and fibers begin to be pulled out from the matrix.
After that, the material fails.
It should be noted that the tensile stress-strain curve may
not act exactly as illustrated in Figure 6, because the post-
cracking behavior (phases II, III and IV) of UHPC largely
depends on the content, type and orientation of the fibers. If
very few fibers or even no fibers are used, there will not be
phases II, III and IV.
4.3 Modulus of elasticity
Due to the dense microstructure, the elastic modulus of
UHPC is higher than that of NC and HPC when the same
type and amount of aggregates are used. Normally, the val-
ue ranges from 40 to 70 GPa, depending on the composition
of the mixture, amount and type of the aggregates and the
curing regime.
4.4 Shrinkage
Three types of shrinkage may be present in UHPC: chemi-
cal shrinkage, autogenous shrinkage and dry shrinkage. All
these three kinds of shrinkages are mainly affected by w/b
and cement content. For UHPC, due to the very low w/b and
high cement content, the autogenous shrinkage is predomi-
nant. In the early age, the high autogenous shrinkage leads
to a high risk of micro-cracking if the UHPC element is
restrained.
Several methods have been developed to offset the au-
togenous shrinkage of UHPC. One is to use an expansive
additive or shrinkage reducing additive [24,25]. They both
have been proved to be very effective to reduce the autoge-
nous shrinkage of UHPC. But the dosages of these additives
have to been carefully determined. Another solution is in-
592 Gu C P, et al. Sci China Tech Sci
ternal curing, which is defined by the American Concrete
Institute (ACI) as "supplying water throughout a freshly
placed cementitious mixture using reservoirs, via pre-wetted
lightweight aggregates, that readily release water as needed
for hydration or to replace moisture lost through evapora-
tion or self-desiccation". Lightweight aggregate is the most
common material used as a water reservoir. However, the
size of the lightweight aggregate makes it unsuitable to be
used in UHPC. Researchers throughout the world are also
investigating the possibility of using superabsorbent poly-
mers (SAP) [26] and RHA [14,27] as internal curing agent.
RHA is considered as a very promising material to act as
internal curing agent in UHPC because of its porous struc-
ture and pozzolanic reactivity [14].
The development of drying shrinkage of UHPC is similar
as HPC. Due to the low w/b, high density of the matrix and
the presence of fibers, the amount of drying shrinkage of
UHPC is lower compared with that of HPC. For heat treated
UHPC, dry shrinkage can be neglected after the end of heat
treatment.
4.5 Creep
The creep of UHPC is generally less than that of NC and
HPC. The creep of concrete can be expressed as a creep
coefficient (=creep strain/initial strain) or specific creep
(=creep strain/applied stress). The creep coefficient of
UHPC ranges from 0.3 to 0.85, and the specific creep rang-
es from 5 to 47 µm/m/MPa [7]. For comparison, the specific
creep for NC is in the range of 35 to 140 µm/m/MPa.
4.6 Thermal properties
The thermal expansion coefficients of UHPC measured by
various researchers are in the range of 10 to 15 µm/m/K. In
the French Interim Recommendations [1], 10.4–11.8 µm/m/K
have been recorded as the general value. This value is in the
same range as for normal concrete of about 11.0 µm/m/K.
4.7 Fire resistance
Like all concrete, UHPC is non-combustible. However, due
to the extreme dense microstructure, UHPC is more suscep-
tible to explosive spalling during heating, which is the most
dangerous damage mechanism for the structures built with
this material [28]. The spalling of UHPC is caused mainly
by pore pressure due to the dehydration of hydrates and
thermal stresses [29]. A well-known solution to improve the
fire resistance of UHPC is to include polypropylene fibers
in the UHPC mixture [18,28,30]. Although experience
shows the effectiveness, efficiency mechanisms behind this
are still under investigation. A widely accepted explanation
is the interconnected pore system building-up at tempera-
tures of about 160°C when polypropylene fibers melt. The
interconnected pore system is then capable of distributing
April (2015) Vol.58 No.4
the developing vapor pressure with the volume gained by
fiber melting, and finally releasing it.
4.8 Fatigue behavior
Only a few studies were performed on the fatigue behavior
of UHPC. This is due to the fact that this material still only
has a few applications and research in this field is still in
progress. The results of the studies showed that UHPC had
a good resistance to fatigue [7]. It can be said that, in con-
trast to other high strength materials, the high strength of
UHPC does not leads to disadvantages with regard to the
fatigue.
4.9 Impact resistance
Thanks to the presence of fibers and the strong bond be-
tween the fibers and matrix, UHPC has a much higher im-
pact resistance than NC or even normal fiber reinforced
concrete (FRC). So UHPC has the potential to be used for
military structures to resist the bomb blast or penetration.
Bindiganvile [31] compared the impact resistance of UHPC
with that of conventional FRC. Under impact loading,
UHPC was approximately twice stronger than conventional
FRC and dissipated three to four times of energy. Lai [32]
studied the bullet penetration resistance of UHPC. The re-
sults showed that UHPC with coarse aggregates (Max. 16
mm) and more steel fibers had higher resistance to the bullet
penetration.
5 Durability of UHPC
Apart from being far stronger than NC, UHPC also has out-
standing qualities in terms of durability. The durability of
concrete is determined to a great extent by its microstruc-
ture, especially pore structure. For NC, transportation of
water and harmful agent, as chloride and sulfate, mainly
occurs in capillary pores. While, UHPC is considered to be
a capillary pores free material. Meanwhile, its total porosity
is much lower than that of NC. For these reasons, UHPC
has been considered as a material with outstanding re-
sistance to harmful agents. In the past, most of the durability
researches on UHPC were conducted under a single envi-
ronmental effect, such as chloride ingress, carbonation and
freeze-thaw cycles. In recent years, durability of UHPC
under coupled mechanical and environmental effects and in
field also has been studied due to the increasing applications
of UHPC under complicated service conditions.
5.1 Durability of UHPC under single environmental
load
Table 2 shows the comparison of the mechanical properties
and durability of RPC, HPC and NC [33]. For instance, the
 Gu C P, et al. Sci China Tech Sci
Table 2 Mechanical properties and durability of RPC, HPC and NC [33]
Compressive Flexural Young’s Fracture
Strength strength modulus energy
(MPa) (MPa) (GPa) (kJ m2)
RPC200 170–230 30–60 50–62 15–40
HPC 60–100 6–10 30–40 0.14
NC 20–50 2–5 30–40 0.12
chloride diffusion coefficient of RPC200 is 1/30 of HPC
and 1/55 of NC. The other properties of RPC200 are also
much better than those of NC and HPC.
Recent study performed by Kono [34] showed that, after
2.5 years immersion in artificial sea water, the chloride
penetration depth in UHPC was only around 2 mm and the
apparent diffusion coefficient was determined to be
3.377×1014 m2/s. Pierard [35] studied the durability of dif-
ferent types of UHPC. The accelerated carbonation tests,
accelerated chloride diffusion tests, freeze-thaw perfor-
mance tests, alkali-silica reaction tests, sulphate attack tests
and sulphuric acid tests were performed on UHPC. All the
results showed that UHPC exhibited extremely good dura-
bility under the experimental conditions.
5.2 Durability of UHPC under coupled effect of me-
chanical and environmental loads
Realizing that the UHPC structures are always designed to
stand severe coupled effects of mechanical and environ-
mental loads, experimental studies on the durability of
UHPC under these conditions were also conducted.
The permeability of UHPC after tension to different ex-
tents was studied by Charron [36,37]. Results indicated that
the permeability of UHPC rose up to three orders of magni-
tude (1.8×1012 to 2.9×109 m/s) when the residual defor-
mation after tension increased from 0.05% to 0.88%. It
meant that the cracks had significant impacts on the perme-
ability of UHPC. It is foreseeable that cracks would show
great negative influence on the resistance to chloride pene-
tration, carbonation and sulfate ingress. Compared to the
permeability of NC (4.8×1011 m/s) [38], the permeability
of sound UHPC is 1–2 orders of magnitude lower. The per-
meability of UHPC with a residual deformation of 0.33% is
close to that of NC. In general, the permeability of UHPC is
much lower than that of NC, but the cracks, which originate
from the mechanical load, influence the permeability of
UHPC remarkably.
Parant [39] tracked the change of mechanical properties
of UHPC under coupled effects of flexural load, chloride
penetration and wetting-drying cycles. The stress ratio of
the flexural load was 50%, the concentration of the NaCl
solution was 5 g/l, the wetting-drying cycles were carried
out with one day wet and six days dry, and the test period
lasted one year. After the experiment, no matter the flexural
strength or stiffness, the mechanical properties of UHPC
April (2015) Vol.58 No.4 593
Cl- Diffusion Oxygen Water
Abrasion
coefficient permeability Absorption
coefficient
(m2 s1) (m2) (kg m2)
0.02×1012 1016 0.2 1.3
0.60×1012 1017 0.4 2.8
1.10×1012 <1019 2.7 4.0
showed almost no change. This indicated that UHPC didn’t
degrade under the aforementioned coupled effects in one
year.
Andrade [40] studied the long-term carbonation re-
sistance of the reinforced UHPC under permanent load. A
constant load of four-point bending was applied to the beam
specimens and visible cracks with width of 0.05 and 0.1 mm
were induced. The specimens were 16 years old and have
been held indoors and outdoors (at open air exposed to the
climatic events). The corrosion rate of the reinforcing bars
and the carbonation depth were measured. The results
showed that the reinforcing bars remained in passive state
after 16 years exposure, in spite of the cracks induced by the
constant bending load. The carbonation depth in UHPC was
less than 1 mm, which shows that UHPC has great carbona-
tion resistance.
5.3 Field tests on the durability of UHPC
Since UHPC was invented, it has been used for some struc-
tures. Feedbacks on the durability of UHPC in some of
these structures have been received.
Sakata-Mirai Footbridge [34] is the first bridge con-
structed with UHPC in Japan in 2002. This bridge is built to
span the Noota River that flows through the urban area of
Sakata City. The location is about 3.4 km from the Japan
Sea coastal line, so this footbridge is exposed to severe cor-
rosive environment. After more than 10 years exposure,
chloride profiles in UHPC of the bridge were tested. The
results showed that the chloride penetration depth was less
than 1 mm in the UHPC samples, and the chloride diffusion
coefficient was around 1×1015 m2/s. The mechanical prop-
erties of field UHPC samples were also tested. The com-
pressive strength of the samples increased due to the ongo-
ing hydration of cement in 10 years. The flexural strength
was almost the same as 10 years ago. So, in conclusion, this
10 years old UHPC footbridge still maintains good condi-
tion even against severer environments.
UHPC bridges at Bourg-les-Valence in Southeastern
France are the oldest UHPC road bridges in the world [41].
They were completed in 2001 and the decks were made of
BSI/Ceracem® concrete with compressive strength of 180
MPa. After 12 years of service, cores were drilled from one
of the bridge spans for long-term performance investigation.
Mechanical and durability characteristics were measured
with the drilled specimens. Free chloride content was de-
594 Gu C P, et al. Sci China Tech Sci April (2015) Vol.58 No.4

termined with an extraction and titration method. At the

surface of all the specimens, the detected contents were
close to the precision of the test method, which is 0.02 g of
chloride in 100 g UHPC without fibers. Although the use of
de-icing salts is not intense in this region, such limited con-
tents confirm that chlorides have not penetrated inside
UHPC and can not contribute to the rebar corrosion. As the
same to that in Sakata-Mirai Footbridge, the compressive
strength of the drilled samples is close to 20% higher than
that at 28 days.
Three series of UHPC have been placed at the mid-tide
level of a marine exposure site at Treat Island, Maine since
1995 [42]. The exposure conditions at Treat Island are very
aggressive for concrete with tides and an average of 100
cycles of freeze and thaw per year. Mechanical properties
and chloride profiles were tested. After 13 years exposure,
the UHPC beams appeared to be in excellent condition. The
chloride penetration depth was about 7 mm. While for HPC
in the same condition, the penetration depth had reached 20
mm. The calculated chloride diffusion coefficient of UHPC
was 1/10 of HPC.
Figure 7 Photos of UHPC bridges. (a) Footbridge of Peace, Seoul, South
Korea; (b) Sakata-Mirai bridge, Sakata, Japan.
6 Applications of UHPC
ing components, such as sunshades, cladding and roof
Because of the excellent performance of UHPC, its applica- components, was the leading domain of UHPC applications
tions are increasing gradually in the recent years, especially in the last decade. UHPC could be used to produce very
in Europe, North America and Japan. The main applications slender, durable and aesthetic structures.
of UHPC are bridges, buildings, structural strengthening One of the newest buildings where UHPC is used is the
and retrofitting, and some special applications [6]. Some Fondation Louis Vuitton pour la Creation in Paris [48]. This
specific examples will be given in the following sections. project is characterized by the high geometric complexity.
The cladding is created from 19000 unique, prefabricated
6.1 Bridges panels of UHPC. Each one is different from others, mould-
ed individually and installed using a butt joint. The visuali-
The advanced mechanical properties and durability of zation of this building is shown in Figure 8. The construc-
UHPC make it possible to reconsider the conventional de- tion will be finished in 2014.
sign methods for many common bridge components. Many Another great example is the Museum of European and
investigations have been conducted on the optimal designs Mediterranean Civilizations (MUCEM) [49] as shown in
with UHPC elements, resulting in the development and Figure 9, which is located in the port area of Marseille in
construction of the UHPC bridges all over the world. Ac- France. It is the first building in the word to make such ex-
cording to the state-of-the-art report [7] on UHPC published tensive use of UHPC. The tree-like facades, columns,
by U.S. Federal Highway Administration in 2013, 55 brackets and bridges decks of the perimeter footbridges,
bridges using UHPC have been built or are under construc- facades and roof lattice, 115 and 69 meters long pedestrian
tion in U.S. and Canada. There are 22 in Europe and 27 in
Asia and Australia. In these applications, UHPC can be
used as beams, girders, deck panels, protective layers,
field-cast joints between different components and etc.
[11,43–47]. Compared to traditional reinforced concrete
bridges, most bridges built with the UHPC components or
joints exhibit slender appearance, much lower weight, sim-
plified implementation and better durability. Figure 7 shows
two typical examples of UHPC bridges.

6.2 Buildings
In addition to the applications on bridges, the field of build- Figure 8 Fondation Louis Vuitton pour la Creationin, Paris, France.
 Gu C P, et al. Sci China Tech Sci April (2015) Vol.58 No.4 595

Figure 9 MUCEM, Marseille, France.

footbridges and even the protective covers to the prestress-

ing anchorage points are all made of UHPC.
There are some other examples of similar applications,
such as precast thin curved shells in a waste water treatment
plant in France [50]; roof of the Jean Bouin stadium in Paris
[51]; roof of the Olympic museum in Lausanne, Switzerland
[52]; cladding for the Qatar National Museum [53]; and
facades at Terminal 1 of Rabat airport in Morocco [54].

Figure 10 Comparison of this bridge before and after rehabilitation [57].

6.3 Structural strengthening and retrofitting (a) Before the rehabilitation; (b) after the rehabilitation.

UHPC also has been widely used as an overlay to repair the

reinforced or prestressed concrete bridge decks [9,55,56]. It
could increase the mechanical properties and durability of
the bridges and result in less maintenance. This kind of ap-
plications is mainly in France and Swiss. The first applica-
tion was on a bridge over the river La Morge, in Cha-
teauneuf/Conthey nearby Sion, Wallis, Swiss [57]. Origi-
nally, the bridge deck had no waterproofing membrane and
the curbs were severely damaged by chloride induced cor-
rosion. Then the downstream curb, upstream curb and the
upper surface of the bridge deck were replaced with UHPC.
After rehabilitation, the bridge served well and no cracks
can be found on the surfaces of the prefabricated UHPC Figure 11 Cover plates along the high speed railway.
curb after one year. The comparison of this bridge before
and after rehabilitation is shown in Figure 10. Since then, high-speed railways in China [12], and for the retrofit of the
same or similar technology has been widely used for the nuclear reactor containment walls in France [60]. UHPC
deteriorated bridges. also can be used in marine areas for its great resistance to
UHPC could also be used to repair and protect the hy- the aggressive agents. UHPC windmills in the sea have been
draulic structures. The first example is the repair of the Ho- successfully designed [61–64], and rejuvenation of maritime
sokawa River Tunnel in Japan [58]. Then, UHPC was used signalization structures with UHPC also has been proved to
to repair the Caderousse and Beaucaire dams on the Rhone be very effective [65]. In Japan, the Haneda Airport (As
River in France in 2010 to 2012 [59]. The slabs and the hy- shown in Figure 12) was extended, consisting in the con-
draulic vertical screen were repaired and strengthened. struction over the sea of a huge UHPC slab based on steel
pipes [66]. It is the largest UHPC project realized today.
6.4 Special applications Moreover, UHPC also has potential in military structures [32].

Considering the excellent properties of UHPC, sometimes it

can be used in some special conditions. Thanks to its high 7 Perspectives on the development of UHPC
flexural strength and dense microstructure, UHPC has been
used for cover plates (As shown in Figure 11) along the Thanks to the excellent performance of UHPC, it owns
596 Gu C P, et al. Sci China Tech Sci
Figure 12 The Haneda Airport.
large potential for various applications, many of which are
even not recognized yet. UHPC provides economical and
innovative solutions in areas where normal concrete strug-
gles to find a solution. It is conceivable that the applications
of UHPC will grow continuously. But efforts have to be
made to overcome the challenges in the development of
UHPC.
7.1 Further potential applications
The chloride induced corrosion is always the main threat to
reinforced structures in marine areas. Using UHPC in ma-
rine structures is one of the solutions to prevent corrosion of
the reinforcement because of UHPC’s great resistance to
chloride. Pioneering applications of UHPC in marine struc-
tures have been realized [49,65,66]. Further applications in
this area are promising. One example is large-span cross-sea
bridge. The high strength of UHPC allows a significant re-
duction of the cross-section of members. This is accompa-
nied by a significant weight reduction, allowing in principle
much longer spans. UHPC also has potential for repairing
and strengthening the marine structures, such piers and oil
platforms.
Besides chlorides, UHPC has great resistance to most
chemical and physical attacks, which gives it possibilities to
be used in some severer environmental conditions. For in-
stance, in the salty lake areas of western China, the service
life of normal concrete structures is only 1–5 years because
of the aggressive environment. To prolong the service life
of the concrete structures in these areas is the most im-
portant. UHPC could be one of the effective solutions. Un-
der other severer conditions, such as extremely cold regions,
UHPC could also be a good option for infrastructure con-
struction and repair.
The ductile behavior of UHPC makes it possible to be
used for buildings and structures in seismic regions
[31,67,68]. Reinforced UHPC columns or beams could dis-
sipate more energy than normal reinforced concrete during
the earthquake, preventing the buildings or structures from
collapse. To reduce the cost, hybrid element, which uses
UHPC in combination with normal concrete or other mate-
rials, could be designed and applied for buildings and
structures to resist seismic load.
April (2015) Vol.58 No.4
The excellent workability enables UHPC to be cast into
any shapes. Hence, UHPC blocks with different shapes
could be precast. These blocks could be assembled into a
structure, just like jigsaw. Much time and labor could be
saved to build this kind of UHPC structure. Moreover, most
of the UHPC blocks could be reused after an old assembled
structure’s failure. The fundamental studies on this concept
have started in Japan [69]. If it comes true, the sustainability
of the whole construction industry could be remarkably im-
proved.
Since UHPC shows very good application prospects,
more and more innovative applications of UHPC will
emerge in the near future.
7.2 Challenges
It is well known that the relatively high material cost and
the high energy consumption are the main shortcomings of
UHPC. From the cost and sustainability point of view, the
mix optimization for UHPC is very important. Research on
reducing the cost and improving the sustainability of UHPC
is the key point for the further development of UHPC. For
UHPC, material cost may be high due to the mix require-
ments and raw material availability. Research could be
conducted to modify the material mixtures, use regional raw
materials, and develop more economic and environmen-
tal-friendly UHPC. With a lower cost and impact on the
environment, UHPC will be much easier to be accepted by
the infrastructure market and arouse the interests from the
infrastructure owners.
Another issue about the cost is the life-cycle cost of the
UHPC structures. One of the primary advantages of UHPC
is its excellent durability. As discussed in Section 5, the
durability of UHPC is much better than NC and HPC.
Hence, the UHPC structures could have much longer ser-
vice life than the NC or HPC structures. During the
long-term service, both the conventional concrete and the
UHPC structures need maintenance, inspection, repair and
replacement. The excellent durability may make the life-
cycle cost of the UHPC structures lower than conventional
concrete structures. This has to be identified, so as to con-
vince the structure owners to use this material. Hence, it is
significant to perform studies on evaluating the life-cycle
cost of the UHPC structures.
With the applications of UHPC in the past a few years,
empirical skills and knowledge on the design and construc-
tion of UHPC structures have been gained. But for some
reasons they may not be easily shared [70]. So the dissemi-
nation of information on UHPC is extremely important for
encouraging its applications. Guidelines for design and con-
struction of UHPC structures have to be developed based on
the experiences and knowledge obtained from field, exper-
imental researches and scientific computations. Internation-
al recommendations are difficult to be produced due to a
significant variety of UHPC experience in the different
 Gu C P, et al. Sci China Tech Sci
countries [70]. But in some countries like France, Japan,
China, German and Switzerland, due to a growing interest
on UHPC, standardization efforts have been made. For ex-
ample, in China, a draft of national standard on RPC has
been posted on internet, asking for comments. With the
growing applications of UHPC, more experience and
knowledge could be gathered, and thus recommendations or
standards on design and construction with UHPC could be
further developed.
The design and construction methods for the UHPC
structures are different from the traditional provisions for
conventional reinforced concrete. To date, skilled architects,
engineers and experts in the UHPC design and construction
are still very few. Only a few engineering offices, compa-
nies and authorities have been involved in working with
UHPC. Since UHPC has a wide application prospect,
skilled teams which are familiar with UHPC technology and
specific design issues should be developed [6].
At present, only around 5 suppliers could provide UHPC
products to the market. They are mainly distributed in Eu-
rope and North America. In some country, like China,
UHPC products are not commercialized. Wide application
of any construction material requires that the material can
be widely available for purchase by both private and public
organizations [43]. Without readily available UHPC, the
promising applications of this material will never be real-
ized.
As to the scientific researches on UHPC, the research
trend on UHPC now is related to nanotechnology. Experi-
mental explorations have been performed to modify the
properties of UHPC by using nano-particles (e.g. nano-SiO2)
and nano-fibers (e.g. carbon nano-tubes). Moreover, some
researchers have tried to study the structure of hydration
products in UHPC at nano-scale [71]. Nanotechnology
might be a solution to the drawbacks of UHPC, such as
shrinkage problem, and thus could improve the general
performance of UHPC. So further studies on this subject
should be proceeded. Besides all the researches related to
the material, the performance of the UHPC structural ele-
ments also should be studied. The shortage of the infor-
mation on the behavior of the UHPC structural elements is
one of the main reasons that hold back the rapid growth of
UHPC applications. Understandings on the behavior of the
UHPC structural elements are essential before the UHPC
structures can be used, and could contribute to drawing up
the standards or recommendations for the UHPC structure
design.
8 Conclusions
At present, UHPC is one of the most modern technologies
of the cementitious materials. By improving the homogene-
ity and packing density, UHPC with outstanding mechanical
properties and durability could be prepared. It has an ex-
April (2015) Vol.58 No.4 597
tremely dense micro-structure, and normally capillary pores
do not exist in UHPC. The mechanical properties and dura-
bility of UHPC are both much better than HPC and NC.
When using UHPC, attentions have to be paid to the autog-
enous shrinkage and fire resistance of this material.
UHPC is a high-tech material following new technologi-
cal rules regarding its composition, its production and the
mechanical behavior, as well as regarding design and con-
struction of structures. After several decades of develop-
ment, a great accumulation of knowledge about the material
and the design and construction of the UHPC structures
have been gained. Technical recommendations have been
published in France, Japan, China, Germany and Switzer-
land. Some applications in North America, Europe and Asia
have proven that UHPC technology shows great benefits
regarding the sustainability and service life, which testifies
that applications of UHPC could be extended to wider fields.
Nevertheless, this material has still not yet widely accepted.
Since the initial cost of UHPC is high, an optimization ef-
fort is necessary to reduce the production cost. In order to
make use of the large potential of UHPC, the industry
should cooperate in a much better way with academic insti-
tutes, governments, structure owners and end-users. The
knowledge and practical experiences should be much ex-
changed between those parties. Standards and recommenda-
tions on design and construction of the UHPC structures
must be established. Designers, architects and engineers
should be more open to this new material and technology.
In addition, further scientific researches on UHPC and
UHPC structures also must be continued. With all these
efforts, UHPC may turn into a widespread ‘regular’ tech-
nology, thus resulting in more sustainable and durable in-
frastructures.
This work was supported by the National Basic Research Program of Chi-
na (“973” Project) (Grant No. 2009CB623203), National Natural Science
Foundation of China (Grant No.51378113) and Fundamental Research
Funds for the Central Universities (Grant No. 3212002206). The work was
carried out in the Microlab, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences,
Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands.
1 French Association for Civil Engineering, Ultra high performance fi-
ber-reinforced concrete, Recommendations, revised edition, 2013
2 Roy D M, Gouda D R, Bobrowsky A. Very high strength cement
pastes prepared by hot pressing and other high pressure techniques.
Cem Concr Res, 1972, 2: 249–366
3 Birchall J D, Howard A J, Kendal K. Flexural strength and porosity
of cements. Nature, 1981, 289: 388–389
4 Bache H H. Densified Cement/Ultrafine Particle-Based Materials. In:
Bache H H, ed. Proceedings of 2nd International Conference on Su-
perplasticizers in Concrete, Ottawa, Canada, 1981. 33
5 Pierer R, Marcel C. Composition of reactive powder concretes. Cem
Concr Res, 1995, 25: 1501–1511
6 Resplendino J and Toutlemonde F, The UHPFRC revolution in
structural design and construction, In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J,
eds. Proceedings of International Symposium on Ultra-High Perfor-
mance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete, Marseille, France, 2013. 791–804
7 The Federal Highway Administration, Ultra-High Performance Con-
598 Gu C P, et al. Sci China Tech Sci
crete: A State-of-the-Art Report for the Bridge Community, Publica-
tion No. FHWA-HRT-13-060, McLean, VA 22101-2296, 2013
8 Cavill B, Chirgwin G. The world’s first RPC road bridge Spepherds
Gually Creek bridge, NSW. In: Cavill B, Chirgwin G, eds. Proceed-
ings of Fifth Austroads Bridge Conference. Hobart, Australia, 2004
9 Bruhwiler E, Denarie E. Rehabilitation of concrete structures using
ultra-high performance fiber reinforced concrete. In: Fehling E,
Schmidt M, Stürwald S, eds. Proceedings of Second International
Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete.
Kassel, France, 2008. 895-902
10 Grunewald S, Kohne H, Nio M, et al. Parkbridge: Optimization of a
slender bridge in UHPFRC. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds.
Proceedings of International Symposium on Ultra-High Performance
Fiber-Reinforced Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013. 379–388
11 Tirimanna D, Falbr J. FDN modular UHPFRC bridges. In:
Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceedings of International
Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete.
Marseille, France, 2013. 395–404
12 Gu C, Zhao S, Sun W, et al. Production of precast UHPFRC pave-
ment cover plates in high-speed railway construction. In:
Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceedings of International
Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete.
Marseille, France, 2013. 463–470
13 Naaman A E, Wille K. The path to ultra-high performance fiber rein-
forced concrete(UHP-FRC): five decade of progress. In: Schmidt M,
Fehling E, Glotzbach C, et al. eds. Proceedings of 3rd international
symposium on UHPC and nanotechnology for high performance
construction materials. Kassel, France, 2012. 3–13
14 Tuan N. Rice Husk ash as a mineral admixture for ultra high perfor-
mance concrete. Dissertation for the Doctor Degree. Delft: Delft
University of Technology, 2011.
15 Van Viet T A, Ludwig H M, Proportioning Optimization of UHPC
Containing Rice Husk Ash and Ground Granulated Blast-Furnace
Slag. In: Schmidt M, Fehling E, Glotzbach C, et al. eds. Proceedings
of 3rd international symposium on UHPC and nanotechnology for
high performance construction materials. Kassel, France, 2012.
197–205
16 Rougeau P, Borys B. Ultra High Performance Concrete with Ul-
trafine Particles Other Than Silica Fume. In: Fehling E, Schmidt M,
Geisenhanslüke C, eds. Proceedings of the International Symposium
on Ultra High Performance Concrete. Kassel, France, 2004. 213–225
17 Collepardi S, Coppola L, Troli R, et al. Mechanical Properties of
Modified Reactive Powder Concrete. In: Malhotra V M, eds. Pro-
ceedings of the Fifth CANMET/ACI International Conference on
Superplasticizers and Other Chemical Admixtures in Concrete. Rome,
Italy, 1997. 1–22
18 Schmidt M, Fehling E. Ultra-high-performance concrete: research
development and application in Europe. In: Russell H G, eds. Pro-
ceedings of the 7th International Symposium on the Utilization of
High-strength/High-performance concrete. Washington DC, US,
2005. 51–78
19 Sun W, Zhao S. Characterizing the microstructure of UHPCC with
high-volume fly ash addition by nanoindentation. In: Palomo Á,
Zaragoza A, López Agüí J, eds. Proceedings of the13th International
Congress on the Chemistry of Cement. Madrid, Spain, 2011. 399
20 Vandamme M, Ulm F J, Fonollosa P. Nanogranular packing of
C–S–H at substochiometric conditions. Cem Concr Res, 2010, 40:
14–26
21 Chen J, Sorelli L. A coupled Nanoindentation/SEM-EDS study on
low Water/Cement ratio ortland cement paste: evidence for
C–S–H/Ca(OH)2 nanocomposites. J Am Ceram Soc, 2010, 93:
1484–1493
22 Fehling E, Bunje K, Leutbecher T. Design relevant Properties of
hardened Ultra High Performance Concrete. In: Fehling E, Schmidt
M, Geisenhanslüke C, eds. Proceedings of the International Sympo-
April (2015) Vol.58 No.4
sium on Ultra High Performance Concrete. Kassel, France, 2004.
327–338
23 Graybeal B, Baby F. Development of a Direct Tension Test Method
for UHPFRC. ACI Mater J, 2013, 110: 177–186
24 Kim S, Park J J, Yoo D, et al. Shrinkage Behavior of Ultra High Per-
formance Concrete at the Manufacturing Stage. In: Schmidt M, Feh-
ling E, Glotzbach C, et al. eds. Proceedings of 3rd international sym-
posium on UHPC and nanotechnology for high performance con-
struction materials. Kassel, France, 2012. 317–324
25 Suzuki M, Maruyama I, Sato R. Properties of Expansive-Ultra
High-Strength Concrete. In: Russell H G, eds. Proceedings of the 7th
International Symposium on the Utilization of High-strength/High-
performance concrete. Washington DC, US, 2005. 1159–1173
26 Piérard J, Pollet V, Cauberg N. Mitigating autogenous shrinkage in
HPC by internal curing using superabsorbent polymers. In: Jensen O
M, Lura P, Kovler K, eds. Proceedings of International RILEM Con-
ference on Volume Changes of Hardening Concrete: Testing and
Mitigation. Lyngby, Denmark, 2006. 97–106
27 Habeeb G A, Fayyadh M M. Rice husk ash concrete: the Effect of
RHA average particle size on mechanical properties and drying
shrinkage. Aust J Basic Appl Sci, 2009, 3: 1616–1622
28 Ye H W, Feng N Q, Yang L H, et al. Research on fire resistance of
ultra-high-performance concrete. Adv Mater Sci Eng, 2012, 1–7
29 Ju Y, Liu H B, Tian K P, et al. An investigation on micro pore struc-
tures and the vapor pressure mechanism of explosive spalling of RPC
exposed to high temperature. Sci China Tech Sci, 2013, 56: 458–470
30 Ouedraogo E, Malecot Y, Missemer L. et al. Influence of the nature
of the synthetic incorporated fibers in UHPFRC when subjected to
fire conditions. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceedings
of International Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fi-
ber-Reinforced Concrete, Marseille, France, 2013. 303–314
31 Bindiganvile V, Banthia N, Aarup B. Impact Response of Ul-
tra-High-Strength Fiber-Reinforced Cement Composite. ACI Mater J,
2002, 99: 543–548
32 Lai J, Zhu Y, Xu S, et al. Multiple impact penetration of ultra high
performance cementitious composites. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplen-
dino J, eds. Proceedings of International Symposium on Ultra-High
Performance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013.
637–646
33 Lan D. Mechanical properties and durability of RPC. Journal of He-
bei University, 2005, 25: 583–586, 638
34 Kono K, Musha H, Kawaguchi T, et al. Durability study of the first
PC bridge constructed with ultra high strength fiber reinforced con-
crete in Japan. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceedings of
International Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fi-
ber-Reinforced Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013. 239–248
35 Pierard J, Dooms B, Cauberg N. Durability evaluation of different
types of UHPC. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceedings
of International Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fi-
ber-Reinforced Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013. 275–284
36 Charron J P, Denarié E, Brühwiler E. Transport properties of water
and glycol in an ultra high performance fiber reinforced concrete
(UHPFRC) under high tensile deformation. Cem Concr Res, 2008, 38:
689–698
37 Charron J P, Denarié E, Brühwiler E. Permeability of ultra high per-
formance fiber reinforced concretes (UHPFRC) under high stresses.
Mater Struct, 2007, 40: 269–277
38 Aldea C M , Shah S P, Karr A. Permeability of cracked concrete.
Mater Struct, 1999, 32: 370–376
39 Parant E, Pierre P, Le Maou F. Durability of a multiscale fiber rein-
forced cement composite in aggressive environment under service
load. Cem Concr Res, 2007, 37: 1106–1114
40 Andrade C, Torres J. Long term carbonation of UHPC. In:
Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceedings of International
Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete.
 Gu C P, et al. Sci China Tech Sci
Marseille, France, 2013.249–256
41 Toutlemonde F, Roenelle P, Hajar Z, et al. Long term material per-
formance checked on world’s oldest UHPFRC road bridges at
Bourg-Les-Valence. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Pro-
ceedings of International Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fi-
ber-Reinforced Concrete, Marseille, France, 2013. 265–274
42 Thomas M, Green B, O’Neal E, et al. Marine Performance of UHPC
at Treat Island. In: Schmidt M, Fehling E, Glotzbach C, et al. eds.
Proceedings of 3rd international symposium on UHPC and nano-
technology for high performance construction materials. Kassel,
France, 2012. 365–370
43 Graybeal B, UHPC in the U.S. highway infrastructure: experience
and outlook. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceedings of
International Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fiber-
Reinforced Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013. 361–370
44 Musha H, Ohkuma H, Kitamura T. Innovative UFC structures in Ja-
pan. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceedings of Interna-
tional Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fiber-Reinforced
Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013. 17–26
45 Park S Y, Kim S T, Cho J R, et al. Trial construction of UHPC high-
way bridge. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceedings of
International Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fiber-
Reinforced Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013. 371–378
46 Brugeaud Y. Express bridge deck and light duty bridge. In:
Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceedings of International
Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete.
Marseille, France, 2013. 389–394
47 Kim B S, Kim S, Kim Y J, et al. Application of ultra high perfor-
mance concrete to cable stayed bridges. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplen-
dino J, eds. Proceedings of International Symposium on Ultra-High
Performance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013.
413–422
48 Aubry S, Bompas P, Vaudeville B, et al. A UHPFRC cladding chal-
lenge: the Fondation Louis Vuitton pour la Creation ‘Iceberg’. In:
Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceedings of International
Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete.
Marseille, France, 2013. 37–48
49 Mazzacane P, Ricciotti R, Teply F, et al. MUCEM: The builder’s
perspective. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceedings of
International Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fiber-
Reinforced Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013. 3–16
50 Delplace G, Hajar Z, Simon A, et al. Precast thin UHPFRC curved
shells in a waste water treatment plant. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplen-
dino J, eds. Proceedings of International Symposium on Ultra-High
Performance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013.
49–58
51 Mazzacane P, Ricciotti R, Lamoureux G, et al. Roofing of the Stade
Jean Bouin in UHPFRC. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds.
Proceedings of International Symposium on Ultra-High Performance
Fiber-Reinforced Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013. 59–68
52 Muttoni A, Brauen U, Jaquier J L, et al. A new roof for the Olympic
museum in Lausanne, Switzerland. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J,
eds. Proceedings of International Symposium on Ultra-High Perfor-
mance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013. 69–76
53 Menetrey P. UHPFRC cladding for the Qatar National Museum. In:
Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceedings of International
Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete.
Marseille, France, 2013. 351–360
54 Fabbri R, Corvez D. Rationalisaztion of complex UHPFRC façade
shapes. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceedings of Inter-
national Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fiber-Reinforced
Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013. 27–36
55 Hajar Z, Novarin M, Servant C, et al. Innovative solution for
strengthening orthotropic decks using UHPFRC: The Illzach Bridge.
View publication stats
April (2015) Vol.58 No.4 599
In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceedings of International
Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete.
Marseille, France, 2013. 117-126
56 Moreillon L, Menetrey P. Rehabilitation and strengthening of exist-
ing RC structures with UHPFRC: various applications. In:
Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceedings of International
Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete.
Marseille, France, 2013. 127–136
57 SAMARIS Management Group, Full scale application of UHPFRC
for the rehabilitation of bridges–from the lab to the field. Document
number: SAM_GE_DE22v03_01, 2005
58 Ono T. Application of UHSFRC for irrigation chanel repair works. In:
Toulemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Designing and Building with
UHPFRC—State of the Art and Development. London: ISTE Ltd,
2011. 541–552
59 Guingot L, Dekhil D, Souolier P. Strengthening of hydraulic struc-
tures with UHPC. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceed-
ings of International Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fiber-
Reinforced Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013. 137–146
60 Corvez D, Masson B. UHPFRC solutions for the retrofit of nuclear
reactor containment walls. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds.
Proceedings of International Symposium on Ultra-High Performance
Fiber-Reinforced Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013. 147–156
61 Jammes F X, Cespedes X, Resplendino J. Design of offshore wind
turbines with UHPC. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Pro-
ceedings of International Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fi-
ber-Reinforced Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013. 443–452
62 Sritharan S, Schmitz G M. Design of tall wind turbine towers utiliz-
ing UHPC. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceedings of
International Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fiber-Rein-
forced Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013. 433–442
63 Sobek W, Plank M, Frettlöhr B, et al. Conceptual design of an
UHPFRC tower structure in segmental construction for offshore wind
turbines. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceedings of In-
ternational Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fiber-Reinforced
Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013. 423–432
64 Ma H W, Meng R. Optimization design of prestressed concrete
wind-turbine tower. Sci China Tech Sci, 2014, 57: 414–422
65 Denarie E, Jacomo D, Fady N, et al. Rejuvenation of maritime sig-
nalisation structures with UHPFRC. In: Toutlemonde F, Resplendino
J, eds. Proceedings of International Symposium on Ultra-High Per-
formance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013.
157–166
66 Tanaka Y, Meakawa K, Kameyama Y. et al. The Innovation and Ap-
plication of UHPFRC Bridges in Japan. In: Toulemonde F, Re-
splendino J, eds. Designing and Building with UHPFRC --- State of
the Art and Development. London: ISTE Ltd, 2011. 149–187
67 Long G C, Wang M, Xie Y J, et al. Experimental investigation on
dynamic mechanical characteristics and microstructure of
steam-cured concrete. Sci China Tech Sci, 2014, 57: 1902–1908
68 Ma K L, Xie Y J, Long G C, et al. Deterioration of dynamic mechan-
ical property of concrete with mineral admixtures under fatigue load-
ing. Sci China Tech Sci, 2014, 57: 1909–1916
69 Ito H, Nishowaki T, Kwon S, et al. Foundation study on construction
systems for complete reuse using UHPFRC blocks. In: Toutlemonde
F, Resplendino J, eds. Proceedings of International Symposium on
Ultra-High Performance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete. Marseille,
France, 2013. 343–350.
70 Resplendino J, Toutlemonde F. Conlusions and acknowledgements –
Some insights in future application of UHPC. Presentation on Inter-
national Symposium on Ultra-High Performance Fiber-Reinforced
Concrete. Marseille, France, 2013
71 Liu R G, Han F H, Yan P Y. Characteristics of two types of C-S-H
gel in hardened complex binder pastes blended with slag. Sci China
Tech Sci, 2013, 56: 1395–1402