Influence of the permeability on the frost-thaw behaviour of concrete

ABSTRACT A recent experimental study reveals that the less permeable a cementitious material is, the more likely surface frost damage (called scaling) happens. In order to understand how the permeability determines the mechanical response of the sample, a poromechanical approach has been built. The model allows coupling the liquid/ice crystal thermodynamic equilibrium, Darcean water transport, thermal conduction and thermoelastic properties of the different phases that form the porous material. The influence of the liquid transport on the matrix stress can then be analysed and permeability is found to be a key parameter with regard to frost durability.