Full-Field Deformation Measurement System for Early Age Concrete Cracking

Identifying early age shrinkage cracks in fresh concrete is imperative due to their potential to compromise structural serviceability. Understanding the tensile strain capacity of fresh concrete is a key factor in this regard. Nevertheless, measuring deformations in fresh concrete presents challenges, given its semi-solid state, casting doubt on the reliability of contact-based deformation measurement tools. This study is focused on developing a full-field deformation measurement tool for early age concrete. An in-house 3D digital image correlation-based system was utilized in tandem with a direct tensile apparatus, with modifications made to enhance accuracy. The proposed system demonstrates an accuracy of over 94% in measuring displacement and strain variations, underscoring its reliability for full-field displacement and strain measurements.