Recent Advances in Concrete Technology PDF

PREFACE

he book is a compilation of about eighty papers on recent advances in concrete technology. The book contains contributions by scholars from North America, Asia, Europe, Africa and Australia who participated in The First International Conference on Recent Advances in Concrete Technology (rac07). This is the first time such a conference was held as an offshoot of CI-Premier conferences held in South-East Asia and elsewhere since 1976. The main objective was to bring together all those who share a common interest in this subject area, to promote international communication of new ideas, developments and innovations. The theme for conference was chosen to reflect the need to hold such a conference in the US with the appropriate venue of Washington, DC with hope of attracting scholars from around the world. The contents of this book reflect recent advances in concrete technology that were hard to anticipate during the original OWICS in 1976. One may look especially in Asia, where concrete has been used in record proportions and heights due to these advances. Some of these developments are reflected in the papers that are included in this volume.

This inaugural conference, The First International Conference on Recent Advances in Concrete Technology (rac07), was held 19-21 September 2007 in the Washington, DC area at the Sheraton in Crystal City, Virginia, USA. The conference was organized by the University of Maryland, Howard University and CI-Premier Pte Ltd of Singapore with the support of several organizations including, the Federal Highway Administration, the Northeast Cement Shippers Association, the National Institute for Standards & Technology, the Portland Cement Association, the National Ready-Mix Concrete Association, the National Association of Home Builders Research Center, the National Capital Chapter of ACI, the South East Cement Association, the TRB Committee on Durability of Concrete and iSMARTi (Portugal).

The conference had a wide scope and provided a forum to meet and discuss recent advances in concrete technology. The book is organized in twelve chapters and the topics covered in the book include: (1) Developments in Concrete Systems; (2) Material Science of Concrete; (3) Characterization of Cementitious Materials; (4) High and Ultra High Performance Concrete; (5) Durability of Concrete; (6) Innovative Use of Concrete; (7) Rehabilitation and Maintenance; (8) Structural Evaluation of Concrete and Masonry; (9) Concrete with FRP Composites; (10) Innovative Use of Materials; (11) Fiber Reinforced Concrete; and (12) Chemical Admixtures.

The editors would like to thank the conference Organizing Committee and the International Advisory Board for making the conference a success. The editors would also like to express their deepest gratitude to Ms. Peggy Teo and the staff of CI-Premier. Special thanks to Graphic Artist Ms. Sangeeta Kaul; to former graduate students at University of Maryland: Dr. Jorgomai Ceesay, Mr. Hafiz Shaikh and Mr. Ali Talebpour; and to Mr. Kieth Stanley for the photograph on the cover. Special thanks are extended to the review panel at University of Maryland that reviewed the manuscripts submitted to the conference. Finally, the editors express their deepest appreciation and gratitude to the authors and participants for making the conference a success.