Mechanical properties and healing efficiency of 3D-printed ABS vascular based self-healing cementitious composite: Experiments and modelling

• A novel 3D printed vascular system is proposed to develop self-healing cementitious composites. The developed composites show significantly increased fracture toughness than plain mortar. numerical finite element model shows good accuracy of simulating the influence printing parameters on behavior exhibit healing efficiency, high flexural strength regain by found after epoxy. Cracking one main causes for deterioration concrete structures. Self-healing with 3D-printed networks has excellent potential autonomous self-healing. This approach scarcely investigated: no studies have been devoted properties based concrete. In this work, three-dimensional structures complex geometry were designed and 4 different sets parameters. First, four, nominally identical, initial concretes was experimentally investigated. parallel, modeling a damaged plasticity (CDPM) in Abaqus software used simulate mechanical composite. After 4-point bending tests, epoxy resin injected into as agent seal cracks. Then, watertightness recovery also measured. Based obtained results, we that lower strengths reference sample, expected. magnitude drop shown depend strongly parameters: specimens horizontally-printed higher vertically-printed counterparts. Furthermore, smaller layer-height less vascular-based compared those larger layer-height. terms recovery, all tested samples showed full (100%) which means direction do not an obvious effect study. Numerical simulations performance CDPM agreement experiments, although quality network influences simulation accuracy. These great using design order minimize properties, without compromising efficiency. Overall, remarkable provide basis further research.