Damage in Prestressed Concrete Structures due to Creep and Shrinkage of Concrete

The theory of concrete creep and shrinkage has not been regarded as part of what has been understood as damage mechanics. However, these inelastic phenomena do result in significant damages to structures, including not only distributed cracking, which is damage in classical sense, but also damage in the form of excessive deflection which puts the structure out of service. It is for this reason that a chapter on creep and shrinkage is included in this handbook. The theory of creep and shrinkage of concrete has become a vast field. In what follows, only a rather brief exposition of this subject will be included. The emphasis will be on the topics of wide recent interest, triggered by the revelation of practical problems that have been synthesized into a coherent picture only during the last few years. The creep effects are particularly important for super-tall buildings and prestressed concrete structures, because of their slenderness and high flexibility, and are paramount for nuclear reactor containments and vessels. At high-temperature exposure, as in fire in tunnels or tall buildings or in postulated nuclear reactor accidents, creep is very large and plays a major role.