Tougher Concrete

In the construction materials used for buildings and infrastructure such as roads, strength relates to the ability to sustain weight while toughness relates to resistance to cracking. But what if there was a building material stronger and tougher than traditional materials. We’ll explore in the U.S. National Science Foundation’s “Discovery Files”.
Modern society depends on the resilient materials that make up the civil infrastructure we rely on daily. Durability becomes essential in heavily used roads, buildings, and water systems.
NSF-supported engineers from Princeton University have
demonstrated a new technique using a cement paste in a tube-like architecture to make materials resistant to cracking and sudden failures.
Inspired by the architecture of human bone and its tough outer layer, the cement-based material is 5.6 times more damage-resistant than standard counterparts.
In addition to improving fracture toughness, the researchers introduced a new method to quantify the statistical degree of disorder, an important quantity for design.
The researchers hope to use advanced fabrication methods such as additive manufacturing to introduce combinations of hard and soft materials into the tube structures. This new approach could further expand the possible applications while helping engineers develop new concrete components.

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