Numerical Simulation of Dimensional Stability of Precast Segments Exposed to Solar Radiation during Yard Storage

Abstract

There has been a recent trend in Japan toward using precast segments to reduce the burden on construction sites and improve productivity. In large-scale precast segment structures such as bridges, the deformation of precast segments must be controlled during yard storage. This paper uses the multi-scale integrated chemo-hygric computational system (DuCOM-COM3) developed and extended by our group to numerically evaluate dimensional stability during yard storage of precast concrete with fly ash for a large-scale precast segmental bridge. To demonstrate the sensitivity to deformation behavior, simulations are conducted under three hypothetical cases of outdoor air temperature, outdoor air humidity, and temperature at the top surface of the segment, including the harsh temperature conditions expected in the Shikoku region. In the sensitivity analysis using the climatic conditions obtained from the field monitoring data as input, the reproducibility of the surface temperature and shrinkage of the concrete segment is improved by introducing the absorption of shortwave radiation by solar radiation on the segment top surface as an input parameter in the simulation.