Antonio Caggiano

Università degli Studi di Genova | UNIGE · Dipartimento di Ingegneria civile, chimica e ambientale (DICCA)

Foamed concretes are highly porous materials with excellent insulation properties. Their thermal conductivity is strongly dependent on the pore structure, characterized by the porosity as well as the shape and size distribution of pores. To define the representative volume element (RVE) of foamed concretes with high fidelity, we develop NRGene, an...

This paper presents ongoing research activities that investigate the development of carbon-neutral binder-based composites for Thermal Energy Storage (TES) and energy retrofitting in multi-layer stone masonry wall systems. The study involves preliminary laboratory characterizations of integrated energy and structural retrofitting systems for histor...

Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC)-and alternative binder-based materials have been widely used in Thermal Energy Storage (TES) applications due to their excellent TES capacities, good mechanical properties and low-cost. In this attempt, this work proposes an upscaling procedure to model the TES properties of two hydrated pastes made of OPC and a Hybri...

Climate change and global warming are problems that our planet is currently leading with. Main outcomes of Climate Change Conferences all around the globe, like the COP27, deal with the reduction of CO2, the removal of inefficient fossil subsidies and the promotion of renewable energies. To achieve these goals, this work presents new cementitious m...

A metamaterial is a composite with unprecedented properties, either in nature or in the market. Specifically designed, a metamaterial exhibits either extraordinary or “à la carte” macroscopic physical properties, or allows the device made of it (the “metadevice”) to have an optimal response. In the context of the thermal performance of a building,...

El monitoreo de la calidad del aire es fundamental para determinar su impacto sobre la salud, el medioambiente y su contribución al cambio climático. Con la colaboración de la iniciativa Breathe2Change se instaló en Tucumán la primera red de monitoreo de calidad de aire en tiempo real. Los MISA utilizan una innovadora tecnología que combina un cont...

In this work, firstly a fracture-based interface constitutive theory, aimed at simulating the cracking mechanisms of Fiber Reinforced Cementitious Composites (FRCCs), is presented. The discontinuous formulation assumes a hyperbolic maximum strength criterion in terms of normal and shear joint stresses. The latter are evaluated on each crack front t...

The growing global energy demand requires solutions that improve energy efficiency in all sectors. The civil construction sector is responsible for a large part of global energy consumption. In this context, phase change materials (PCMs) can be incorporated into construction materials to improve the energy efficiency of buildings. The purpose of th...

Two bio-oleogels were investigated. These materials were produced with a combination of canola and soybean oil with 4, 6, 8, and 10% of beeswax (by weight). Sensible heat storage capacity, melting parameters, and enthalpies were investigated by the differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) test. An ordinary DSC dynamic test was performed. Cycles of h...

This article describes the second blind simulation competition (BSC) organized by the fib WG 2.4.1, which aims to assess the predictive performance of models based on the finite element method (FEM) for the analysis and design of fiber reinforced concrete (FRC) structures. Slabs supported on columns or piles have becoming competitive applications f...

The scattering of light by resonant nanoparticles is a key process for enhancing the solar reflectance in daylight radiative cooling. Here, we investigate the impact of material dispersion on the scattering performance of popular nanoparticles for radiative cooling applications. We show that, due to material dispersion, nanoparticles with a qualita...

Editorial "Energy in Construction and Building Materials" of the Special Issue: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/materials/special_issues/Energy_Construction

International project PoroPCM involves partners from Germany, Czech Republic, Spain and Japan with the objective to develop new multifunctional Phase Change Materials modified porous cementitious nanocomposite (PoroPCM). Such material can be utilized for storing heat energy in the insulation layer of buildings compared to commonly used insulation m...

This work aims to introduce a new multiobjective optimization method for designing insulating cementitious foams combined with phase change materials (PCMs) to improve the energy performance of buildings. To achieve this, the multiobjective Non-dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm-II (NSGA-II) and EnergyPlus software are dynamically coupled. Paramet...

The scattering of light by resonant nanoparticles is a key process for enhancing the solar reflectance in daylight radiative cooling. Here, we investigate the impact of material dispersion on the scattering performance of popular nanoparticles for radiative cooling applications. We show that, due to material dispersion, nanoparticles with a qualita...

The hysteresis of phase change materials (PCMs) is a temperature delay of the enthalpy curves between the melting and solidification. This work assesses the impact of modelling the PCM hysteresis on the building performance simulation. To this end, a series of PCM models, considering and not the hysteresis phenomenon, are implemented in EnergyPlus...

Air pollution is still among the biggest environmental health threats for humans in Europe. Traffic, industry, and agriculture are the main responsible sources that are emitting air pollutants, that is, nitrogen oxides (NO×), sulfur dioxide (SO2), carbon monoxide (CO), and particulate matter (PM). Moreover, indoor volatile organic compounds (VOCs),...

This work reports a detailed experimental study that has the purpose of investigating the thermal energy storage (TES) performance of cement pastes enhanced with novel microencapsulated phase change materials (MPCMs). Three water-to-binder ratios and three MPCM volume fractions, leading to a total of nine different mixtures, were investigated at th...

A cement-based device that can meet, partially or completely, the heating loads of a building by absorbing the solar radiation and converting it into thermal energy can be defined as a Massive Solar-Thermal Collector. The absorbing material for the incoming radiation is made of a cementitious composite, generally concrete, and flowing water inside...

Thermal energy storage using phase change materials (PCMs) is a promising technology for improving the thermal performance of buildings and reducing their energy consumption. However, the effectiveness of passive PCMs in buildings depends on their optimal design regarding the building typology and typical climate conditions. Within this context, th...

This paper reports a comprehensive experimental investigation of cement pastes enhanced with Microencapsulated Phase Change Materials (MPCM) for Thermal Energy Storage (TES) purposes. The experimental plan considers three water-to-binder ratios and three MPCM volume fractions, for a total of nine different MPCM paste mixtures. The water-to-binder r...

Dehydration of calcium silicate hydrates, the primary binding phase of cement paste, contributes significantly to the degradation of cementitious materials at high temperatures. Kinetics of the dehydration process is usually parameterized as the product of the classic Arrhenius equation and a kinetic expression, calibrating the influence of the tem...

La investigación experimental ha demostrado el extraordinario potencial de la adición de fibras cortas a los materiales cementiceos, ya que mejoran significativamente el comportamiento de estructuras de hormigón en los estados límite de servicio y último. Para la simulación del comportamiento no lineal del material en estructuras de hormigón reforz...

A conceptual phase-field model is proposed for simulating complex microstructural evolu-tions during the self-healing process of cementitious materials. This model specifically considers carbona-tion healing mechanisms activated by means of dissolution of soluble Ca(OH) 2 mineral and precipitation of the CaCO 3 self-healing product. The system is d...

This work deals with a research study on the fatigue behavior of cohesive frictional materials like concrete or mortars. A two-scale approach will be proposed for analyzing concrete specimens subjected to either low- or high-cycle fatigue actions. The multiscale technique is based on a combination of a micro-scale procedure, to describe the microst...

This paper aims at further advancing the knowledge about the cyclic behavior of FRP strips glued to quasi-brittle materials, such as concrete. The results presented herein derive from a numerical model based on concepts of based on fracture mechanics and already presented and validated by the authors in previous works. Particularly, it assumes that...

Objetivos del trabajo: • Estudiar mecanismos para la extracción de calor en períodos de baja radiación solar. • Analizar si el uso de materiales con cambio de fase (PCMs) puede mejorar el desempeño térmico de los colectores. • Encontrar una distribución optimizada de materiales que maximice el desempeño térmico de un colector a lo largo de todo un...

Monitoring exposure to air pollution is a critical component in policy discussion. In this regard, over the last 40 to 50 years, most industrialized countries have established robust and costly systems for air quality monitoring in cities. Nevertheless, this technology is not widely distributed or easily accessible for installation and manipulation...

Improving energy efficiency with construction and building materials represents one of the key challenges in the recent research and developments of the international community. Innovations in the construction sector are seeking breakthrough answers by using smart and intelligent materials, energy saving concepts, and cost-effective solutions, in o...

This work reports a detailed experimental study that is aimed at investigating the failure mechanisms of highly porous cementitious foams used as heat insulation under triaxial stress states. The designed target dry density of the considered foam mixture was 180 kg/m3 by setting the water to cement ratio of the considered cement paste to 0.4. The m...

Thermal-Energy Storage (TES) properties of organic phase change materials have been experimentally investigated and reported in this paper. Three paraffin-based PCMs and one bio-based one are considered with melting temperatures of 24 °C, 25 °C and 26 °C. Sensible heat storage capacities, melting characteristics and latent heat enthalpies are inves...

This work reports the results of an extensive experimental campaign aimed at investigating the Thermal Energy Storage (TES) behavior of PCM Recycled Brick Aggregate (RBA) mortars. Test specimens for TES measurements were produced following a new spherical-shaped technique, patented as “DKK test” by the Institute of Construction and Building Materia...

Modelling of a mineral dissolution front propagation is of interest in a wide range of scientific and engineering fields. The dissolution of minerals often involves complex physi-co-chemical processes at the solid-liquid interface (at nano-scale), which at the micro-to-meso-scale can be simplified to the problem of continuously moving boundaries. I...

Experimental research has shown the extraordinary potential of the addition of short fibers to cement‐based materials by improving significantly the behavior of concrete structures for serviceability and ultimate limit states. Software based on the finite element method has been used for the simulation of the material nonlinear behavior of fiber‐re...

In this work, the Acoustic Emissions (AEs), detected in real-scale Reinforced Concrete (RC) beams which have been tested under four-point bending, are investigated and correlated with their structural responses and damage evolutions. Two different reinforcing bar arrangements, with or without shear stirrups, were designed in order to obtain bending...

Improving the durability and sustainability of concrete structures has been driving the enormous number of research papers on self-healing mechanisms that have been published in the past decades. The vast developments of computer science significantly contributed to this and enhanced the various possibilities numerical simulations can offer to pred...

High temperature effect on cement-based composites, such as concrete or mortars, represents one of the most important damaging process that may drastically affect the mechanical and durability characteristics of structures. In this paper, the results of an experimental campaign on cement mortars submitted to high temperatures are reported and discu...

This study deals with the analytical modeling of hybrid fiber-reinforced concretes (HyFRCs) made with a blend of different types of fibers characterized by different geometries and/or constitutive materials. The presented analytical formulation is oriented towards predicting the postcracking behavior of HyFRC and is mainly based on the well-known “...

This work proposes a numerical procedure to simulate and optimize the thermal response of a multilayered wallboard system for building envelopes, where each layer can be possibly made of Phase Change Materials (PCM)-based composites to take advantage of their Thermal-Energy Storage (TES) capacity. The simulation step consists in solving the transie...

Research task: Experimental and numerical activities dealing with eNeRGy-STORAGE phenomena in highly porous cementitious foams enhanced with Phase Change Materials.

Thermal-Energy Storage (TES) properties of organic phase change materials have been experimentally investigated and reported in this paper. Three paraffin-based Phase Change Materials (PCMs) and one bio-based PCM are considered with melting temperatures of 24 °C, 25 °C and 26 °C. Sensible heat storage capacities, melting characteristics and latent...

This work reports the results of an extensive experimental campaign aimed at investigating the Thermal Energy Storage (TES) behavior of PCM Recycled Brick Aggregate (RBA) mortars. Test specimens for TES measurements were produced following a new spherical-shaped technique, patented as "DKK test" by the Institute of Construction and Building Materia...

This work deals with a research study on the fatigue behavior of cohesive frictional materials like concrete or mortars. A two-scale approach will be proposed for analyzing concrete specimens subjected to either low-or high-cycle fatigue actions. The multiscale technique is based on a combination of a micro-scale procedure, to describe the microstr...

Thermal-Energy Storage (TES) properties of organic phase change materials have been experimentally investigated and reported in this paper. Three paraffin-based PCMs and one bio-based one are considered with melting temperatures of 24 °C, 25 °C and 26 °C. Sensible heat storage capacities, melting characteristics and latent heat enthalpies are inves...

This paper reports a numerical approach for modelling the thermal behavior and heat accumulation/liberation of sustainable cementitious composites made with Recycled Brick Aggregates (RBAs) employed as carriers for Phase-Change Materials (PCMs). In the framework of the further development of the fixed grid modelling method, classically employed for...

A micro-scale-based approach for the numerical analysis of cement-based materials, subjected to low-and high-cycle fatigue actions, is presented in this paper. The constitutive model is aimed at describing the evolving microstructural changes caused by cyclic loading protocols. More specifically, statistically representative microscopic geometries...

This study overviews existing methods for analyzing cement paste yield stress, and presents a new approach based on micro-structural computation. The proposed model explicitly considers cement particle interactions, both the colloidal and the nucleated gel ones. A new algorithm is proposed based on flocculating of poly-dispersed hard spheres in a s...

The use of concrete as construction and building material has enormously increased in the last decades. Innovations in the concrete industry are asking for answers in terms of reusing construction demolishing waste, energy saving concepts and cost-effective solutions for CO2 reductions. Therefore, the concrete industry has committed itself towards...

A micro‐scale‐based approach for the numerical analysis of cement‐based materials, subjected to low‐ and high‐cycle fatigue actions, is presented in this paper. The constitutive model is aimed at describing the evolving microstructural changes caused by cyclic loading protocols. The plastic‐damage‐based model is formulated combining the concepts of...

In this paper, a modelling approach for autogenous self-healing is presented that is initially based on the healing potential of encapsulation of various cement particle fractions with time. The healing potential of a blended cementitious system will be provided that consists of original cementitious particles mixed with so-called Dissoluble Encaps...

This paper provides preliminary results of a research study on the fatigue behavior of Ultra-High-Performance Concrete (UHPC). Results of an experimental campaign, performed at the Department of Concrete Structures and Structural Engineering of the TU-Kaiserslautern, are firstly proposed. The heterogeneous meso-structure and material degradation of...

This paper reports the results of an experimental program on sustainable cementitious composites made with Recycled Brick Aggregates (RBAs) employed as carriers for Phase-Change Materials (PCMs). The PCM-RBAs were produced by following an advanced incorporation and immobilization technique, developed and patented at the Institut für Werkstoffe im B...

This paper provides experimental results on investigations for the validation of photogrammetric strain measurements of ultra‐high‐performance concrete (UHPC)‐prisms subjected to static and cyclic bending‐tensile stress. For this purpose, 4 static and 5 cyclic test series were performed. Damage progresses during loading are monitored by means of a...

This work is aimed at describing hydration phenomena driving autogenous self-healing mechanisms in cracked concretes. Particularly, a phase field-based approach is proposed for modeling the dynamics of liquid-solid interfaces which evolve due to dissolution and precipitation processes, being both the key driving phenomena controlling the chemical r...

Nowadays, the use of phase change materials (PCMs) represents a novel technique employed for retrofitting facades in existing buildings, mainly to fulfil temperature comfort and building energy efficiency requirements. The present study summarizes the results of a wide series of permeability tests carried out for understanding the moisture transpor...

Contexto: La producción de hormigón se caracteriza por una importante demanda de energía y materias primas, emitiendo grandes cantidades de gases de efecto invernadero (GEI). Asimismo, la construcción, mantenimiento y demolición de edificios genera enormes cuantías de residuos que requieren costosos y ambientalmente sensibles procedimientos de disp...

This work reports a detailed experimental study that aimed at investigating the Thermal Energy Storage (TES) performance of cementitious systems containing Microencapsulated Phase Change Materials (MPCMs). New spherical-shaped test specimens for TES measurements were produced following an innovative casting technique, developed at the Institut für...

Accumulating solar and/or environmental heat in walls of apartment buildings or houses is a way to level-out daily temperature differences and significantly cut back on energy demands. A possible way to achieve this goal is by developing advanced composites that consist of porous cementitious materials with embedded phase change materials (PCMs) th...

Our paper "Caggiano, A., Mankel, C., & Koenders, E. (2019). Reviewing theoretical and numerical models for PCM-embedded cementitious composites. Buildings, 9(1), 3." https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/9/1/3 was selected as the journal issue cover.

A multiscale framework for thermo-mechanical analysis with phase transformations is proposed in this work. The formulation covers those cases including coupled constitutive equations for simulating thermo-mechanical processes considering phase transformation phenomena. The general case of temperature- and phase-dependent procedures, involving nonli...

A modelling approach for describing the self-healing potential of blended cementitious systems will be addressed in this work. A micro-structural approach for cement-based systems is developed and mainly based on anhydrous cementitious particles mixed through so-called Dissoluble Encapsulated Particles (DEPs). These latter are predefined fractions...

A numerical approach for modelling the mechanical behavior of fiber reinforced concrete beams is presented, based on a non-linear cracked hinge model, incorporating a fracture energy based constitutive law for the plain concrete matrix and in turn, proper constitutive laws aimed at capturing the crack-bridging effect of steel macro-fibers. Moreover...

A novel numerical methodology for analyzing fracture processes in cementitious materials is presented, introducing the combined use of zero-thickness Interface Elements (IEs), and the Virtual Element Method (VEM). A discrete crack approach is chosen to model failure, which allows very efficient and effective spacial discretizations and numerical pr...

This paper investigates the effect of high temperature on two different Self-Compacting (SC) cementitious composites. SC-High Strength (SCHSC) and Fiber-Reinforced Concrete (SCHSFRC) samples were tested in three-point bending after having been exposed to high temperature at 300 and 600 °C. Besides the conventional force-displacement response, Acous...

This work presents the current research activities running at the Institute of Construction and Building Materials (WiB) of TU Darmstadt and is with the investigation of advanced coupling of two physical mechanisms represented by a heat problem and microstructural heterogeneities of cement-based composites. Particularly, the thermal response of tho...

Research task: Developing a heat transfer model (H) to realise a multiscale homogenisation technique for thermal properties of PCM-concretes affected by phase change enthalpies (link between micro-/ meso-and also macroscale)

In the last decades, the use of smart components embedded inside cementitious composites, called Phase Change Materials (PCMs), has become a more and more attractive solution for saving energy and to provide a more efficient thermal comfortability to modern buildings and constructions. This work presents the current research activities running at t...