Henrik Becks

RWTH Aachen University · Institut für Massivbau

For a reliable and economical design of concrete structures subjected to fatigue loading, a comprehensive understanding and realistic prediction of concrete fatigue life under complex loading scenarios with variable amplitudes is of major concern. In this paper, experimental investigations of concrete behavior under monotonic, cyclic, and fatigue l...

In research on concrete constructions, fiber optic sensor technology is becoming increasingly important. It enables high-frequency and quasi-continuous measurement of temperature and strain distribution. Furthermore, this technology offers the opportunity to determine the crack width within the cross section of specimens and not, as with convention...

An economically efficient yet safe design of concrete structures under high-cycle fatigue loading is a rather complex task. One of the main reasons is the insufficient understanding of the fatigue damage phenomenology of concrete. A promising hypothesis states that the evolution of fatigue damage in concrete at subcritical load levels is governed b...

The fatigue of concrete has been the subject of research for many years, and yet, there are still open questions. In particular, the fatigue-induced damage evolution accompanied by a stress redistribution process propagating through the concrete structure is still not fully understood. So far, there are only few experimental studies addressing the...

The fatigue behavior of plain concrete has been studied for decades, usually under compressive or tensile loading. Shear loading (mode II) has been almost completely neglected in the past. In contrast to cylindrical compression tests, this type of loading offers the advantage of precise load determination and a small, well-defined fracture surface....

A cost-efficient yet safe design of reinforced and prestressed concrete structures under fatigue loading is a highly complex and elaborate task. One of the main reasons for this is the still insufficient understanding of the fatigue damage phenomenology of concrete. A promising hypothesis states that the evolution of fatigue damage in concrete at s...

In several recent mesoscale and macroscale material model formulations, the authors hypothesized that fatigue evolution in the material structure can be realistically modeled by defining a cumulative measure of inelastic shear strain as the fatigue driving mechanism. The standard method of fatigue characterization using cylinder compression tests...

In recent years, textile reinforced concrete (TRC) has become increasingly important in scientific research. Thin slab segments of TRC in particular show great potential for use in secondary structural systems in bridges or high-rise buildings. However, research has not yet sufficiently investigated all load combinations and some questions remain u...

The pedestrian and cyclist bridge Rheinsteg of the Rheinkraftwerk Albbruck-Dogern AG (RADAG) constructed in 1934 was on the verge of demolition due to severe corrosion damage. Replacing the defective slab with seven-centimeter thin carbon textile reinforced concrete allowed to maintain the self-weight and to reuse the existing main steel girders, b...

Thin TRC slabs show high application potential in high-rise construction as well as for secondary structural systems in bridges. In both cases, combinations of moment and shear with normal forces might occur, e.g. through external bracing loads, temperature gradients, and shrinkage. The effect of separation cracks and tension forces on shear capaci...