AGGREGATE-CONTROLLED STIFFNESS IN HIGH-PERFORMANCE RECYCLED CONCRETE: MECHANISMS, DATA SYNTHESIS, AND MODELING PERSPECTIVES
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Abstract
The elastic modulus of recycled aggregate concrete (RAC) remains significantly lower than that of natural aggregate concrete (NAC), even when compressive strength is fully recovered through high-performance mix design. This stiffness deficit critically limits the structural application of sustainable high-performance concrete (S-HPC), particularly under serviceability-controlled conditions.
This review synthesizes experimental, reconstructed, and physics-informed data published between 2019 and 2025 to elucidate the governing mechanisms of elastic modulus degradation in high-performance RAC (HP-RAC). A five-phase microstructural framework is adopted to explain compliance amplification induced by adhered old mortar and double interfacial transition zones (ITZs). To overcome experimental data fragmentation and variability, a data-augmented methodology combining literature reconstruction (n ≈ 186), probabilistic uncertainty quantification, and Physics-Informed Machine Learning (PIML) is employed.
Results demonstrate that elastic modulus in HP-RAC is predominantly controlled by recycled aggregate compliance rather than matrix strength, exhibiting a stiffness saturation phenomenon beyond a matrix modulus of approximately 45 GPa. Carbonation treatment, nano-engineering of ITZs, and hybrid fiber reinforcement are critically evaluated as stiffness recovery routes, with carbonation curing showing a favorable balance between stiffness enhancement and carbon efficiency.
The review suggests the need to move beyond empirical strength-based formulations toward micromechanical and physics-informed approaches, while acknowledging the limitations of reconstructed data and heterogeneous literature sources.
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