Strength Behavior Analysis of Self-healing Concrete Using Bacteria and Silica Gel: A Comparative Study

Abstract

Concrete cracking is a significant worry in the construction sector, and infrastructure maintenance is becoming increasingly important in the present landscape. The expenditures of inspections, repairs, and maintenance are not only unwelcome but also have negative environmental consequences. The availability of self-healing agents in self-healing concrete (SHC) may be handled in these conditions with solid integrations. Self-healing concrete has the specific benefit of detecting the emergence of fractures in SHC-made concrete pieces and initiating a self-repair process without human involvement. This paper compares two alternative concrete healing methods and offers the findings of a complete experimental examination of self-healing concrete. In this study, silica and polymer-based gels were used along with Bacillus subtilis bacteria in separate experiments as weight-based alternatives for cement. The mechanical properties of various concrete mixes were evaluated using the self-healing studies by silica-based polymers and bacillus bacteria. The optimum dose level has been identified for the usage of silica gel and bacillus bacteria in the concrete. These findings provide vital insights into deploying self-healing concrete and its potential to handle concrete cracking concerns more effectively.