InnovaConcrete

Challenge

Nowadays, the most common strategies employed to delay concrete degradation are related to modifications carried out during its fabrication process:

• by decreasing the porosity
• by reducing the water to cement ratio
• by adding nanoparticles or other nanostructures as a reinforcement.

In the case of old concrete-based structures built in the 20th Century, no particular care was given to critical parameters increasing their long-performance, such as the water to cement ratio and the thickness of the concrete layer, because decay mechanisms were still largely unknown.

InnovaConcrete has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 760858 in order to preserve concrete-based monuments, the most significant, tangible, Cultural Heritage in the 20th Century.

In particular, a completely innovative approach will be developed based on producing, by impregnation treatments, C-S-H gel, responsible for the engineering properties of cement paste in
cracks of decayed concrete monuments, in situ.

Approach

In the framework of InnovaConcrete, RINA is in charge of the Intellectual Property Rights Management, which aims at ensuring that all project results will be adequately protected according to the rules reported in the Consortium Agreement.

Moreover, we are responsible for the Life Cycle Assessment of novel products (LCA, LCC and S-LCA analysis).
The Life Cycle Thinking approach will be used to analyse the InnovaConcrete process for the production of the innovative solutions, including impregnation treatments, multifunctional treatments (with corrosion inhibition and superhydrophobic performance), and self-healing products, to evaluate the environmental and economic impacts as well as the social benefits of each process.

Conclusion

 In conclusion, InnovaConcrete will have the following main impacts for the EU community:

• Practical and affordable materials/technique solutions in terms of cost and complexity of operation
• Increased quantified efficiency of materials/technique development for CH conservation
• Increased use of multi-scale modelling in the development of solutions for CH conservation
• Improved modelling-based decision making regarding conservation interventions
• Effective market uptake of the developed solutions within five years after the end of the project
• Access to the results achieved in the framework of the project thanks to Collaborative Cloud Platform (big data repository)

Project Consortium

1. POLYTECHNEIO KRITIS 2.UNIVERSITAETSMEDIZIN DER JOHANNES GUTENBERG-UNIVERSITAET MAINZ 3. CONSIGLIO NAZIONALE DELLE RICERCHE 4. CONSORZIO INTERUNIVERSITARIO PER LO SVILUPPO DEI SISTEMI A GRANDE INTERFASE 5. FUNDACION TECNALIA RESEARCH & INNOVATION 6.TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITAT DARMSTADT 7. STUDIECENTRUM VOOR KERNENERGIE/ CENTRE D ETUDE DE L ENERGIE NUCLEAIRE 8. NATIONAL TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY OF ATHENS - NTUA 9. TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITEIT DELFT 10.AGENCIA ESTATAL CONSEJO SUPERIOR DE INVESTIGACIONES CIENTIFICAS 11. ANONYMI ETAIREIA VIOMICHANIKIS EREVNAS, TECHNOLOGIKIS ANAPTYXIS KAI ERGASTIRIAKON DOKIMON, PISTOPIISIS KAI PIOTITAS 12. WROCLAWSKIE PRZEDSIEBIORSTWO HALA LUDOWA SP ZOO 13. FUNDACIÓN EDUARDO CHILLIDA Y PILAR BELZUNCE 14. MINISTERO PER I BENI E LE ATTIVITA CULTURALI 15. INES INGENIEROS CONSULTORES SL 16. ESTUDIO GUADIANA SLP 17. UNIWERSYTET LODZKI 18. CONSEIL INTERNATIONAL DES MONUMENTSET DES SITES ASSOCIATION 19. FUNDACION DOCOMOMO IBERICO 20. NANOPHOS ANONIMI EMPORIKI ETAIRIA ANAPTIXIS KAI YPIRESION - NANOPHOS COMMERCIAL SOCIETE ANONYME OF SERVICES AND DEVELOPMENT 21. NANOTECMARIN GMBH 22. IONFLY VACUUM AND PLASMA TECHNOLOGY SRL 23. SIKA TECHNOLOGY AG 24. RINA CONSULTING SPA 25. TECHEDGE GMBH 26. BEWARRANT 27. WISS, JANNEY, ELSTNER ASSOCIATES, INC 28. LUCIANO HERNANDEZ