Self-healing cementitious materials: a review of recent work

Abstract

Historically construction materials have been designed to meet a fixed specification and material degradation has been viewed as inevitable and mitigated for through expensive maintenance regimes. Material scientists have recently begun developing materials which have the ability to adapt and respond to their environment, drawing on their knowledge and familiarity of biological systems. This fundamental change in material design philosophy has resulted in the creation of a whole host of ‘smart’ materials, including self-healing materials. The development of self-healing materials is reviewed in this paper, together with definitions of common terminology. A brief summary of the construction industry is given, together with a synopsis of the main issues of durability relating specifically to cementitious materials. Specific focus is then given to both autogenic (natural) and autonomic (manufactured) healing processes within cementitious materials. The paper concludes with a summary of self-healing materials, an overview of their potential use within the construction sector, and recommendations to this sector for future uptake of these new and innovative materials.