Computed tomography beyond medicine: Applications to the microstructural study of concrete and other engineering materials (English version)

Abstract

Computed tomography (CT) scanning is a very powerful technology for the microstructural study of materials, as it can be checked in the enormous amount of papers published in recent years. Beyond its well-known use in medicine, CT scanning has spread to many other scientific fields. Some of them are revised in this work, with particular interest in concrete technology. Among its most relevant applications are the uses in paleontology and heritage to analyze the internal structure of fossils and relics without any damage that can be highlighted. On the other side, it is also well used in the study of engineering materials, such as metals, composites, asphalt mixtures in pavements, rocks and concrete. In all cases, the data obtained by means of CT scans are applied to improve the knowledge about the macroscopic response of those materials under any kind of loads, both mechanical and environmental ones. In the specific case of concrete, among its principal applications the analysis of internal matrix can be noticed, as well as the study of crack patterns and  finally the study of fiber-reinforced concrete.