Development of an Innovative, Bio-Mediated, Self-Healing Concrete Technology

Cracks in concrete structures significantly compromise their durability, and it is difficult and expensive to timely inspect transportation assets and treat concrete cracks. Self-healing concrete has a unique advantage in this regard. Concrete exhibits a self-healing capability as a result of hydrating unhydrated cement. However, such healing performance is limited to cracks less than 0.1mm wide. Several approaches to self-healing concrete have been tried in the past, but so far none has been shown to be adequate. For example, self-healing based on encapsulated chemicals offers only one-time healing. Microbial induced mineral precipitation heals only concrete cracks no more than 0.4 mm wide. For NCHRP 20-30/IDEA 261, the research team will develop a fungi-mediated, self-healing concrete technology for fast and efficient healing of cracks greater than 1mm wide autogenously. Another feature of this technology is that the treated concrete shows strong hydrophobicity that inhibits the ingress of water and deicing salt solution into the concrete. The autogenous self-healing concrete technology is based on bio-mineralization through fungi. Fungi strains that can survive and grow in concrete’s high alkaline environment will be identified, and microcapsules filled with these fungi will be introduced into the concrete. Cracks appearing in the concrete will be quickly covered by fungi fibers through the process of biomineralization. The fungi fibers, being hydrophobic, will also inhibit the ingress of water into the concrete and protect it from damage caused by freezing and thawing of pore water and corrosion of reinforcement steel by deicing salt solution entering through the cracks. Field evaluations will follow laboratory-scale evaluation and optimization. Field work will require scaling up the fungi microcapsules production process. One option will be to use multiple peristaltic pumps in parallel to enhance the rate of microcapsule production. Concrete mixture designs will be developed and optimized with respect to the quantity of fungi microcapsules. Ohio Department of Transportation will collaborate in field tests and has committed to providing active construction projects as possible field sites for testing the technology.

• Record URL:
  • http://apps.trb.org/cmsfeed/TRBNetProjectDisplay.asp?ProjectID=5937

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Active
• Funding: $100,000.00
• Contract Numbers:

  Project 20-30, IDEA 261

• Sponsor Organizations:

  National Cooperative Highway Research Program

  Transportation Research Board
  500 Fifth Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001

  American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO)

  444 North Capitol Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001

  Federal Highway Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Project Managers:

  Jawed, Inam

• Performing Organizations:

  Case Western Reserve University

  ,    
• Principal Investigators:

  Yu, Xiong

• Start Date: 20240101
• Expected Completion Date: 0
• Actual Completion Date: 0

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Concrete; Cracking; Field tests; Fungi; Mix design; Self-healing materials
• Subject Areas: Highways; Materials;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01993205
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Transportation Research Board
• Contract Numbers: Project 20-30, IDEA 261
• Files: TRB, RIP
• Created Date: Jun 23 2026 1:29PM