Although already many researches exist about self-compacting concrete (SCC), it is still remarkable to notice that very little fundamental data have been published concerning its durability. This knowledge is, however, of extreme importance for a good and durable construction practice. For that reason, this article outlines laboratory studies concerning durability aspects as shrinkage, creep, salt frost scaling and internal frost resistance of 7 self-compacting concrete mixtures (SCC) and 1 reference, traditionally vibrated, concrete mix (TC1). In concrete science, time-dependent deformation models as the CEB-FIP Model Code 1990 (MC-90) and the Model B3, are well known for their good prediction of shrinkage and creep of normal concrete. In this paper, the possibility of these models to be transposed to the recently new cementitious material as self-compacting concrete is, is investigated. Test results revealed in general higher shrinkage and creep deformations for the SCC mixtures compared with the TC mix. However, while the shrinkage deformations seem to be underestimated by MC-90, the creep and overall behaviour of the SCC mixes seem to be well predicted by the same model. Salt frost scaling tests lead to a higher amount of scaled material due to the imposed freeze-thaw cycles for SCC in comparison with the TC mix, although the ultrasonic measurements indicated that most SCC mixtures suffered less in comparison with the TC mix. On the other hand, ultrasonic measurements executed to determine the internal frost resistance of test specimens not subjected to salt attack showed similar results for all mixtures. A reason for this observation may be found in the test set up.
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