Grant: Discovery Grants Program - Individual

Smart cities are cities that integrate infrastructureand services to produce an efficient urban eco-system that integrates institutional,physical, social and economic infrastructure through smart sensors and advanceddata-science. Concrete infrastructure in a Smart City must not only be safe andsustainable, but must also integrate Internet of Things (IoT) and Informationand Communication Technology (ICT) to achieve operational efficiency,cost-effective maintenance and end-of-life deconstructability. The primaryobjective of this proposal is to contribute towards development of safe, sustainable,and digitally-monitored concrete structures for Smart Cities. These objectives apply not only to newconstruction, but also to deteriorated structure that need to regain their lostcapacity, as well as structures that are not deteriorated but still requiresstrengthening against calamities such as earthquakes and fires. This proposal focuses on development of highlydamage-tolerant materials that utilize principles of nanotechnology to depict self-healing,smartness and low-carbon behavior and can be placed in structures using digitallyempowered processes such as 3-D printing. In doing so, the program strives to integrate cutting edgediscoveries in materials sciences, sensors and structural engineering. The proposal focuses on two broad areas: FIRST:It purports to develop a novel class of fiber reinforced concretes called Eco-FriendlyDuctile Cementitious Composites (EDCC) that are self-healing, durable, low-carbon,and damage tolerant up to 6% strain. It is further proposed to modify matricesin EDCC with nano-particles and reinforce them with co-extruded recycled fibersfrom waste streams (such as tires) modified with hydrophilic and pozzolanic nano-coatings. In one application, hollow fibers areproposed as reinforcement i