Creep Behavior of Concrete Structures
Summary
The time-dependent deformation of concrete under sustained load, known as creep, exerts a significant influence on the long-term performance and serviceability of infrastructure. This phenomenon manifests in both early-age and mature phases, driven by microstructural rearrangement of hydration products, viscous flow within the cementitious matrix and moisture redistribution. Key factors shaping creep behaviour include stress level, age at loading, ambient temperature and relative humidity. In structural design, creep contributes to deflection, prestress loss and redistribution of internal forces, with implications for bridges, high-rise buildings and 3D-printed elements. Empirical code provisions provide baseline predictions, while advanced rheological formulations invoke viscoelastic or visco-plastic mechanisms to capture nonlinear damage evolution. Computational strategies span finite element analysis, lattice discretisations and data-driven methods such as ensemble machine learning, improving the fidelity of long-term deformation forecasts. Integration of laboratory measurements with refined constitutive models underpins global efforts to enhance durability, sustainability and resilience of concrete infrastructure.
Research from Nature Portfolio
No recent Nature Portfolio content available.
Creep Behavior of Concrete Structures publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in creep behavior of concrete structures across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Creep: time-dependent deformation of concrete under sustained load.
Creep compliance: ratio of time-dependent strain to applied stress, characterising creep response.
Viscoelasticity: combined viscous flow and elastic deformation behaviour of materials.
Lattice model: discrete numerical framework dividing a structure into interconnected elements to simulate mechanical response.
Ensemble machine learning: approach that integrates multiple predictive models to enhance accuracy of performance forecasts.
Finite element analysis: numerical method that discretises structures into finite elements to approximate stress and deformation patterns.
References
- Lattice modelling of early-age creep of 3D printed segments with the consideration of stress history. Materials & Design (2023).
- Interpretable Ensemble-Machine-Learning models for predicting creep behavior of concrete. Cement and Concrete Composites (2022).
- Tridimensional Long-Term Finite Element Analysis of Reinforced Concrete Structures with Rate-Type Creep Approach. Applied Sciences (2020).
About these summaries
This Nature Research Intelligence Topic summary is created with the cited references and a large language model. We take care to ground generated text with facts, and have systems in place to gain human feedback on the overall quality of the process in line with our AI principles. We strive to create accurate and useful summaries for people unfamiliar with the research topic and that supports this goal. These pages are a beta release and will be updated as we learn how best to help people gain value from a research topic summary.
Turn complex research questions into confident strategic decisions
When you're under pressure to set direction, justify investment, or understand your competitive position, you need more than raw data — you need trusted insights you can act on.
Benchmark your performance against global peers using robust, methodologically sound analysis.
Combine quantitative metrics with qualitative expert insight to uncover strengths, gaps and emerging opportunities.
Gain tailored, decision-ready recommendations aligned to your strategic priorities.
Talk to us to learn more about our data dashboards and bespoke strategy reports.
Grow research skills, confidence and careers with training built for every stage of the research lifecycle.
Developed with Nature Portfolio journal Editors and internationally renowned experts. Discover three ways to learn:
Self-paced, online courses in convenient bite-sized units, covering key skills across scientific writing, publishing, grant writing, data analysis, and more.
Expert trainer-led workshops with hands-on exercises and real-time feedback across core research skills, delivered via interactive group sessions.
Editor-led workshops combining core principles in writing and publishing, personalised 1:1 feedback from Nature Portfolio Editors and hands-on exercises.
Explore course catalogues and workshop agendas, enquire about the options or request institutional pricing.