Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical Behavior of Concrete in Nuclear Containment Structures

The safety and longevity of nuclear power plants hinge on the performance of their reinforced concrete containment vessels when exposed to extreme thermal, moisture and mechanical loads. Thermal gradients arising from reactor operation and accident scenarios induce differential expansion and transient thermal creep within the concrete matrix. Simultaneously, moisture transport—driven by drying, wetting and internal pore-pressure changes—governs shrinkage, swelling and pore-pressure build-up. These processes interact with prestressing systems and external pressure tests to produce complex stress fields that evolve over decades. Ageing mechanisms such as creep, shrinkage and microcracking further modify stiffness, permeability and load‐bearing capacity, potentially affecting leak tightness. Contemporary research therefore focuses on the coupled thermo-hydro-mechanical response under operational and accidental conditions, the development of robust constitutive models for simulation, and the application of advanced monitoring and digital-twin frameworks to predict performance and plan maintenance programmes.

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Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical Behavior of Concrete in Nuclear Containment Structures publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in thermo-hydro-mechanical behavior of concrete in nuclear containment structures across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Thermo-hydro-mechanical coupling: Interaction between temperature changes, moisture movement and mechanical stresses within concrete.

Drying shrinkage: Volume reduction caused by loss of moisture from the cementitious matrix over time.

Creep: Time-dependent deformation under sustained mechanical or thermal load.

Prestressing: Introduction of internal compressive forces to concrete via tensioned steel tendons to improve crack resistance.

Digital twin: Virtual replica of a physical structure that integrates real-time data for predictive analysis and decision support.

Microcracking: Formation of microscopic cracks due to stress concentrations, thermal gradients or shrinkage, which can coalesce and affect durability.

References

1. Predicting leakage of the VERCORS mock-up and concrete containment buildings - a digital twin approach. Acta Polytechnica CTU Proceedings (2022).
2. Benchmark VERCORS 2022: mechanical response of the prestressed concrete containment wall to ambient conditions. Acta Polytechnica CTU Proceedings (2022).
3. Simplified Modeling Strategy for the Thermomechanical Analysis of Massive Reinforced Concrete Structures at an Early Age. Applied Sciences (2018).