Shrinkage is an important parameter among others such as ductility,
self-compacting ability, strength, high modulus or wear
resistance. Shrinkage is a time-dependant decrease in concrete volume
compared with the original placement volume of concrete.
Shrinkage results from physical and chemical changes that occur
in the paste fraction of concrete. The two principal types of shrinkage
are plastic and drying shrinkage. Plastic shrinkage occurs while
concrete is in plastic state. Drying shrinkage occurs after concrete
has reached initial set. Technically, drying shrinkage will continue
through the life of the concrete, but most shrinkage will occur
within the first 90 days after placement. The duration of shrinkage
is dependent on the size and shape of concrete since they control
the rate of moisture loss. In addition, Wittmann [18] reported that
drying shrinkage reaches critical values after some 100 days
depending on the dimensions of the drying specimen. The size
and shape are often considered together as the volume-to-surface
area ratio. Larger specimens will shrink after longer periods but the
ultimate magnitude may be lower. When a hardened concrete,
cured in water, is allowed to dry, it first loses water from its voids
and capillary pores and only starts to shrink during further drying
when water is drawn out of its cement gel. This known as drying
shrinkage and in some concretes it can be greater than
1500 106, but a value in excess of 800 106 is usually considered
undesirable for most structural applications [19].