Comparative Analysis of Destructive and Non-Destructive Testing Methods for Evaluating Compressive Strength of Self-Compacting Concrete

Abstract

This study presents a comparative analysis of destructive and non-destructive testing (NDT) methods for evaluating the compressive strength of Self-Compacting Concrete (SCC). Two distinct SCC mix designs, JMD UPTD and JMD PAB, both targeting a 28-day compressive strength of 30 MPa, were tested using conventional compression testing, Ultrasonic Pulse Velocity (UPV), and Rebound Hammer tests. The results showed that both mixes significantly exceeded the design strength, with the JMD UPTD mix achieving a higher mean compressive strength (52.33 MPa) compared to the JMD PAB mix (46.95 MPa). The UPV method demonstrated a stronger and more reliable correlation with actual compressive strength (R² = 0.72) than the Rebound Hammer method (R² = 0.35). Regression analysis yielded mix-specific correlation equations for strength estimation. The findings indicate that UPV testing is a more viable NDT method for SCC quality assessment, provided that proper calibration is performed, while the Rebound Hammer test shows limited reliability for SCC without specialized correlations. This research supports the integration of calibrated NDT methods to complement destructive testing for more efficient and comprehensive quality control in SCC applications.  

Manuscript received February 8, 2023; revised March 22, 2023; accepted May 25, 2023.