Evaluation of self-healing in reactive powder concrete with urea–formaldehyde/epoxy microcapsules

The use of microcapsules as preservative vessels for healing materials has led to a great revolution in the repair of materials. Microcapsules have been used in medicine, agriculture, metallurgy and mechanics. In civil engineering applications, microcapsules are usually used for the self-healing of concrete, asphalt and cementitious materials. Concrete and cement are widely used in civil engineering and are the predominant construction materials worldwide. The objective of this study was to design and produce urea–formaldehyde microcapsules for the recovery of reactive powder concrete (RPC). It was found that RPC specimens with and without microcapsules exhibited different behaviours. All of the RPC specimens containing microcapsules were found to have lower strengths than specimens without microcapsules. The smallest reductions in compressive strength were observed in specimens with a microcapsule content of 4–6% by weight of cement. The healing ratio of compressive strength increased with an increase in the weight percentage of microcapsules. Scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive spectroscopy were used to observe the process of crack healing, and the results showed that the cracks were filled with healing products.