Prediction of the Lateral Pressure of Self-Consolidating Concrete on Construction Formwork Systems Using Machine-Learning Algorithms
Publication: Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 150, Issue 9
Abstract
Construction firms face considerable challenges in relation to finding cost-effective formwork solutions to meet increased construction demands. Project stakeholders have relied on self-consolidating concrete (SCC) to speed up the construction time because SCC is highly fluid and has numerous advantages compared to traditional concrete. To withstand SCC’s high fluidity, formwork systems should be robust. Although previous research has experimentally examined various characteristics of SCC, few research studies have used machine-learning algorithms to estimate or predict the lateral pressure exerted by SCC on formwork systems. Hence, this study addressed this knowledge gap by proposing a machine-learning approach to predict the lateral pressure of SCC on vertical formwork systems. First, laboratory tests were performed to collect data on lateral pressure measurements, material factors, placement conditions, and formwork characteristics affecting the SCC lateral pressure on formwork systems. Second, four supervised machine-learning algorithms were considered in this study: neighbor (KNN), artificial neural network (ANN), decision tree (DT), and random forest (RF). Third, the hyperparameters of the machine-learning algorithms were tuned, and their performance metrics were compared. Fourth, the most accurate predictive machine-learning model was verified on an unseen testing set. The results showed that the RF machine-learning algorithm was the best model for predicting the lateral pressure of SCC on formwork systems, with a mean percentage error of 0.8%, a mean absolute percentage error of 4.29%, and a coefficient of determination R2 of 0.9548. This study adds to the construction engineering and management body of knowledge by developing a machine-learning predictive model that can be used to accurately assess the lateral pressure exerted by SCC on formwork, which helps to ensure safe design of formwork systems and economic construction operations in formwork-related activities.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
Data Availability Statement
All data generated or analyzed during the study are included in the published paper.
References
ACI (American Concrete Institute). 2007. Guide to formwork for concrete. ACI 347. Farmington Hills, MI: ACI.
ACI (American Concrete Institute). 2014. SP-004: (8TH) Formwork for concrete. ACI SP-4. Farmington Hills, MI: ACI.
ACI (American Concrete Institute). 2021a. Form pressure exerted by self-consolidating concrete: Primary factors and prediction models—Report. ACI PRC-237.2-21. Farmington Hills, MI: ACI.
ACI (American Concrete Institute). 2021b. Guide to formwork for concrete (reapproved 2021). ACI PRC-347-14(21). Farmington Hills, MI: ACI.
Assaad, J., and K. H. Khayat. 2005. “Kinetics of formwork pressure drop of self-consolidating concrete containing various types and contents of binder.” Cem. Concr. Res. 35 (8): 1522–1530. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2004.12.005.
Assaad, J., K. H. Khayat, and H. Mesbah. 2003. “Variation of formwork pressure with thixotropy of self-consolidating concrete.” Mater. J. 100 (1): 29–37.
Assaad, J. J. 2016. “Correlating thixotropy of self-consolidating concrete to stability, formwork pressure, and multilayer casting.” J. Mater. Civ. Eng. 28 (10): 04016107. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)MT.1943-5533.0001624.
Assaad, J. J., and J. Harb. 2017. “Formwork pressure of self-consolidating concrete containing recycled coarse aggregates.” ACI Mater. J. 114 (3): 491. https://doi.org/10.14359/51689494.
Assaad, J. J., and K. H. Khayat. 2006. “Effect of casting rate and concrete temperature on formwork pressure of self-consolidating concrete.” Mater. Struct. 39: 333–341. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11527-005-9042-3.
Assaf, G., and R. H. Assaad. 2023. “Key decision-making factors influencing bundling strategies: Analysis of bundled infrastructure projects.” J. Infrastruct. Syst. 29 (2): 04023006. https://doi.org/10.1061/JITSE4.ISENG-2225.
Assaf, G., X. Hu, and R. H. Assaad. 2023a. “Mining and modeling the direct and indirect causalities among factors affecting the Urban Heat Island severity using structural machine learned Bayesian networks.” Urban Clim. 49 (May): 101570. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.uclim.2023.101570.
Assaf, G., X. Hu, and R. H. Assaad. 2023b. “Predicting Urban Heat Island severity on the census-tract level using Bayesian networks.” Sustainable Cities Soc. 97 (May): 104756. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2023.104756.
Beitzel, M. 2010. “Modeling fresh concrete pressure of normal and self-compacting concrete.” In Design, production and placement of self-consolidating concrete, 243–254. New York: Springer.
Billberg, P. H., et al. 2014. “Field validation of models for predicting lateral form pressure exerted by SCC.” Cem. Concr. Compos. 54 (Mar): 70–79. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2014.02.003.
Birch, B., D. Lange, and K. Khayat. 2007. “Formwork pressure.” In Self-consolidating concrete, 34. Evanston, IL: Center for Advanced Cement-Based Materials.
Chemchem, A., F. Alin, and M. Krajecki. 2019. “Combining SMOTE sampling and machine learning for forecasting wheat yields in France.” In Proc., 2019 IEEE 2nd Int. Conf. on Artificial Intelligence and Knowledge Engineering (AIKE), 9–14. New York: IEEE.
Daczko, J. 2012. Self-consolidating concrete: Applying what we know. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press.
De Schutter, G., P. J. Bartos, P. Domone, and J. Gibbs. 2008. Vol. 288 of Self-compacting concrete. Dunbeath, UK: Whittles Publishing.
DIN (German Institute for Standardisation). 2010. DIN standard on formwork pressures updated. DIN 18218. Farmington Hills, MI: DIN.
Drewniok, M. P., G. Cygan, and J. Gołaszewski. 2017. “Influence of the rheological properties of SCC on the formwork pressure.” Procedia Eng. 192 (May): 124–129. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2017.06.022.
Dzuy, N. Q., and D. V. Boger. 1985. “Direct yield stress measurement with the vane method.” J. Rheol. 29 (3): 335–347. https://doi.org/10.1122/1.549794.
Gamil, Y., J. Nilimaa, M. Emborg, and A. Cwirzen. 2021. “Lateral formwork pressure for self-compacting concrete—A review of prediction models and monitoring technologies.” Materials 14 (16): 4767. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma14164767.
Gamil, Y., J. Nilimaa, T. Najeh, and A. Cwirzen. 2023. “Formwork pressure prediction in cast-in-place self-compacting concrete using deep learning.” Autom. Constr. 151 (May): 104869. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2023.104869.
Garcia-Taengua, E. 2018. “Fundamental fresh state properties of self-consolidating concrete: A meta-analysis of mix designs.” Adv. Civ. Eng. 2018 (Dec): 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1155/2018/5237230.
Garcia-Taengua, E., and J. R. Marti-Vargas. 2016. Multivariate analysis of the fresh state parameters of self-consolidating concrete. In Proc., 8th Int. RILEM Symp. on Self-Compacting Concrete, 221–231. Paris: RILEM Publications.
Gardner, N. J., L. Keller, R. Quattrociocchi, and G. Charitou. 2012. “Field investigation of formwork pressures using self-consolidating concrete.” Concr. Int. 34 (1).
Goodier, C. I. 2003. “Development of self-compacting concrete.” Proc. Inst. Civ. Eng. Struct. Build. 156 (4): 405–414. https://doi.org/10.1680/stbu.2003.156.4.405.
Gowripalan, N., P. Shakor, and P. Rocker. 2021. “Pressure exerted on formwork by self-compacting concrete at early ages: A review.” Case Stud. Constr. Mater. 15 (Mar): e00642. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cscm.2021.e00642.
Graubner, C. A., E. Boska, C. Motzko, T. Proske, and F. Dehn. 2012. “Formwork pressure induced by highly flowable concretes–design approach and transfer into practice.” Struct. Concr. 13 (1): 51–60. https://doi.org/10.1002/suco.201100012.
Gregori, A., R. P. Ferron, Z. Sun, and S. P. Shah. 2008. “Experimental simulation of self-consolidating concrete formwork pressure.” ACI Mater. J. 105 (1): 97.
Han, B., L. Zhang, J. Ou, B. Han, L. Zhang, and J. Ou. 2017. “Self-compacting concrete.” In Smart and multifunctional concrete toward sustainable infrastructures, 11–36. Berlin: Springer.
Hong, H., J. Zhu, M. Chen, P. Gong, C. Zhang, and W. Tong. 2018. “Quantitative structure–activity relationship models for predicting risk of drug-induced liver injury in humans.” In Drug-induced liver toxicity, 77–100. New York: Humana Press.
Jun, C., L. Gengying, and Z. Xiaohua. 2018. “Fatigue performance of self-consolidating concrete under flexural load.” Rev. Rom. Mater. 48 (2): 204–207.
Kashani, A., and T. Ngo. 2020. “Production and placement of self-compacting concrete.” In Self-compacting concrete: Materials, properties and applications, 65–81. Sawston, UK: Woodhead Publishing.
Khayat, K., and A. Omran. 2010a. “Evaluation of SCC formwork pressure.” Concr. Int. 32 (6): 30–34.
Khayat, K., and A. Omran. 2010b. State-of-the-art review of form pressure exerted by self-consolidating concrete, 139. Sherbrooke, QC, Canada: Univ. of Sherbrooke.
Khayat, K., and S. Shah. 2009. Self-consolidating concrete formwork pressure. Sherbrooke, QC, Canada: Univ. of Sherbrooke.
Khayat, K. H. 1999. “Workability, testing, and performance of self-consolidating concrete.” Mater. J. 96 (3): 346–353.
Khayat, K. H., and J. J. Assaad. 2008. “Measurement systems for determining formwork pressure of highly-flowable concrete.” Mater. Struct. 41: 37–46.
Khayat, K. H., A. Omran, and W. A. Magdi. 2012. “Evaluation of thixotropy of self-consolidating concrete and influence on concrete performance.” In Proc., 3rd Iberian Congress on Self Compacting Concrete, 3–16. São Paulo, Brazil: Instituto Brasileiro do Concreto.
Khayat, K. H., and A. F. Omran. 2011. “Field monitoring of SCC formwork pressure and validation of prediction models.” Concr. Int. 33 (6): 33–39.
Khayat, K. H., A. F. Omran, and T. Pavate. 2010. “Inclined plane test method to determine structural build-up at rest of self-consolidating concrete.” ACI Mater. J. 107 (5): 515–522.
Khayat, K. H., and A. Yahia. 2006. “Modification of the concrete rheometer to determine rheological parameters of self-consolidating concrete-vane device.” In Proc., 2nd Int. Symp. on Advances in Concrete through Science and Engineering, Bagneux, France: RILEM Publications.
Kim, J. H., M. Beacraft, and S. P. Shah. 2010. “Effect of mineral admixtures on formwork pressure of self-consolidating concrete.” Cem. Concr. Compos. 32 (9): 665–671. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2010.07.018.
Kina, C., K. Turk, E. Atalay, I. Donmez, and H. Tanyildizi. 2021. “Comparison of extreme learning machine and deep learning model in the estimation of the fresh properties of hybrid fiber-reinforced SCC.” Neural Comput. Appl. 33 (18): 11641–11659. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00521-021-05836-8.
Ko, C.-H., W.-C. Wang, and J.-D. Kuo. 2011. “Improving formwork engineering using the Toyota Way.” J. Eng. Project Prod. Manage. 1 (1): 13–27.
Krawczyńska-Piechna, A. 2017. “Comprehensive approach to efficient planning of formwork utilization on the construction site.” Procedia Eng. 182 (Mar): 366–372. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2017.03.114.
Kwon, S. H., S. P. Shah, Q. T. Phung, J. H. Kim, and Y. Lee. 2010. “Intrinsic model to predict formwork pressure.” ACI Mater. J. 107 (1): 20.
Labuschagne, J. C. 2018. “Formwork pressures by self-compacting concrete: A practical perspective.” Ph.D. thesis, Dept. of Civil Engineering, Stellenbosch Univ.
Lange, D. A., B. Birch, J. Henchen, Y. S. Liu, F. Tejeda-Dominguez, and L. Struble. 2008. “Modeling formwork pressure of SCC.” In Proc., 3rd North American Conf. on the Design and Use of Self-Compacting Concrete, 295–300. Evanston, IL: Center for Advanced Cement-Based Materials.
Leemann, A., C. Hoffmann, and F. Winnefeld. 2006. “Pressure of self-consolidating concrete on formwork. High pressures justify caution in formwork design.” Concr. Int. 28 (2): 28–31.
Lomboy, G. R., X. Wang, and K. Wang. 2014. “Rheological behavior and formwork pressure of SCC, SFSCC, and NC mixtures.” Cem. Concr. Compos. 54 (Mar): 110–116. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2014.05.001.
Matar, P., and J. J. Assaad. 2017. “Effect of vertical reinforcing bars on formwork pressure of SCC containing recycled aggregates.” J. Build. Eng. 13 (Mar): 159–168. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jobe.2017.08.003.
McCarthy, R., and J. Silfwerbrand. 2011. “Comparison of three methods to measure formwork pressure when using SCC.” Concr. Int. 33 (6): 27–32.
Mei, Z., M. Xu, P. Wu, S. Luo, J. Wang, and Y. Tan. 2022. “BIM-based framework for formwork planning considering potential reuse.” J. Manage. Eng. 38 (2): 04021090. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)ME.1943-5479.0001004.
Mohamed, O. A., M. Ati, and O. F. Najm. 2017. “Predicting compressive strength of sustainable self-consolidating concrete using random forest.” Key Eng. Mater. 744 (Mar): 141–145. https://doi.org/10.4028/www.scientific.net/KEM.744.141.
Nili, M., M. Razmara, M. Sadeghi, and M. Razmara. 2018. “Automatic image analysis process to appraise segregation resistance of self-consolidating concrete.” Mag. Concr. Res. 70 (8): 390–399. https://doi.org/10.1680/jmacr.16.00417.
Omran, A., and K. Khayat. 2016. Models to predict form pressure exerted by SCC–Results of six field campaigns, Edited by H. K. Kamal, 599. Washington, DC: RILEM.
Omran, A. F. 2009. “Formwork pressure exerted by self-consolidating concrete.” Ph.D. thesis, Dept. of Civil Engineering, Univ. of Sherbrooke.
Omran, A. F., Y. M. Elaguab, and K. H. Khayat. 2014. “Effect of placement characteristics on SCC lateral pressure variations.” Constr. Build. Mater. 66: 507–514.
Omran, A. F., and K. H. Khayat. 2013. “Portable pressure device to evaluate lateral formwork pressure exerted by fresh concrete.” J. Mater. Civ. Eng. 25 (6): 731–740. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)MT.1943-5533.0000537.
Omran, A. F., and K. H. Khayat. 2017a. “Effect of formwork characteristics on SCC lateral pressure.” J. Mater. Civ. Eng. 29 (5): 04016293. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)MT.1943-5533.0001827.
Omran, A. F., and K. H. Khayat. 2017b. “Progress to understand influence of reinforcement density on SCC lateral pressure.” Mater. Struct. 50 (2): 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-017-1022-x.
Omran, A. F., S. Naji, and K. H. Khayat. 2011. “Portable vane test to assess structural build-up at rest of self-consolidating concrete.” ACI Mater. J. 108 (6): 628–637.
Ovarlez, G., and N. Roussel. 2006. “A physical model for the prediction of lateral stress exerted by self-compacting concrete on formwork.” Mater. Struct. 39 (2): 269–279. https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-005-9052-1.
Pazouki, G., E. M. Golafshani, and A. Behnood. 2020. Predicting the compressive strength of SCC containing Class F fly. Tehran, Iran: Islamic Azad Univ.
Perrot, A., S. Amziane, G. Ovarlez, and N. Roussel. 2009. “SCC formwork pressure: Influence of steel rebars.” Cem. Concr. Res. 39 (6): 524–528. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2009.03.002.
Proske, T. 2007. “Frischbetondruck bei Verwendung von selbstverdichtendem Beton: ein wirklichkeitsnahes Modell zur Bestimmung der Einwirkungen auf Schalung und Rüstung.” Ph.D. thesis, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Techn. Univ.
Proske, T., and C. A. Graubner. 2007. “Pressure on formwork using SCC-experimental studies and modelling.” In Proc., 5th Int. RILEM Symp. on Self-Compacting Concrete, 473–478. Paris: RILEM Publications.
Proske, T., and C. A. Graubner. 2010. “Formwork pressure of highly workable concrete–experiments focused on setting, vibration and design approach.” In Proc., Design, Production and Placement of Self-Consolidating Concrete: Proc., SCC2010, Dordrecht, Netherlands: Springer.
Proske, T., K. H. Khayat, A. Omran, and O. Leitzbach. 2014. “Form pressure generated by fresh concrete: A review about practice in formwork design.” Mater. Struct. 47 (7): 1099–1113. https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-014-0274-y.
Roussel, N. 2007. “Rheology of fresh concrete: from measurements to predictions of casting processes.” Mater. Struct. 40 (10): 1001–1012. https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-007-9313-2.
Saha, P., M. L. V. Prasad, and P. RathishKumar. 2017. “Predicting strength of SCC using artificial neural network and multivariable regression analysis.” Comput. Concr. 20 (1): 31–38.
Shah, D. 2023. “Top performance metrics in machine learning: A comprehensive guide.” Accessed December 19, 2023. https://www.v7labs.com/blog/performance-metrics-in-machine-learning.
Srivastava, T. 2023. “12 important model evaluation metrics for machine learning everyone should know.” Accessed December 19, 2023. https://www.analyticsvidhya.com/blog/2019/08/11-important-model-evaluation-error-metrics/.
Teixeira, S., I. Puente, and A. Santilli. 2017. “Statistical model for predicting the maximum lateral pressure exerted by self-consolidating concrete on vertical formwork.” J. Build. Eng. 12 (Jul): 77–86. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jobe.2017.05.004.
Tejeda-Dominguez, F. 2005. “Laboratory and field study of self-consolidating concrete formwork pressure.” M.Sc. thesis, Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Tejeda-Dominguez, F., D. A. Lange, and M. D. D’Ambrosia. 2005. “Formwork pressure of self-consolidating concrete in tall wall field applications.” Transp. Res. Rec. 1914 (1): 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1177/0361198105191400101.
Vandeput, N. 2019. “Forecast KPIs: RMSE, MAE, MAPE & Bias.” Accessed December 19, 2023. https://towardsdatascience.com/forecast-kpi-rmse-mae-mape-bias-cdc5703d242d.
Varoquaux, G., and O. Colliot. 2023. “Evaluating machine learning models and their diagnostic value.” In Machine learning for brain disorders, 601–630. New York: Humana Press.
Varsheni, S. 2022. “Explaining sparse datasets with practical examples.” Accessed December 19, 2023. https://www.analyticsvidhya.com/blog/2022/11/explaining-sparse-datasets-with-practical-examples/.
Yelton, R. 2007. “Reducing formwork pressure for SCC.” Accessed March 18, 2022. https://www.concreteconstruction.net/how-to/concrete-production-precast/reducing-formwork-pressure-for-scc_o.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 150 • Issue 9 • September 2024
Copyright
© 2024 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Sep 8, 2023
Accepted: Mar 11, 2024
Published online: Jul 1, 2024
Published in print: Sep 1, 2024
Discussion open until: Dec 1, 2024
ASCE Technical Topics:
- Algorithms
- Artificial intelligence and machine learning
- Computer programming
- Computing in civil engineering
- Concrete
- Concrete construction
- Construction (by type)
- Construction engineering
- Construction equipment
- Continuum mechanics
- Dynamics (solid mechanics)
- Engineering fundamentals
- Engineering materials (by type)
- Engineering mechanics
- Equipment and machinery
- Formwork (concrete construction)
- Lateral pressure
- Materials engineering
- Mathematics
- Pressure (type)
- Solid mechanics
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.