UHPC - a material for many applications in onshore and offshore wind energy production

UHPC Ultra High Performance Concrete has been used for many years in offshore wind

and onshore wind energy production.

We produce our UHPC for these applications. The new grades UHPC are currently being tested and will be available to the market later this year.

Monopile wind turbine designs are still the most widely used standard foundation design in many coastal areas. Jackets -, Gravity base -, Tripods - and Tri-piles systems are also used depending on requirements and needs.

UHPC grouting is used in all foundation techniques.

Monopiles

UHPC grouting material is used for the connection between monopile and transition pieces.

We estimate that more than 2000 monopiles worldwide have been installed with UHPC grouting and transitions pieces.

At the moment we are working on the 4th generation of grouting material. In addition to the technical improvements, the fulfillment of a wide variety of environmental requirements is the prime objective of the development.

Benefits of using UHPC grouting material for the transition piece

• Extremely high strength
• Very good fatigue properties
• Minimal shrinkage
• Extreme bond between UHPC grouting material and steel
• Fast setting development
• Very high inner cohesion
• No mixing with sea water
• Absolutly seawater resistant
• Very low hydration heat
• No corrosion

Tripile

A Tripile foundation consists of three steel piles driven into the seabed after which a three-legged transition piece structure is slid into the three piles. The overlaps between piles and transition piece are grouted with UHPC concrete.

The UHPC concrete connections evenly distribute the forces from the three-legged transition piece to the piles

Tripod

A Tripod support structure/foundation is secured in place by driving three piles into the seabed through a sleeve in each of the three corners.

UHPC concrete is pumped into the annuli between pile and sleeve to ensure a strong and durable connection.

Jacket

Jacket foundations are secured to the seabed by four piles placed in a sleeve in each corner and driven into the seabed. Jackets are generally considered to be better than monopiles for seabeds where the substrate is poor or deeper water. So here UHPC grouting can be used in the "transition piece" and in the lower foundation.

Gravity foundations

Are well suited for rocky sea beds. The complete foundation system can be manufactured on land and then pulled into position with a ship and then sunk. Depending on the design, the entire foundation piece can be made from UHPC. UHPC will be perfect for slip casting the entire foundation.

                                                       
After the use of UHPC grout in offshore wind energy generation, the experience gained in onshore wind energy production has also been exploited.

Steel Tower

So far, steel towers in cylindrical or conical segment construction have been the state of the art.

Depending on the required hub height, up to five segments were mounted on top of each other. With the new tower heights, the segment diameters are getting bigger and bigger and the road transport between production and the site is becoming an ever greater problem.

Concrete Tower

More and more, as an alternative to steel towers, concrete towers are also produced and assembled in cylindrical, conical or polygonal segments. A disadvantage compared to the steel towers is the high wall thickness, which makes larger foundations necessary

The advantage is

• Favorable vibration characteristics, which leads to reduced noise emissions.
• Long life expectancy
• An ideal solution for high tower high and large rotor diameter
• Transport cost savings due to possible on-site manufacture
• The use of special UHPC concrete grades can lead to slender constructions and thus rougher component weight.
• Lower component weight can also make the foundation dimensioning more favorable, which can lead to cost reduction. The material experiences in the offshore transitionpiece technology can also be of advantage when using UHPC grout in the imbed ring assembly (connection tower / foundation).
• Since UHPC concrete of high quality have virtually no pore formation, they are extremely resistant to corrosion.
• There are little or no maintenance costs.
• The individual segments can be transported more cheaply than is possible with the steel segments.
• On-site fabrication is the use of slipforming is another option including the use of local concrete raw materials for the production of high-quality UHPCs.
• Furthermore, it is possible to produce extremely exact segments with UHPC grout material, which requires no or very little post-processing of the segment abutment surfaces.
• Our UHPC materials reach at least 70% of their rated strength in less than 48 hours, which can lead to lower manufacturing costs for segment production and delivery times can be drastically reduced.

Hybrid towers

This type of tower construction is a combination of concrete (lower part) and steel construction (upper part). IT combines most of the advantages of steel tower and accentuated tower technology. Here, too, the use of UHPC can lead to additional benefits and savings in terms of material and financial resources.
A segment construction or on-site casting by slipforming are possible. This reduces the costs of transport and reduces the foundation geometries.

 

WPE DK International

Phone: 0049 176 601 73146
E-mail: info@wpe-dk.dk
Homepage: www.wpe-dk.com

                                                        

HPC and UHPC Facade elements

In modern architecture, facades and wall elements made from a wide variety of materials today.

The classic is still Italian marble like carrara, lasa bianco classico, lasa bianco vena oro.

The beauty of these natural stones is undisputed but the processing of these natural stones is very expensive and also has its limits in durability and plate sizes. The larger the façade or wall panels are desired by the architect, the thicker the panels become, the higher

the weight of the single panel becomes, the more complex
the handling becomes during assembly on site.

The future of the facade architecture is designed with UHPC 
(Ultra High Performance Concrete). UHPC fiber reinforced conctrete is a material with outstanding properties compared
to today's standard concrete.

We produce the highest quality UHPC binders worldwide. With more than 30 years of experience in research, development and production, we can meet a variety of customer needs.

Our UHPC binders can be combined with almost all mineral
and metallic materials.

With our service team we support precast plants worldwide
in the optimal handling of UHPC.

Facade and wall panels can be produced as sandwich
panels in a wide variety of material combinations.
Examples would be
UHPC / insulating material
UHPC / wood
UHPC / glass
UHPC / gypsum
UHPC / metals
UHPC /minerals

We can not only reproduce a variety of natural stone 
structure and color with pigments and special mixing 
technology, it is also possible to produce a variety of 
surfaces from polished to various roughnesses to 
coarse structures.

Depending on the combination material, UHPC
layer thicknesses of less than 15 mm are possible.
We have already used UHPC layer thickness of
less than 5 mm on wood.

Complete UHPC seamless frames can be made
for any kind and geometry of façade openings.
This kind of seamless facade element
construction in any geometry, design and size
is not possible with natural stones.

Due to the significantly higher compressive strength 
(100 - 160 MPa / 14500 - 23000 psi), much thinner 
and more elegant load-bearing structures, like frames 
for glass facdes are possible. Likewise, considerably 
higher spans of prefabricated parts are possible.
UHPC is fire-resistant up to 450°C / 840°F. In the high 
temperature resistant version UHPC HT a permanent 
temperature resistance up to 1200°C / 2190°F can be 
achieved.

Facade construction can be produced with UHPC in a 
fineness which until now was not possible with 
standard concrete.

The finished elements produced with UHPC casting 
compound do not require any or very little surface 
finishing. The dimensional accuracy is so exact after 
hardening that it is only necessary in extreme cases 
of extremely high production accuracies in the 
hundredth of a millimeter range.

Due to the extremely fine components, fine or smooth 
surface structures can be produced. Only the quality 
of the mold limits fineness or smoothness. 
UHPC can be casted almost poreless and capillary-free. 
Therefore all products made from UHPC are extremely 
resistant to any environmental 
influences. For this reason, UHPC is 100% seawater 
resistant.

 

 

WPE DK International

Phone: 0049 176 601 73146
E-mail: info@wpe-dk.dk
Homepage: www.wpe-dk.com

Modern interior design with UHPC concrete

Modern interior design is increasingly associated
with UHPC Ultra High Performance Concrete in
hotels, restaurants, offices and homes.
Due to the enormous strength extremely fine
structures can be achieved which is not possible
with standard concretes. UHPC surfaces are virtually
poreless and can withstand even the harshest
mechanical, temperature and corrosive stresses.

Floor design

UHPC concrete floors systems are popular thanks
to the stunning contemporary finish they offer.

Available in variety of textures colours and
combination with glass, wood, minerals and metalls,
there are endless design options for floor design.
Polished concrete achieves a fantastic finish not
unlike marble, ganite sandstone etc., while etched
UHPC concrete can be used to create any desired
pattern or design on the floor similar to tiles.
Floors made in a combination of UHPC materials
and woods look noble and elegant. With UHPC
materials almost all stone structures can be
reproduced.

Wall design

UHPC concrete walls is another example of how
effective the material can be when used in interior
design. UHPC concrete walls work well in any
room, and there is a wide selection of surface
design that can be archived using various application
techniques. For example, shuttered concrete uses
moulds to create a stylish finish featuring imprint
designs that are used to resemble wood board effects
on the surface.

Countertops and counter design

A hallmark of the industrial look, UHPC concrete
countertops not only look fantastic but are
low-maintenance, durable, very hygienic and
produced custom made in any conceivable design.

They can also be treated with various colours and
finishes, while being easy to mould and shape into
the required size. UHPC countertops can be
manufactured from a plate thickness of 15 mm / 0.59 in.

Lighting

As one the more recent design trends, concrete
lighting has become massively popular in recent
years, which is little surprise when you see the
stunning aesthetics produced from this simple
yet effective use of concrete.

Minimalist in design, various light shades and
fixtures are being created from concrete moulds
 to great effect, with some of the top lighting
manufacturers looking to take advantage of this
trending design feature.

It can be achieved layer thicknesses of less than
6 mm in some designer pieces.

Completely new lamp and lighting systems with
glass fibers laid in thin-walled UHPC materials
are possible.

Furniture

While more unique than most other modern uses

of concrete, more people are looking to create
stylish design features through concrete furniture.

UHPC concrete allows infinite variations in
furniture, such as armchairs, tables, lamps, chairs,
in terms of design, size, colors, fineness of structure,
surface and enormous strength. The same diversity
also applies to the ability to be combined with
other materials such as precious woods, glass,
minerals, metals, etc.

The demands on concrete materials in the interior
sector are several times higher than in architecture.
This is mostly about milimeter work. UHPC
castings achieve an extremely low tolerance of
just a few tenths of a millimeter out of the mold.
In most cases, post-processing is no longer necessary.

We do not compare UHPC with standard concrete
design of conventional brands. UHPC is much
more than just concrete. UHPC materials are noble
in design, are light in weight, can withstand the
toughest demands such as hot pots and cutting tools
and there are no limits in design.

Bathrooms, saunas, wellness areas, pool areas can
all be produced by UHPC concrete in a variety of
designs.

For the special and extraordinary, we offer architects,
designers and artists our UHPC desert sand concrete.
This UHPC concrete is unique. It can process natural
desert sands from different deserts.

WPE DK International

Phone: 0049 176 601 73146
E-mail: info@wpe-dk.dk
Homepage: www.wpe-dk.com

UHPC Shotcrete system - more than 20 years in use

For large areas that are to be lined in a short time, 
UHPC Shotcrete is here a very good solution. 
UHPC Ultra High Performance Concrete qualities 
easily achieve minimum 120 MPa/1750 psi 
compressive strength.

UHPC Shotcrete material must be mixed before 
actually spraying. It is importance for the quality of 
UHPC Shotcrete that the amount of water is kept 
very precisely. Too much water reduces the material 
quality to a decisive extent. UHPC Shotcrete is using
a water/cement ratio of 0,2.
Our UHPC Shotcrete binders have a continuous 
temperature resistance up to 450°C/850°F. For 
temperatures over 450°C/850°F up to 
max. 1200°C/2200°F, we produce a UHPC HT High 
Temperature binder. The processing of the UHPC HT
version is carried out in the same way as with 
the normal temperature versions.

 

Characteristics of UHPC Shotcrete

 - No dust development, better working conditions
 - Due to the very high strength values, material
   layer thicknesses can be reduced
 - As with all other UHPC grades, a water
    impermeability is achieved from a layer
    thickness of 10 mm.
 - UHPC spray is very resistant to any corrosion
    attac
 - More constant concrete quality due to pre-
   defined water/cement content
 - Higher compressive strength with no
   fluctuations

 - Fast uniform strength development
 - Larger layer thickness due to more effective
   reaction of the additives
 - Low material rebound (below 2%)
 - Extrem good adhesion
 - Significantly larger spray performance
 - Minimal air consumption
 - Easy use of fibres
 - High security

UHPC Shotcrete in the new construction of tunnels or canals
Especially for tunnel construction, the use of UHPC
Shotcrete is an advantage. There is no need for high air
pressures like a standard shotcrete, UHPC Shotcrete is
self-compacting, the adhesive properties are extremely
good, so there is extremely little rebound and material loss.

A possible desired reworking of the surface is easily
possible without any effort. The material dust development during injection is extremely low.

UHPC shotcrete as repair material for existing tunnels or canals
Whether large or small tunnels and channel geometries whether concrete, steel or corrugated metal constructions can be repaired quickly, permanently and cost-efficiently.
Due to the fast development of strength, even larger repairs can be carried out quickly and efficiently with little machine outlay.
Due to the extremely good adhesion and corrosion resistance,
elaborate preparation is not necessary. With a simple high
pressure cleaning device, the loose particles should be
removed and then UHPC Shotcrete material can be installed.
Machines and material for minor repairs can be transported
without a problem with a normal pick-up vehicle.

 

WPE DK International

Phone: 0049 176 601 73146
E-mail: info@wpe-dk.dk
Homepage: www.wpe-dk.com

UHPC HT and concrete under heavy fire

Again and again we hear of skyscrapers or facade
fires. In the rarest cases the fire is quickly and easily
extinguished.

The longer the fire lasts and the fire temperatures
reach a maximum (about 1000°C/1832°F), the
more problematic it becomes for the steel and
reinforced concrete structures, especially in older
houses that do not have the latest fire protection
technology.

Concrete can easily withstand a temperature of
300°C/572°F for a longer time. At a temperature

above 400°C/752°F, the compressive strength of
the concrete decreases. At a temperature above
600°C/1112°F, volume increases occur in reinforced
concrete, which can lead to external flaking or
cracks within the concrete structure.

The time factor is a crucial factor for the stability
of the construction.
Today we try to increase the period of the temperature
penetration of the reinforced concrete construction
by higher concrete coverings.

We developed and produce UHPC HT which has
a temperature resistance over 1000°C/1832°F. So
far, this material has been used especially in the
steel industry, but it is certainly an interesting
material for the construction industry in certain areas.

UHPC HT materials remain stronger in all
temperature ranges than those of standard concretes.

That means no matter what temperature and
burn time, UHPC HT compressive strength
far exceeds that of standard concretes.

This quality of UHPC HT could mean for the
fire fighting, that the danger of a building collapse
is reduced by a multiple.

UHPC HT concretes combine them very well
with highly efficient insolation materials. From
the experience of the steel industry we know
that we can achieve extreme temperature
reductions even in very thin wall thicknesses.

 

WPE DK International

Phone: 0049 176 601 73146
E-mail: info@wpe-dk.dk
Homepage: www.wpe-dk.com

UHPC - The ultimate protective armor

The article was published under the title "smart material" in the journal economist several years ago

http://www.economist.com/node/21548918

We have more than 25 years of experience
in the development, production and application of UHPC Ultra High Performance concrete materials in hundreds of different applications, including in the military sector.

This article is already several years old. The development of UHPC Ultra High
Performance Concrete materials has been advanced since then.

Whereby in this case of application for
military bunker or shelter systems
the UHPC material is important, but also the

intelligent combination with other materials
and finally the installation of this material
combination.

With such different UHPC material
combinations, it is possible to dramatically
reduce the impact of a wide variety of
weapon systems.
With UHPC materials it is possible to
produce effective protection systems
in any climatic environments.

WPE DK International

Phone: 0049 176 601 73146
E-mail: info@wpe-dk.dk
Homepage: www.wpe-dk.com

 This is a article which I found in the magazine ECONOMIST about the use of "Smart Concrete" in the militaryrld.

New construction and rehabilitation with UHPC concrete in a harbor

Ports are places to be loaded and unloaded permanently around the clock. These are general cargo, bulk goods and liquids.

UHPC concretes can be used for civil constructions and ground or road constructions. The big advantage of UHPC concretes besides the
extremely high strength values and the wear protection is the absolute
sea water resistance and a very high corrosion resistance.
These combinations of UHPC material properties is ideal for the material requirements in a harbor.

New construction and rehabilitation areas in a sea port
 
 - Jetties
 - Seawalls
 - Container terminals
 - General cargo terminals
 - Breakwater construction
 - Mole and pier construction
 - Wharf and quay construction
 - Ro/Ro terminals
 - Lo/Lo terminals
 - Bulk terminals
 - Refuelling pads
 - Indoor and outdoor storage facilities
 - Ship repair area
 - Tank area
 - Roads
 - Bridges

Benefits of using UHPC for civil construction

• Extreme high tensile strength
• Very good flow for casting
• Self-compacting
• Extreme high compressive strength
• High impact resistance and ductility
• Jointless surface
• Can applied thin on even the weakest base
• Freeze/thaw resistant
• Fast curing time

 

Pavements and roads installation in a harbour

The activities in port areas and terminals expose
the pavements to conditions that constantly stress
of wear and tear from traffic by handling equipment.
High point loads from stacked containers and other
cargo. Rutting from continual driving along the
same routes. Impact from loading and discharging
of cargo and containers.


A combination system UHPC Phalt made by
UHPC binder and asphalt is the natural choice to
meet these challenges as it combines the flexible
and joint free asphalt with the excellent bearing
capacity and high wear resistance of concrete. It
provides a safe and efficient cargo handling, and
withstands wear on the handling equipment.

Under extreme mechanical stress, floor coverings
made of UHPC concrete have proven themselves
very well.


Benefit of using UHPC concrete for pavement and road installation

• High wear resistant
• High bearing capacity
• Extreme high resistance to rutting
• Long service life
• Impermeable
• Excellent resistance to thermal movements
• Joint-free pavement
• Semi-flexible
• Freeze/thaw resistant
• Swift installation
• Early trafficking

 

 

WPE DK International

Phone: 0049 176 601 73146
E-mail: info@wpe-dk.dk
Homepage: www.wpe-dk.com

UHPC Concrete for process temperatures up to 1200°C / 2192°F

UHPC is a ultra high-strength concrete with
compressive strengths of well over 250 MPa.
We are the only one producers in the world who
offer special UHPC Ultra High Performance
Concrete binders for continuous temperatures
up to 1200°C / 2192°F.
We producing and using such high temperature
solid UHPC materials for more than 25 years.
We produce UHPC HT for processing as
mortar, casting material or as shotcrete. The
processing of UHPC HT masses is almost
identical to that of standard concrete masses.

UHPC HT compounds can be processed in
combination with various high temperature
resistant aggregates or in combination with
insulating materials.
Such a combination system can protect your
production equipment or construction against
extreme heat, wear and corrosion attack.
UHPC HT and a thermal insulation layer can
reduce the layer thickness and the material
weight by more than 50% compared to
refractory concrete. Temper work as with
refractory concrete is not necessary, which in
turn reduces energy costs and installation time.
UHPC HT materials are used in new construction
projects as well as in refurbishment projects
of existing constructions.

When steel constructions are exposed to extreme
temperatures due to fires, they quickly lose their
strength or bearing capacity and dangerous
situations can arise. Construction made of
high-temperature resistant UHPC HT lose only
a small amount of strength and thus load capacity.

Especially in the construction of buildings, the
use of load bearing elements made of high temperature
resistant UHPC HT could increase safety many
times over.
It could give firefighters time to fight the fire
successfully without the danger of building collapse.

Applications

Building industry                                                                            
 - Support                                                             
 - Pillar                                                                 
 - Walls                                                                
 - Facades                                                             
 - Persons shelters/rooms                                     
 - Storage rooms for dangerous goods                 
 - Floors
 - Tunnel systems
 - Emergency routes
 - Staircases

 Producing industry
 - Bins for hot products
 - Foundries
 - Cement works
 - Steel works
 - Chemical industry
 - Hot material hopper
 - Bins of dangerous goods
 - Offshore
 - Refinery

 

WPE DK International

Phone: 0049 176 601 73146
E-mail: info@wpe-dk.dk
Homepage: www.wpe-dk.com

Airport flooring, pavement and asphalt systems with UHPC

Airport - Flooring and pavement

Semi-flexible pavement combining systems like
UHPC Phalt combining the best properties of
asphalt and UHPC concrete. It is applied as an
asphalt based wearing course that hardens to a
matrix, in which the voids are filed with a UHPC
mortar. In this way, the UHPC Phalt system
combines the flexibility and freedom from
joints of asphalt with the excellent bearing capacity
and high wear resistance of the UHPC Phalt concrete.

Suitable for new build and renovation.

Such semi-flexible pavement 
combining systems are highly suitable for
 - Aprons
 - Push-back areas
 - Apron taxiway
 - Taxi-holding position
 - Refuelling areas
 - De-icing areas
 - Roads
 - Car parking area
 - Hanger area
 - Refuelling areas
 
Advantages of semi-flexible pavement systems
 - Even surface
 - No cavities
 - No cracks
 - No scaling
 - No large deformations
 - Excellent wear resistance
 - High bearing capacity
 - High thermal shock resistance

 - Service life - Fuel resistant
 - Minimum maintenance time
 - Very short curing time

WPE DK International

Phone: 0049 176 601 73146
E-mail: info@wpe-dk.dk
Homepage: www.wpe-dk.com

Thermal shock resistant of UHPC material

Container with liquid nitrogen

We wanted to know how good UHPC Ultra
High Performance Concrete is at extreme
fast temperature changes.
We casted ten UHPC concrete plates with a
thickness of 25 mm /1 inch. The plates were
dried for 48 hours at room temperature
(20°C / 68°F).
No reinforcement was used.

The plates were cooled down from about
+20°C/68°F room temperature in a container
with liquid nitrogen (-180°C/-292°F ).
We waited until the plates were completely
cooled. All plates showed no cracking after
removing them from the nitrogen tank.
We immediately heated the plates with a
burner within 5 - 6 minutes to +250°C/482°F.

Even with this alternating load, there were no
cracks visible.
For the test we used a our standard UHPC
Cast material with quarz 1-3 mm sand as
aggregate.

Plate before test

Plate after test

WPE DK International

Phone: 0049 176 601 73146
E-mail: info@wpe-dk.dk
Homepage: www.wpe-dk.com

UHPC Concrete Design

UHPC Ultra High Performance Concrete offers designers
and artists completely new ways of designing. Whether as
pure Binder or in connection with metal, fiber or textile
reinforcement there are no limits to the creative and
constructive imagination.

In addition there is a very simple processing whether as
Mortar, castable or shotcrete. Everyone can process our
UHPC material. We can change the UHPC mortar
material structure depending on the customer's
requirements, whether as a fine clay structure or coarse
clay structure or plaster structure.
Your sculptures or constructions are resistant to even
the most difficult environmental conditions.
UHPC can also be processed under water and is
absolutely waterproof from a layer thickness of 10 mm.

Here, the size of the design pieces plays no essential
role. We have produced designs in sizes from 10 mm
to 5 meters.

The advantage for designers

• Thin, delicate structures of high strength
• Large manufactured elements in a cast thin-layer constructions.
• UHPC can be combined in a new way with almost any material (glass, wood, minerals, metals, plastics, etc.)
• With UHPC you can achieve very smooth or extremely fine surface structures
• UHPC is significant more resistant than any standard concretes to chemical attack.

All UHPC material qualities we produce as mortar,
casting and injection molding compound.

Concrete meet aesthetics

Outdoor living area

• Concrete flower pots
• Concrete dishes
• Concrete lamps
• Outdoor furniture
• All kind of pool or hot tub designs
• Garden design elements like rocks, tiles, etc.

Standard concretes has a natural surface with an open-pore
structure.
In contrast, UHPC concretes also have a natural surface but
with none pore structure.
Due to their very high material quality, our UHPC products
require only very little or no care.
The life expectancy of design items from our products can
easily be assumed to be 80+ years.

Concrete meets modern lifestyle

• Concrete counter top in all gemetries and sizes
• Natur stone cast
• Colored designed concrete
• With any kind of wood inlet
• With any kind and size of glass inlet
• Black and white veined bathroom tops
• Natural gray concrete kitchen counter tops
• Gray veined concrete bath vanity curved integral sink
• Concrete designed conference table
• Concrete designed reception desk
• Concrete designed floors

 

WPE DK International

Phone: 0049 176 601 73146
E-mail: info@wpe-dk.dk
Homepage: www.wpe-dk.com