30 years of fundamental difference between UHPC and concrete

This photo is more than 30 years old. It is from the first flyer I used to sell UHPC. The photo was meant to explain to our customers what the general difference between concrete and UHPC is, because almost all of our customers at that time had no idea what the difference between concrete and UHPC is. At the time, I found this photo comparison brilliantly simple and clear.

Today, after 30 years, our team still has the feeling that many write and talk about UHPC but really do not recognise the basic difference. On the contrary, people today try to dilute and obfuscate the difference between concrete and UHPC. For these professionals, everything and nothing is concrete and UHPC. There are very few professionals who can explain the difference in simple and logical language. However, the architect, the structural engineer or the construction company must know the difference in order to be able to use both materials optimally.
For this reason we have decided to bring out this very old photo and to try again to explain the difference between concrete and UHPC and hope that some interested people out there will follow us, to whom we would like to thank already now.

The idea behind this photo was to produce two test cylinders and subject them to a pressure test. The main point was not to find out which material has the higher compressive strength, that was clear from the beginning.
No, we wanted to show and compare the fracture surface. This fracture surface shows the difference so simply and clearly.
At the beginning we mixed a standard cement binder and a UHPC binder and added the same grading curve and material quality to aggregates, filled them into test cylinders and waited 28 days. After 28 days, the concrete and UHPC cylinders were demoulded and pressed in a press until they broke. The result of this fracture can be seen in this photo.

The left cylinder is the standard concrete cylinder and the right cylinder is the UHPC cylinder.
Looking at the left cylinder, the fracture surface is clearly in the binder, the gravel aggregate is not broken. The weak point in this case is the cement binder.
If we look at the right cylinder, the fracture has gone through the gravel aggregate and the UHPC binder simultaneously and evenly. There is no weak point here. The UHPC binder is just as hard and resistant as the aggregate and the adhesion between aggregate and binder is extremely high.

This photo comparison and the resulting result shows that there are two fundamentally different binder systems, the concrete binder and the UHPC binder, whereas the UHPC binder is superior to the concrete binder by several times. This is how it was then, how it is now and how it will be in the future.

WPE DK International

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

UHPC combat concrete for bunkers and security rooms

Over 20 years ago, we were very involved in the security industry and military. We tried a lot of things
successfully and carried out some interesting projects. Then it was very quiet for many years and we successfully focused on other projects and markets.
For the last two years we have been asked again from non-civilian areas. Now we are developing our UHPC combat concrete further in all areas, especially for safety or bunker construction, both above ground, under water and underground. In the development of UHPC materials, we have to take modern weapon systems into account. Several hundred tonnes of special UHPC combat binders are now being shipped by us for testing and the worst conditions.

There is also interest in UHPC material for civil shelters of different load types. Here we will have to meet new regulations and material tests.

WPE DK International

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

UHPC concrete history in floating constructions and outlook for the future

More than twenty years ago, a very special UHPC binder was developed that had a density far below 1 in order to be able to build ship hulls with a weight of several hundred tonnes. In Asia, several large hulls have been successfully built with this UHPC material. The hulls of this special material had many advantages over a traditional steel construction. They were much lighter which increased the loading weight, they were absolutely resistant to salt water which reduced the inspections to almost zero and thus saved immense costs. UHPC concrete was easy to form and, especially in large quantities, reduced production costs and times. But one of the biggest advantages of this particular UHPC was that it was unsinkable. Even in the event of catastrophic damage, the components would still float, providing an enormously high level of safety compared to a steel structure that would sink instantly.

After all these years, we were approached by architects for this special binder material for their floating cities. The question was also whether we could produce this special binder from back then again for today's floating constructions and possibly also improve it with newer elements.
This topic was so interesting for us that we pulled out the old documents from our drawers. It turned out that modern raw materials and elements could improve the recipe of that time. Today, we believe that we will be able to offer a new, modern binder recipe ready for production in a few months.
It would be possible to produce this special binder in most coastal countries.

WPE DK

WPE DK - UHPC Training sessions for partner and customer

The first two UHPC training sessions ended this year. It started this year with our Swiss partners. All 10
basic modules were worked through. That's about 500 pages of paper. Our Swiss partners have now also booked the training with the detail modules for the second half of the year.  

The second UHPC training took place with our Polish partners. All 10 basic modules were also completed in this training. In three months we will meet again for a practical training with four modules.

The UHPC training sessions are also interesting for us when discussing local or country-specific UHPC applications. With this information we can adapt our UHPC binder system exactly to the local requirements.

UHPC concrete in combination with Amnethyst and other gemstone for a special design of our Manufacture Studio

For a larger project in our UHPC manufacturing studio, a certain amount of amethyst was needed. We
found the quality we required in Africa. In this case we will not use a classical cut amethyst but a special processed amnethyst.  

Only in the case of UHPC jewellery requested by our customers do we resort to a large extent to classically cut amethysts.

 

 

 

 

UHPC Technology and the Ocean

 

In more than 25 years we have carried out a number of projects in the offshore industry and have developed special UHPC systems for many of our current customers.
The future for us started a few years ago in UHPC development, in terms of UHPC material development for floating offshore power generation, floating city constructions and coastal protection. The UHPC materials are ready for use today. These materials are far superior to all other materials.

 

Monopile

Previously used material: UHPC
UHPC is used since the year 2000 in the new transition piece
(more than 200,000 tons have been installed so far).
Other possible uses:
Tower construction, corrosion protection in the underwater
area, Increase in stability, expansion of a foundation part for
sustainable species protection
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing, very good
pumpability, curing under water, very good corrosion
protection, ductile properties, absolutely sea water resistant
Processing:
On site at sea - Transition piece
On land - Tower elements as prefabricated parts - assembly
of the prefabricated parts partly on land, partly at sea

 

Tripot

Previously used material: UHPC
UHPC is used since the year 2000 in the new transition
piece (more than 200,000 tons have been installed so far).
Other possible uses:
Corrosion protection in underwater areas, increase in
stability, expansion of a foundation part for sustainable
species protection
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing, very
good pumpability, curing under water, very good
corrosion protection, ductile properties, absolutely
seawater resistant
Processing:
On site at sea

Offshore

Previously used material: UHPC
UHPC is used since the year 2000 for repairs of structures
Other possible uses:
Platform construction, platform structures, corrosion
protection in the underwater area, increasing the static
load-bearing capacity
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing, very
good pumpability, curing under water, very good
corrosion protection, temperature resistance up to
1200°C, ice-resistant, absolutely seawater-resistant,
waterproof after a layer thickness of a few millimeters
Processing:
On site at sea
On land: - Production of precast elements

Jetty

Previously used material is concrete, steel or UHPC
UHPC has been used since the year 2000 to repair the
supports and the deck
Other possible uses:
Complete jetty constructions, repair of existing jetties,
improvement of the load-bearing capacity of the jetties,
significant extension of the operating time compared to
wood, concrete and steel
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing,
very good pumpability, curing under water, very good
corrosion protection, weight reduction compared to
concrete or steel, absolutely seawater resistant,
waterproof after a layer thickness of a few millimeters
Processing:
On site at sea and on land

Floating Offshore

Previously used material is steel and anti-corrosion paint
systems
Other possible uses: 
Platform construction, platform structures, corrosion
protection in the underwater area, increasing the static
load-bearing capacity
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing,
very good pumpability, curing under water, very
good corrosion protection, temperature resistance
up to 1200°C, ice-resistant, absolutely
seawater-resistant, waterproof after a layer
thickness of a few millimeters
Processing:
On site at sea
On land - Production of precast elements

Floating Windmill

Material used so far is steel and concrete
Other possible uses:
Floating construction, tower construction, corrosion
protection in underwater areas, increasing the static
load-bearing capacity
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing,
very good pumpability, curing under water, very
good corrosion protection, ice-resistant, absolutely
seawater-resistant, waterproof after a layer thickness
of a few millimeters
Processing:
On site at sea for repair or in dry dock

Barge

Previously used material is steel or UHPC
UHPC is used since 2002 as a new barge constructions
Other possible uses:
Ship hulls, houseboats, pontoons, working platforms
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing, very
good pumpability, curing under water, very good
corrosion protection, very good wear protection,
absolutely seawater-resistant, good ductility,
processing as shotcrete or casting compound possible,
Waterproof after a layer thickness of a few millimeters
Processing:
On land

Floating dock

Previously used material is steel or UHPC
UHPC was used in the year 2018 for the construction
of a new floating dock.
Other possible uses:
Ship hulls, houseboats, pontoons, work platforms
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing,
very good pumpability, curing under water, very
good corrosion protection, very good wear protection,
absolutely seawater-resistant, good ductility,
processing as shotcrete or casting compound possible,
Waterproof after a layer thickness of a few millimeters
Processing:
At shore in the dock

Flood protection erosion

Previously used material is concrete
UHPC could be used as an alternative to concrete in
dike and bank protection.
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing,
very good pumpability, curing under water, very
good corrosion protection, very good wear protection,
absolutely seawater-resistant, processing as shotcrete
or casting compound possible
Processing:
On land as precast concrete parts or mats in all sizes,
structures and shapes.

Cliff protection

Previously used material is concrete or other materials
UHPC could be used as an alternative to concrete or other
materials.
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing, very
good pumpability, curing under water, very good corrosion
protection, very good wear protection, absolutely
seawater-resistant, processing as shotcrete or casting
compound possible
Processing:
On land as precast concrete parts or as shotcrete directly
on site

Reef protection

Previously used material is concrete or other materials
UHPC could be used as an alternative to concrete or other
materials.
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing, very
good pumpability, curing under water, very good corrosion
protection, very good wear protection, absolutely
seawater-resistant, processing as shotcrete or casting
compound possible
Processing:
On land as precast concrete parts or as casting compound
directly on site

Flood gate

Previously used material is steel
UHPC will be used in the year 2021 as an replacement for
steel structures
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing, very good
pumpability, curing underwater, very good corrosion protection,
ice-resistant, absolutely seawater-resistant, waterproof after a
layer thickness of a few millimeters
Processing on land:
Production of precast elements



Underwater living areas

Previously used material is concrete
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing, very good
pumpability, curing under water, very good corrosion protection,
temperature resistance up to 1200°C, ice-resistant, absolutely
seawater-resistant, waterproof after a layer thickness of a few
millimeters
Processing on land:
Production of precast elements or complete construction



Pontoon, Caisson

Previously used material is concrete
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing, very good
pumpability, curing under water, very good corrosion protection,
temperature resistance up to 1200°C, ice-resistant, absolutely
seawater-resistant, waterproof after a layer thickness of a few
millimeters
Processing:
On site at sea
On land - Manufacture of complete constructions



Protection mesh sub sea pipeline

Previously used material is concrete
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing, very
good pumpability, curing under water, very good corrosion
protection, absolutely seawater resistant
Processing:
On site at sea
On land - Production of precast elements



Protection mesh sub sea cable

Previously used material is concrete
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing, very
good pumpability, curing under water, very good corrosion
protection, ice-resistant, absolutely seawater-resistant
Processing:
On site at sea
On land - Production of precast elements

Energy spherical pressure accumulator systems

 

Deep sea pressure storage systems for offshore wind turbines
Previously used material is concrete
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing, very good
pumpability, curing under water, very good corrosion protection,
temperature resistance up to 1200°C, ice-resistant, absolutely
seawater-resistant, waterproof after a layer thickness of a few
millimeters
Processing:
On site at sea
On land - Manufacture of prefabricated structures

Offshore LNG storage

 

Floating platforms as quays, gas or oil interim storage
facilities and processing centers
Material used so far is steel and concrete
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing, very good
pumpability, curing under water, very good corrosion
protection, temperature resistance up to 1200°C, ice-resistant,
absolutely seawater-resistant, waterproof after a layer
thickness of a few millimeters
Processing:
On site at sea
On land - Production of precast elements

Offshore rocket launch site systems

 

The launch systems such as small and medium-sized rockets for
the transport of satellite systems can be provided on ship
systems or floating platform systems.
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast
curing, very good pumpability, curing under water, very good
corrosion protection, temperature resistance up to 1200°C,
ice-resistant, absolutely seawater-resistant, waterproof after a
layer thickness of a few millimeters
Processing:
On site at sea
On land - Production of precast elements



Floating city

 

Development of floating platforms for living and working with
independent energy generation. In coastal areas and estuaries.
The platforms can also be provided with port facilities and runways.
Platform construction, platform structures, corrosion protection
in the underwater area, increasing the static load-bearing capacity
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing, very good
pumpability, curing under water, very good corrosion
protection, temperature resistance up to 1200°C, ice-resistant,
absolutely seawater-resistant, waterproof after a layer thickness
of a few millimeters
Processing:
On site at sea
On land - Production of precast elements

Floating underwater tunnel tubes

 

Other possible uses:
Platform construction, platform structures, corrosion protection in
the underwater area, increasing the static load-bearing capacity
UHPC properties:
High compressive and tensile strength, fast curing, very good
pumpability, curing under water, very good corrosion protection,
temperature resistance up to 1200°C, ice-resistant, absolutely
seawater-resistant, waterproof after a layer thickness of a few
millimeters
Processing:
On site at sea
On land: Production of precast elements

Deep sea constuction

UHPC was tested in the year 2018 under water pressure conditions
from 3000 meters deep for the compressive strength of a test
construction. The test turned out positive
Possible uses:
Constructions for the deep sea, residential constructions, working
constructions, military
UHPC properties:
Very high compressive and tensile strength, fast curing, very good
pumpability, curing under water, very good corrosion protection,
very good wear protection, absolutely seawater-resistant, good
ductility, processing as shotcrete or casting compound possible
Processing:
On land

 

WPE DK International

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

Absolutely saltwater-resistant UHPC structural concrete for seawater desalination plants

Every UHPC binder designed and produced by us, with which UHPC concrete is produced in the right mixture, is already waterproof from a layer thickness of 10 mm. UHPC concretes are absolutely seawater resistant, as they have proven for more than 30 years in the offshore and potash industries.

In seawater desalination plants, UHPC concrete can replace all plastic, glass, aluminium and carbon fibre structures such as piping and tank structures. The cost and service life difference between plastic structures and UHPC concrete structures shows clear advantages for a UHPC concrete structure.

UHPC concrete is non-combustible and highly wear-resistant. It can be produced as mortar, casting compound and shotcrete. The minimum compressive strength is well above 100 MPa in the standard binder systems. In Arab countries, our UHPC desert sand concrete can also be used. It consists of desert sand and a special UHPC binder.

La formation UHPC 2023 pour nos partenaires et clients commence.

 La nouvelle année est déjà vieille de quelques jours et nous ouvrons déjà la nouvelle saison de formation
UHPC. Au début du mois prochain, nous lancerons les cours de formation UHPC avec des partenaires et des clients de Suisse et de Pologne. Ensuite, des clients de deux pays arabes se sont inscrits et il est possible que nous organisions des formations sur place pour ces clients. Une formation sur site aux États-Unis est également en cours de planification. Des clients français, espagnols et turcs figurent également sur notre liste de clients potentiels.
Nous tenons compte des souhaits de nos clients dans le déroulement de nos formations. Grâce à des entretiens préalables intensifs, nous discutons de ces souhaits et les intégrons dans notre formation. Notre formation comprend la technologie UHPC, le traitement de l'UHPC et la technologie d'application pour différentes applications dans les industries les plus diverses. A cela s'ajoutent les souhaits du client. Il est également possible d'ajouter une formation pratique.

L'année dernière, nous avons accueilli plusieurs clients européens et asiatiques lors de notre formation.
La formation elle-même est gratuite et nos clients ne paient que leurs frais de déplacement.

The UHPC Training 2023 for our partners and customers starts.

The new year is already a few days old and we are already opening the new UHPC training season. At the beginning of next month we will start the UHPC training courses with partners and clients from Switzerland and Poland. 

After that, clients from two Arab countries and from one African country have signed up, and we will possibly conduct the training for these clients locally. We are also planning in this year an on-site training in the USA. We still have clients from France, Spain and Turkey on our list of interested parties.

We take our customers' wishes into account in our training programme. These wishes are discussed in intensive preliminary talks and incorporated into our training. Our training covers UHPC technology, processing of UHPC and application technology for various applications in different industries. In addition, the customer's wishes are also taken into account. In addition, a practical training can be booked.

Last year, we had several European and Asian partner and customers as guests at our training.
The training in Germany itself is free of charge - our guests only pay their own travel expenses.

풍력 터빈용 UHPC 콘크리트 타워 구조물

 풍력 터빈의 타워 구조도 이제 콘크리트로 만들어집니다. 이것은 강철 구조물에 비해 여러 가지 장
점이 있습니다. 대부분의 경우, 콘크리트 구조물은 링 또는 완전한 링으로 조립되는 세그먼트로 타워를 형성하기 위해 현장에 설치되는 프리캐스트 콘크리트 요소로 구성됩니다. 콘크리트 강도 범위는 표준 타워 크기의 경우 80 - 100 MPa / 11600 - 14500 psi입니다. 타워 높이에 관한 한 아시아는 이미 유럽보다 훨씬 앞서 있습니다. 200m 이상의 타워 높이에는 초고강도 콘크리트를 사용해야 합니다. 180 - 240 MPa / 26100 - 34800 psi 사이의 강도 값이 필요합니다.

파트너인 WPE materials Korea와 함께 이러한 UHPC 바인더 품질을 보유하고 있습니다. 현재 당사의 UHPC 바인더는 최대 300미터 높이의 타워에 대해 지정 및 승인을 받기 위해 아시아의 여러 회사에서 광범위하게 테스트되고 있습니다.

동시에 우리의 해상 바인더 시스템 중 일부는 아시아에서 플로팅 플랫폼 건설을 위해 테스트되고

있습니다. 이러한 UHPC 해양 바인더는 이전에 사용된 강철 구조에 비해 여러 가지 장점이 있습니다. 여기에서도 고객이 인증 프로세스를 시작했습니다.

Estructuras de torre de hormigón UHPC para turbinas eólicas

Las torres de los aerogeneradores ahora también son de hormigón. Esto tiene una serie de ventajas sobre
las estructuras de acero. En la mayoría de los casos, las estructuras de hormigón consisten en piezas prefabricadas de hormigón que se instalan in situ para formar una torre, ya sea como segmentos que se ensamblan en anillos o anillos completos. La resistencia del hormigón oscila entre 80 y 100 MPa para los tamaños de torre estándar. En cuanto a la altura de las torres, Asia ya está mucho más adelantada que Europa. Para torres de más de 200 metros de altura es necesario utilizar hormigones de muy alta resistencia. Se requieren valores de resistencia de entre 180 y 240 MPa.
Disponemos de tales cualidades aglutinantes UHPC. En la actualidad, nuestros aglutinantes UHPC están siendo sometidos a pruebas exhaustivas por varias empresas de Asia con el fin de ser especificados y aprobados.
Al mismo tiempo, algunos de nuestros sistemas aglutinantes offshore se están probando en Asia para la

construcción de plataformas flotantes. Estos aglomerantes submarinos de UHPC presentan una serie de ventajas con respecto a las construcciones de acero utilizadas hasta ahora. También en este caso, el proceso de certificación ha sido iniciado por nuestros clientes.

Constructions de tours en béton UHPC pour les éoliennes

 Les structures des tours d'éoliennes sont désormais également fabriquées en béton. Cela présente de
nombreux avantages par rapport aux constructions en acier. Dans la plupart des cas, les constructions en béton sont constituées d'éléments préfabriqués en béton qui sont installés sur place pour former une tour, qu'il s'agisse de segments montés en anneaux ou d'anneaux complets. La résistance du béton varie de 80 à 100 MPa pour les tours de taille standard. En Asie, les hauteurs de tours sont bien plus élevées qu'en Europe. Pour les tours de plus de 200 mètres de haut, il faut utiliser des bétons extrêmement résistants. Des valeurs de résistance comprises entre 180 et 240 MPa sont exigées.
Nous disposons de telles qualités de liant UHPC. Actuellement, différentes entreprises en Asie testent nos liants UHPC de manière approfondie avant de les spécifier et de les approuver.

Parallèlement, certains de nos systèmes de liants offshore sont testés en Asie pour la construction de

plates-formes flottantes. Ces liants UHPC offshore présentent de nombreux avantages par rapport aux constructions en acier utilisées jusqu'à présent. Ici aussi, le processus de certification a été lancé par nos clients.

UHPC concrete tower structures for wind turbines

Tower structures for wind turbines are now also made of concrete. This has a number of advantages over
steel structures. In most cases, the concrete structures consist of precast elements of concrete that are installed on site to form a tower, whether as segments that are assembled into rings or complete rings. Concrete strengths range from 80 - 100 MPa / 11600 - 14500 psi for standard tower sizes. In Asia, tower heights are much more advanced than in Europe. For tower heights above 200 meters, extremely high-strength concretes must be used. Strength values between 180 - 240 MPa / 26100 - 38800 psi are required.
We have such UHPC binder qualities at our disposal. At present, our UHPC binders are being extensively tested by various companies in Asia in order to be specified and approved.

At the same time, some of our offshore binder systems are being tested in Asia for the construction of floating platforms. These UHPC offshore binders have a number of advantages over the previously used steel structures. Here too, the certification process has been initiated by our customer.