ERC grant for scientist from BUT. He will investigate origins of concrete fatigue

(PR, Brno, 5 October 2024) Miroslav Vořechovský from Brno University of Technology (BUT), along with three international researchers, has received the most prestigious scientific grant awarded by the European Research Council (ERC). In the six-year FATRESCON project (short for FATigue RESistant CONcrete), funded with nearly 10 million euros, Vořechovský will coordinate a team comprising colleagues from Germany and Austria, in fundamental research on concrete—from the atomic level to large construction structures.The project aims to investigate the microscopic causes of concrete fatigue and its effect on the lifespan of concrete infrastructure, while also exploring eco-efficient and more durable alternatives to traditional cement binders.

Project Background

The causes of concrete fatigue are not yet fully understood, and current standards largely rely on empirical knowledge. "We believe the origins and mechanisms of concrete fatigue lie within the nanostructure of the material," Professor Vořechovský explained. However, concrete exhibits a hierarchical structure across multiple levels, with phenomena on each level affecting the behavior of the next. "It is therefore necessary to bridge the gap between material science focused on cement-bound materials at small scales and fatigue science related to large reinforced concrete structures," Vořechovský added. In other words, the project faces complex questions: How can atomic-level insights be connected to construction-scale applications? What intermediate steps are required? And how can discoveries from the nano- and micro-scale lead to practical advancements in the construction industry?

Related Challenges: Can Concrete Be Both Eco-efficient and Durable?

Concrete is the most widely used artificial material in the world, forming the backbone of our transportation and energy infrastructure, with no viable alternative. Yet, two seemingly distinct issues have come to the forefront. First, the essential ingredient of concrete—cement—accounts for 8% of global anthropogenic CO₂ emissions, making it crucial to develop eco-efficient alternatives. One solution is to partially replace traditional cement with locally sourced supplementary cementitious materials that offer a lower carbon footprint. However, this introduces new challenges: these eco-efficient concretes differ from traditional ones, and their long-term performance remains largely unknown. "The question is whether we can build concrete infrastructure that is both eco-friendly and sufficiently durable," Vořechovský summarized the issue.

Second, we are witnessing rapid deterioration of concrete infrastructure exposed to cyclic loading such as wind, traffic or changes in temperature or humidity. This often leads to costly and potentially tragic consequences. Repeatedly stressed structures suffer from concrete fatigue, acting as a "gray eminence" in the background: fatigue in the material accelerates crack formation, which allows aggressive agents to penetrate structures and pose a hidden threat. Although corrosion of steel reinforcement is often cited as the cause of structural failures, fatigue is often the underlying reason.

A Multidisciplinary Research Team

Experts Thomas Matschei (RWTH Aachen, cement chemistry), Bernhard Pichler (TU Wien, multiscale materials science), Miroslav Vořechovský (BUT, probabilistic computational mechanics), and Rostislav Chudoba (RWTH Aachen, concrete engineering structures) have formed a multidisciplinary team to bridge the gap between eco-efficient concrete materials and the fatigue life of critical infrastructure in transportation and energy sectors.

"My team at BUT will focus on predicting how the microstructure of cementitious materials relates to their macroscopic properties. Our three project partners in Aachen and Vienna work at scales both below and above this level. No single research group worldwide can address all these scales simultaneously, which is why the ERC Synergy grant is the perfect instrument for tackling such complex questions," Vořechovský noted, emphasizing the grant's commitment to interdisciplinary collaboration. The team will integrate diverse approaches, including experiments, mathematical models, computer simulations, and data science, to tackle this challenge from multiple angles.

A New Research Path

The project’s goal is not to drive immediate changes in construction practices and regulations. "The main ambition of FATRESCON is to advance the knowledge base that can contribute to such changes in the future. Essentially, we aim to establish a new research direction. A deeper understanding of the fundamental principles behind fatigue damage holds enormous potential, not only for different material types but for all types of binders in concrete," Professor Vořechovský emphasized.

Recruiting Researchers, Building Infrastructure, and Preparing for the Long Haul

Vořechovský emphasized the importance of setting up the project for sustained success over the six-year timeline. "We’ll need to recruit top doctoral and postdoctoral researchers. Additionally, given the highly interdisciplinary nature of this project, establishing effective communication will be essential so researchers from various perspectives can work in harmony. Infrastructure is also a priority. At BUT, this primarily involves acquiring computational equipment for analytical work and developing computer models. We’ll also be conducting some experimental work," he concluded.

A Significant Achievement for BUT

"I am delighted that Professor Vořechovský, a long-standing and outstanding member of BUT, has received this prestigious grant, expanding the number of successful ERC project holders at our university. This is an exceptional success, particularly since it concerns civil engineering, which is not frequently represented among ERC Synergy grants. I am also pleased that BUT has recently been able to establish conditions favorable for top-tier projects. For instance, we recently established a Fund for Excellence to support applicants and leaders of top projects. We plan further measures to increase the number of these high-level projects even further," said Martin Weiter, BUT’s Vice-Rector for Research and Knowledge Transfer.

ERC Synergy Grant

With Synergy Grants, the European Research Council (ERC) supports teams of two to four principal investigators. These grants are designed to support projects that "lead to advances at the frontiers of knowledge" through interdisciplinary collaboration. The award comes with funding of up to ten million euros over a period of six years. In the case of the new project "Concrete matrices for high-cycle-fatigue resistant, eco-efficient infrastructure," the funding amount is 9,993,698 euros, with 2,496,159 euros going to Brno University of Technology.

Miroslav Vořechovský

Born in 1977, Miroslav Vořechovský graduated with honors in civil engineering from Brno University of Technology (BUT) in 2000, receiving the Rector's Award. Since 2003, he has completed several long-term research stays at RWTH Aachen. In 2003–2004, he was awarded a Fulbright scholarship for a research stay with Professor Zdeněk Bažant at Northwestern University in the USA. He earned his PhD in 2004, again receiving the Rector’s Award. In 2007, he became an associate professor at BUT, presenting a habilitation thesis on stochastic computational mechanics of quasi-brittle structures. He was appointed professor in 2014 in the field of Theory of Structures.

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