• Computers and Concrete
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.263-286
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• 2023

Experimenting with concrete to determine its compressive and tensile strengths is a laborious and time-consuming operation that requires a lot of attention to detail. Researchers from all around the world have spent the better part of the last several decades attempting to use machine learning algorithms to make accurate predictions about the technical qualities of various kinds of concrete. The research that is currently available on estimating the strength of concrete draws attention to the applicability and precision of the various machine learning techniques. This article provides a summary of the research that has previously been conducted on estimating the strength of concrete by making use of a variety of different machine learning methods. In this work, a classification of the existing body of research literature is presented, with the classification being based on the machine learning technique used by the researchers. The present review work will open the horizon for the researchers working on the machine learning based prediction of the compressive strength of concrete by providing the recommendations and benefits and drawbacks associated with each model as determining the compressive strength of concrete practically is a laborious and time-consuming task.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.145-159
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• 2022

In this study, the extreme learning machine and deep learning models were devised to estimate the bond strength of corroded reinforcement in concrete. The six inputs and one output were used in this study. The compressive strength, concrete cover, bond length, steel type, diameter of steel bar, and corrosion level were selected as the input variables. The results of bond strength were used as the output variable. Moreover, the Analysis of variance (Anova) was used to find the effect of input variables on the bond strength of corroded reinforcement in concrete. The prediction results were compared to the experimental results and each other. The extreme learning machine and the deep learning models estimated the bond strength by 99.81% and 99.99% accuracy, respectively. This study found that the deep learning model can be estimated the bond strength of corroded reinforcement with higher accuracy than the extreme learning machine model. The Anova results found that the corrosion level was found to be the input variable that most affects the bond strength of corroded reinforcement in concrete.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.513-525
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• 2023

Recently, research on predicting the behavior of reinforced concrete (RC) columns using machine learning methods has been actively conducted. However, most studies have focused on predicting the ultimate strength of RC columns using a regression algorithm. Therefore, this study develops a successive machine learning process for predicting multiple nonlinear behaviors of rectangular RC columns. This process consists of three stages: single machine learning, bagging ensemble, and stacking ensemble. In the case of strength prediction, sufficient prediction accuracy is confirmed even in the first stage. In the case of displacement, although sufficient accuracy is not achieved in the first and second stages, the stacking ensemble model in the third stage performs better than the machine learning models in the first and second stages. In addition, the performance of the final prediction models is verified by comparing the backbone curves and hysteresis loops obtained from predicted outputs with actual experimental data.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.9 no.5
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• pp.375-387
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• 2012

The objective of this investigation was to develop rules for automatic categorization of concrete quality using selected artificial intelligence methods based on machine learning. The range of tested materials included concrete containing a new waste material - solid residue from coal combustion in fluidized bed boilers (CFBC fly ash) used as additive. The rapid chloride permeability test - Nordtest Method BUILD 492 method was used for determining chloride ions penetration in concrete. Performed experimental tests on obtained chloride migration provided data for learning and testing of rules discovered by machine learning techniques. It has been found that machine learning is a tool which can be applied to determine concrete durability. The rules generated by computer programs AQ21 and WEKA using J48 algorithm provided means for adequate categorization of plain concrete and concrete modified with CFBC fly ash as materials of good and acceptable resistance to chloride penetration.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.409-423
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• 2024

Using an extensive database, a sensitivity analysis across fifteen machine learning (ML) classifiers was conducted to evaluate the impact of various data manipulation techniques, evaluation metrics, and explainability tools. The results of this sensitivity analysis reveal that the examined models can achieve an accuracy ranging from 72-93% in predicting the fire-induced spalling of concrete and denote the light gradient boosting machine, extreme gradient boosting, and random forest algorithms as the best-performing models. Among such models, the six key factors influencing spalling were maximum exposure temperature, heating rate, compressive strength of concrete, moisture content, silica fume content, and the quantity of polypropylene fiber. Our analysis also documents some conflicting results observed with the deep learning model. As such, this study highlights the necessity of selecting suitable models and carefully evaluating the presence of possible outcome biases.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.225-236
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• 2022

In this article, Multi-Gene Genetic Programming (MGGP) is proposed for the estimation of the compressive strength of concrete. MGGP is known to be a powerful algorithm able to find a relationship between certain input space features and a desired output vector. With respect to most conventional machine learning algorithms, which are often used as "black boxes" that do not provide a mathematical formulation of the output-input relationship, MGGP is able to identify a closed-form formula for the input-output relationship. In the study presented in this article, MGPP was used to predict the compressive strength of plain concrete, concrete with fly ash, and concrete with furnace slag. A formula was extracted for each mixture and the performance and the accuracy of the predictions were compared to the results of Artificial Neural Network (ANN) and Extreme Learning Machine (ELM) algorithms, which are conventional and well-established machine learning techniques. The results of the study showed that MGGP can achieve a desirable performance, as the coefficients of determination for plain concrete, concrete with ash, and concrete with slag from the testing phase were equal to 0.928, 0.906, 0.890, respectively. In addition, it was found that MGGP outperforms ELM in all cases and its' accuracy is slightly less than ANN's accuracy. However, MGGP models are practical and easy-to-use since they extract closed-form formulas that may be implemented and used for the prediction of compressive strength.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.52 no.3
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• pp.293-312
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• 2024

Researchers are actively investigating the potential for utilizing alternative materials in construction to tackle the environmental and economic challenges linked to traditional concrete-based materials. Nevertheless, conventional laboratory methods for testing the mechanical properties of concrete are both costly and time-consuming. The limitations of traditional models in predicting the tensile strength of concrete composited with geopolymer have created a demand for more advanced models. Fortunately, the increasing availability of data has facilitated the use of machine learning methods, which offer powerful and cost-effective models. This paper aims to explore the potential of several machine learning methods in predicting the tensile strength of geopolymer concrete under different curing conditions. The study utilizes a dataset of 221 tensile strength test results for geopolymer concrete with varying mix ratios and curing conditions. The effectiveness of the machine learning models is evaluated using additional unseen datasets. Based on the values of loss functions and evaluation metrics, the results indicate that most models have the potential to estimate the tensile strength of geopolymer concrete satisfactorily. However, the Takagi Sugeno fuzzy model (TSF) and gene expression programming (GEP) models demonstrate the highest robustness. Both the laboratory tests and machine learning outcomes indicate that geopolymer concrete composed of 50% fly ash and 40% ground granulated blast slag, mixed with 10 mol of NaOH, and cured in an oven at 190°F for 28 days has superior tensile strength.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.175-193
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• 2024

Researchers have embarked on an active investigation into the feasibility of adopting alternative materials as a solution to the mounting environmental and economic challenges associated with traditional concrete-based construction materials, such as reinforced concrete. The examination of concrete's mechanical properties using laboratory methods is a complex, time-consuming, and costly endeavor. Consequently, the need for models that can overcome these drawbacks is urgent. Fortunately, the ever-increasing availability of data has paved the way for the utilization of machine learning methods, which can provide powerful, efficient, and cost-effective models. This study aims to explore the potential of twelve machine learning algorithms in predicting the tensile strength of geopolymer concrete (GPC) under various curing conditions. To fulfill this objective, 221 datasets, comprising tensile strength test results of GPC with diverse mix ratios and curing conditions, were employed. Additionally, a number of unseen datasets were used to assess the overall performance of the machine learning models. Through a comprehensive analysis of statistical indices and a comparison of the models' behavior with laboratory tests, it was determined that nearly all the models exhibited satisfactory potential in estimating the tensile strength of GPC. Nevertheless, the artificial neural networks and support vector regression models demonstrated the highest robustness. Both the laboratory tests and machine learning outcomes revealed that GPC composed of 30% fly ash and 70% ground granulated blast slag, mixed with 14 mol of NaOH, and cured in an oven at 300°F for 28 days exhibited superior tensile strength.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.32 no.6
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• pp.607-613
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• 2023

The objective of this work is to determine the compressive strength of geopolymer concrete utilizing four distinct machine learning approaches. These techniques are known as gradient boosting machine (GBM), generalized linear model (GLM), extremely randomized trees (XRT), and deep learning (DL). Experimentation is performed to collect the data that is then utilized for training the models. Compressive strength is the response variable, whereas curing days, curing temperature, silica fume, and nanosilica concentration are the different input parameters that are taken into consideration. Several kinds of errors, including root mean square error (RMSE), coefficient of correlation (CC), variance account for (VAF), RMSE to observation's standard deviation ratio (RSR), and Nash-Sutcliffe effectiveness (NSE), were computed to determine the effectiveness of each algorithm. It was observed that, among all the models that were investigated, the GBM is the surrogate model that can predict the compressive strength of the geopolymer concrete with the highest degree of precision.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.137-145
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• 2024

The technique of experimentally determining concrete's compressive strength for a given mix design is time-consuming and difficult. The goal of the current work is to propose a best working predictive model based on different machine learning algorithms such as Gradient Boosting Machine (GBM), Stacked Ensemble (SE), Distributed Random Forest (DRF), Extremely Randomized Trees (XRT), Generalized Linear Model (GLM), and Deep Learning (DL) that can forecast the compressive strength of ternary geopolymer concrete mix without carrying out any experimental procedure. A geopolymer mix uses supplementary cementitious materials obtained as industrial by-products instead of cement. The input variables used for assessing the best machine learning algorithm not only include individual ingredient quantities, but molarity of the alkali activator and age of testing as well. Myriad statistical parameters used to measure the effectiveness of the models in forecasting the compressive strength of ternary geopolymer concrete mix, it has been found that GBM performs better than all other algorithms. A sensitivity analysis carried out towards the end of the study suggests that GBM model predicts results close to the experimental conditions with an accuracy between 95.6 % to 98.2 % for testing and training datasets.