In view of the performance requirements of mass ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) for the Pang Gong bridge steel cable tower in China, the UHPC incorporating of steel slag powder and hybrid expansive agents is optimized and prepared. The effects of steel slag powder and hybrid expansive agents on the hydration characteristics and persistent shrinkage of UHPC are investigated. The results indicate that 15 wt.% steel slag powder and 5 wt.% hybrid expansive agents can effectively reduce the drying shrinkage deformation of UHPC with a slight decrease of strength. Heat flow calorimetry results show that the incorporation of steel slag powder and expansive agents decreases the hydration heat at three days. Moreover, the obtained adiabatic temperature rise of UHPC is 59.5 °C and the total shrinkage value at 180 days is 286 με. The hydration heat release changes of large volume UHPC in the steel-concrete section of cable tower is agreed with the result of adiabatic temperature rise in the laboratory.
Keywords: compact stacking theory; expansive agent; hydration process; steel slag powder; total shrinkage; ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC).