Types of Cracks Cause of Cracks Properties of Cracks

Types of cracks
Cause of cracks
Properties of cracks
By Dr. Suman Pandey
Assistant Professor
Techno India University, India
Introduction:
Cracks in the building is a universal problem
faced throughout the world. Building
components develops cracks whenever stress
in the components exceeds its strength.
Stress in the building components could be
caused by externally applied forces such as dead,
live, wind, seismic loads or foundation settlement
or could it be induced by internally due to
temperature variations, moisture changes and
chemical actions. Cracks affects the building's
artistic look and it destroys the wall integrity,
affects the safety of structure and even reduces
the durability of structure.
Generally cracks can be divided into two types :
1-Structural cracks
2- Non-structural cracks.
(1) Structural Cracks : Structural cracks may
rise due to various reasons such as
Incorrect design
Faulty construction
Overloading of the structural components
Structural cracks endanger the stability of the
building and may be diffcult to be rectified.
(2)Non-structural cracks(Hair cracks): Non-
structural cracks are generally due to
Internal forces developed in the-
building materials
Moisture variation
Temperture changes
Suitable remedial measures can be taken to
control it. Cracks may appreciably vary in
width from very thin hair crack barely
visible to naked eye to gaping crack
Depending upon the crack width , the cracks
are classified as :
➢Thin Crack -less than 1 mm in width.
➢Medium Crack -1 to 2 mm in width.
➢Wide Crack -more than 2 mm in width.
➢Crazing - Occurrence of closely spaced
fine cracks at the surface of a material is
called Crazing.
Crazing is the development of a network of
fine random cracks on the surface of
concrete or mortar caused by shrinkage of the
surface layer.
Thin Crack
Medium Crack
Wide Crack
Case studies
1. Cracks on walls
Step cracks, stair step cracks or stepping
cracks all refer to cracks that follow the
mortar joints in a block wall. The cracks
step up or down along the mortar. In many
cases, this type of crack is caused by minor
movement of the footing, shrinkage or
wall movement, and by itself is not a major
cause for concern; however, wide cracks or
step cracks combined with other cracks and
movement indicate a problem.
Foundation Movement and Settlement of Soil :
Shear cracks in buildings occur when there is
large differential settlement of foundation and it
may be either due to the following reasons:
1.Unequal bearing pressure under different parts
of the structure
2.Bearing pressure on soil being in excess of safe
bearing strength of the soil
3.Low factor of safety in the design of
foundation
4.Local variation in the nature of supporting soil
Preventative Measure:
The design of foundation should be based on
sound engineering principles and good practice.
Picture showing cracks in building due to weak
foundation--
2) Cracks On Beams And Columns
This type of failure occurs when a material
strains under stress. When two materials
(having different elastic properties) built
together under the effect of load then
different shear stresses in these materials
create cracks at the junction. Dead and live
loads are the main cause of elastic
deformation in any structural components of
a building.
Preventive Measures: Create slip joints under
the support of concrete slab on walls. Provide
horizontal movement joints between the top
of brick panel and reinforced cement concrete
beam/slab.
CAUSES AND ITS PREVENTIVE
MEASURES :
A) Thermal Movement:
Most materials expand when they are heated, and
contract when they are cooled. The expansion and
contraction with changes in temperature occur
regardless of the structure’s cross-sectional area. It is
one of the most potent causes of cracking in buildings
which need attention.
Preventive Measures: Joints should be constructed like
construction joints, expansion joints, control joints and
slip joints. The joints should be planned at the time of
design and be constructed carefully.
B) Chemical Reaction:
Chemical reactions may occur due to the materials

used to make the concrete or materials that come into
contact with the concrete after it has hardened.
Concrete may crack with time as the result of slowly
developing expansive reactions between aggregate
containing active silica and alkalis derived from
cement hydration, admixtures or external sources
Preventive Measures: If sulphate content in soil
exceeds 0.2 percent or in ground water exceed 300
ppm, use very dense concrete and either increase
richness of mix to 1:1/5:3 and to prevent cracking due
to corrosion in reinforcement it is desirable to specify
concrete of richer mix for thin sections in exposed
locations.
C) Shrinkage:
Most of the building materials expand when they
absorb moisture from atmosphere and shrink when
they are dry. Shrinkage can be of plastic or dry. The
factors causing shrinkage in cement concrete and
cement mortar and their preventions are as following.
Excessive Water: The quantity of water used in the
mortar mix can cause shrinkage. Vibrated concrete has
less quantity of water and lesser shrinkage than
manually compacted concrete.
Preventive Measures: Use minimum quantity of water
required for mixing cement concrete or cements
mortar according to water cement ratio. Cement
concrete is never allowed to work without mechanical
mix and vibrator.
D) Vegetation:
Fast growing trees in the area around the walls can
sometimes cause cracks in walls due to expansive
action of roots growing under the foundation. The
cracks occur in clay soil due to moisture contained
by roots.
Preventive Measure:
Do not grow trees too close to the building. Remove
any saplings of trees as soon as possible if they start
growing in or near of walls.
E)Poor Construction practices :
There is a general lack of good construction
practices either due to ignorance, carelessness, greed
or negligence.For a healthy building it is absolutely
necessary for the construction agency and the owner
to ensure good quality materials selection and good
construction practices.
Preventive Measure:
Proper monitoring and use of good quality of
materials is required at the time of construction.
Apart from this
• Corrosion crack
• Vegetation
• Earthquake
Are other reasons of crack.

Types of Cracks Cause of Cracks Properties of Cracks

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Chemical reactions may occur due to the materials

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