Assessment of mitigating the mechanical defects of internally cured concrete using mineral-enriched lightweight expanded clay aggregate

Key Points

• Internal curing shows potential in enhancing concrete properties, reducing mechanical defects significantly.
• Key improvements include enhanced durability metrics by 25% through the use of mineral-enriched aggregates.
• Assessment using a concrete durability framework evaluated the lightweight expanded clay aggregate's effectiveness.
• This work highlights the need for further studies on long-term performance and scalability of the lightweight aggregates.