Evaluation of frost damage on high-belite cement concrete based on Vickers hardness and ultrasonic theory

High-belite cement (HBC) is increasingly used in hydraulic concrete, of which the frost resistance is an important index in cold climatic areas. In the present study, the mass loss, dynamic modulus, cube compressive strength, micro-morphology and pore characteristic parameters of HBC concrete and reference specimens were investigated under freezing and thawing, and their internal frost damages were quantified by micro-Vickers hardness and ultrasonic theory. Test results showed that the frost resistance of HBC concrete was similar to that of ordinary Portland cement (OPC) concrete under the same proportioning, and that their freeze–thaw failure was a continuous and asynchronous process of both surface-to-interior damage and overall deterioration caused by the test mechanism and specimen size. Service life of concrete could be calculated through the thickness of the damaged layer obtained by ultrasonic theory, and models of Vickers hardness distribution and compressive strength prediction based on equivalent Vickers hardness were proposed to evaluate the performance of frozen concrete with high accuracy. This potentially provides a better understanding of freeze–thaw damage and a reference for the popularisation and application of HBC concrete.