A scientometric evaluation of self-healing cementitious composites for sustainable built environment applications

Concrete is widely used in construction due to its high demand, but its production and use of ordinary Portland cement contribute to environmental issues such as carbon dioxide emissions and global warming. To tackle these challenges, researchers are exploring innovative geopolymer (GPL) concrete technology. However, cracks are inevitable in concrete structures due to various factors, and if left unaddressed, these cracks can allow the passage of harmful substances, leading to reduced service life and structural failure. Therefore, immediate crack repairs are crucial, but manual fixes are expensive and time-taking. Self-healing geopolymer (SHG) concrete offers a revolutionary solution by addressing these predicaments. Although extensive literature exists on SHG concrete, none of the investigations have examined and summarized its characteristics and applicability in the construction industry. SHG materials commonly include fly ash, metakaolin, and granulated blast furnace slag. The main objective of this scientometric evaluation is to assess the mechanical characteristics, self-healing (SH) agents, durability behavior, and the ability of products of GPL to self-heal process. The results show that SHG products exhibit greater resistance to ecological degradation, improved mechanical performance compared to concrete, and excellent SH capabilities facilitated by the formation of new bonding among various fractured surfaces and internal cracks when subjected to humidity. While bacteria are commonly used as healing agents, new options like glass frit and different types of reinforcement fibers have been introduced but with lower healing competence. The review work accomplishes by highlighting the necessity for more experimental investigations to completely comprehend the behavior and effectiveness of SHG in the construction industry.