Open Access

A piezoelectric-based ultrasonic transducer that can be embedded at the time of casting is developed for the purpose of continuously monitoring the early-age strength development of cement paste. The transducers that have been developed are equipped with various levels of protection in order to enhance their resilience in an alkaline environment and mitigate the risk of short-circuits. The transducers are operated in actuator-receiver mode. The obtained ultrasonic signal is analyzed in frequency domain. The initial and final setting time estimated from calorimetry measurements demonstrated a strong agreement with the proposed frequency domain approach. The observed behavior of concrete in wave transmission measurements exhibits similarities to that of an electronic filter. Initially, concrete behaves similar to a low-pass filter, but as time elapses, it transitions into a high-pass filter.