The NCR Best Paper Award for Young Researchers
Awarded by the Nordic Concrete Association, following recommendation by the Research Council, for the best article submitted to Nordic Concrete Research
Background:
Nordic Concrete Research (NCR) is a biannual, scientific journal published by the Nordic Concrete Federation (NCF), first issued in 1982. NCR is supervised by the NCF Research Council (RCNCF). Since 2002, a prize has been awarded for the best article published during the last three years period, authored by a young researcher. The price is awarded during the Nordic Concrete Symposium, organized every three years.
Scope:
The scope includes
1. Rewarding a young concrete researcher
2. Improving/maintaining high quality NCR articles
3. Motivation of researchers to publish in NCR
4. Marketing of NCR
Prize:
The prize is awarded at the Nordic Concrete Research Symposium.
It includes free of charge admittance to and accommodation during the symposium plus a reward in of NOK 15.000 in cash (subject to taxation). Attendance at the Symposium is a prerequisite.
The prize is awarded to the first author, who must fulfill the criteria. If the article is written by two persons with equal responsibility/contribution and fulfilling the criteria, the reward will be split accordingly and they will both have free admittance to the symposium but not free accommodation. If there are three or more authors, the first author is awarded only.
Candidacy:
All peer-review scientific articles in NCR regular volumes published during the last three calendar years prior to the year of the symposium will be considered. Other publications under the umbrella of NCF will not be considered.
Candidates shall not have turned 35 years of age at the time of submitting the manuscript.
Evaluation criteria:
Criteria for the award include three requirements of equal weight:
1. News value
2. Adequacy in choice of method
3. Clear, logic and educational presentation
Procedure for selection of the awardee:
The reviewers assigned for the peeer-review of the indvidual articles are requested to indicate whether the article is a candidate. The editor will prepare the candidate articles to be reviewed by the RCNCF for final selection during the last committee meeting prior to the Symposium.
The NCR editor will contact the selected candidate as soon as possible in order to enable the candidate’s attendance at the Symposium.
Winners of BPA:
Best Paper Award 2002
Mathias Johansson & Magnus Åkesson (SE): Finite Element Study of Concrete-Filled Steel Tubes Using a New Confinement-Sensitive Concrete Compression Model, NCR, No. 2:01, 2001, pp. 43-62.
Best Paper Award 2005
Monica Lundgren (SE): Limestone Filler as Addition in Cement Mortars: Influence on the Early-Age Strength Development at Low Temperature, NCR, No. 1:04, 2004, pp. 50-63.
Best Paper Award 2008
Lasse Frølich Kristensen & Eigil V. Sørensen (DK): Sea Dredged Gravel versus Crushed Granite as Coarse Aggregate for Self Compacting Concrete in Aggressive Environment, NCR, No. 1-2:07, 2007, pp. 9-18.
Best Paper Award 2011
Rasmus Rempling, Karin Lundgren & Kent Gyltoft (SE): Modelling of Concrete in Tension – Energy Dissipation in Cyclic Loops, NCR, No. 2:08, 2008, pp. 165-178.
Best Paper Award 2014
Martin Kaasgaard, U Pade, U Jönsson & C Munch-Petersen (DK): Comparison of Durability Parameters of Self-Compacting Concrete and Conventional Slump Concrete Designed for Marine Environment, NCR, No. 47, 2013.
Best Paper Award 2017
Niklas Bagge, Jonny Nilimaa, Thomas Blankswärd & Lennart Elfgren (SE): Instrumentation and Full-Scale Test of Post-Tensioned Concrete Bridge, NCR, No. 51, 2014.
Best Paper Award 2022
Tobias Danner & Harald Justnes (NO): The Influence of Production Parameters on Pozzolanic Reactivity of Calcined Clays, NCR, No. 59, 2018.
Best Paper Award 2025
Kathrine Stemland, Håvard Johansen & Terje Kanstad (NO): Load Effects of ASR-induced Expansion in Reinforced Concrete and Their Consequences for Structural Assessment, NCR, No. 68, 2023.