Effects of Bulk Water Chemistry on Autogenous Healing of Concrete
Publication: Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 22, Issue 5
Abstract
Autogenous healing can occur when hairline cracks in concrete repair themselves through reactions with water and/or constituents in water. The chemistry of water contacting the cement affects whether the crack heals autogenously or propagates until leaks occur. The strength testing on concrete specimens demonstrates that appreciable healing can occur at a pH of 9.5 when there is sufficient magnesium and silicon in the water. Scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) analyses indicate that a magnesium silicate material is present within the crack surfaces when higher strength healing has occurred. Calcium does not appear to promote the sealing of cracks. A carbonation of internal concrete surfaces was not detected when cracks were sealed via autogenous healing. Chloride diffusion rates do not return to levels seen in virgin concrete when cracks are autogenously healed. However, the water permeability and chloride diffusion are impeded by any filling of cracks regardless of the strength attained.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
Acknowledgments
The writers wish to thank Maureen Hodgins, American Water Works Association Research Foundation project officer, and the members of the Project Advisory Committee—Thomas Rockaway, David Gress, and Edgar Navera. We also appreciate the efforts of Paolo Scardina for his assistance with the SEM-EDS analyses and Robert Simonds for helping with the strength testing. Steven Abbott also provided assistance with the many water changes throughout the study.
References
Aldea, C. -M., Song, W. -J., Popovics, J. S., and Shah, S. P. (2000). “Extent of healing of cracked normal strength concrete.” J. Mater. Civ. Eng., 12(1), 92–96.
American Public Health Association, American Water Works Association, and Water Environment Federation (APHA, AWWA, and WEF). (1998). Standard methods for the examination of water and wastewater, 20th Ed., APHA, AWWA, and WEF, Washington, D.C.
AwwaRF and DVGW-TZW. (1996). Internal corrosion of water distribution systems, AWWARF, Denver.
Broomfield, J. P. (2000). “Carbonation and its effects in reinforced concrete.” J. Mater. Eng. Perform., 39(1), 64–67.
Clear, C. A. (1985). “The effects of autogenous healing upon leakage of water through cracks in concrete.” Technical Rep. No. 559, Cement and Concrete Association, London.
Deng, C. S., Breen, C., Yarwood, J., Habesch, S., Phipps, J., Craster, B., and Maitland, G. (2002). “Aging of oilfield cement at high humidity: A combined FEG-ESEM and Raman microscopic investigation.” J. Mater. Chem., 12(10), 3105–3112.
Dingus, M., Haven, J., and Austin, R. (2002). Nondestructive, noninvasive assessment of underground pipelines, AWWARF, Denver.
Douglas, B. D., Merrill, D. T., and Catlin, J. O. (1996). “Water quality deterioration from corrosion of cement-mortar linings.” J. Am. Water Works Assoc., 88(7), 99–107.
Edvarsen, C. (1999). “Water permeability and autogenous healing of cracks in concrete.” ACI Mater. J., 96(4), 448–454.
Gunnlaugsson, E., and Einarsson, A. (1989). “Magnesium-silicate scaling in mixture of geothermal water and deaerated fresh water in a district heating system.” Geothermics, 18(1/2), 113–120.
Hearn, N., and Morley, C. T. (1997). “Self-sealing property of concrete—Experimental evidence.” Mater. Struct., 30(201), 404–411.
Jackson, R. Z., Pitt, C., and Scabo, R. (1992). Nondestructive testing of water mains for physical integrity, AWWARF, Denver.
Kristiansen, H. (1977). “Corrosion of asbestos-cement pipes.” Vatten, 33(1), 53–61.
Kristmannsdottir, H., Olafsson, M., and Thorhallsson, S. (1989). “Magnesium-silicate scaling in district heating systems in Iceland.” Geothermics, 18(1/2), 191–198.
Lauer, K. R., and Slate, F. O. (1956). “Autogenous healing of cement paste.” J. Am. Concr. Inst., 27(10), 1083–1097.
McNeill, L. S., and Edwards, M. (2003). “Degradation of drinking water plant infrastructure from enhanced coagulation.” J. Infrastruct. Syst., 9(4), 145–156.
Munday, J. G. L., Sangha, C. M., and Dhir, R. K. (1974). “Comparative study of autogenous healing of different concretes.” Proc., 1st Australian Conf. on Engineering Materials, Univ. of South Wales, Sydney, Australia, 177–189.
Neville, A. (2002). “Autogenous healing—A concrete miracle?” Concr. Int., 24(11), 76–82.
Parks, J. L., Edwards, M., Vikesland, P., and Dudi, A. (2008). Autogenous healing of concrete in the drinking water industry, AWWARF, Denver.
Price, M. L., Snoeyink, V. L., Clark, S. C., Kernkamp, A. L., and Musgrove, J. L. (1997). “Control of magnesium silicate scaling in Austin’s lime softened water.” Proc., 1997 Water Quality and Technology Conf., American Water Works Association, Denver.
Ramm, W., and Biscoping, M. (1998). “Autogenous healing and reinforcement corrosion of water-penetrated separation cracks in reinforced concrete.” Nucl. Eng. Des., 179(2), 191–200.
Santhanam, M., Cohen, M. D., and Olek, J. (2002). “Mechanism of sulfate attack: A fresh look. Part 1: Summary of experimental results.” Cem. Concr. Res., 32(6), 915–921.
U.S. Department of Transportation. (2002). “Corrosion cost and preventive strategies in the United States.” Rep. No. FHWA-RD-01-156, Federal Highway Administration, McLean, Va.
Wagner, E. F. (1974). “Autogenous healing of cracks in cement-mortar linings for gray-iron and ductile iron water pipe.” J. Am. Water Works Assoc., 66(6), 358–360.
Zhang, Y., and Edwards, M. (2007). “Anticipating effects of water quality changes on iron corrosion and red water.” J. Water Supply, 56(1), 55–68.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Copyright
© 2010 ASCE.
History
Received: Sep 3, 2009
Accepted: Jan 7, 2010
Published online: Apr 15, 2010
Published in print: May 2010
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.