Performance Evaluation of Novel Alkali-Silica Reaction Inhibiting Chemical Admixtures in Cementitious Systems
Publication: Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 35, Issue 9
Abstract
Certain salts of calcium and magnesium can mitigate alkali-silica reaction (ASR) by reducing the pH of concrete pore solution. In a previous study, eight such promising salts were identified out of more than 700 possible salts using a systematic approach. This study presents the performance of these admixtures in paste, mortar, and concrete mixtures. Paste mixtures were used to evaluate the long-term pore solution pH (up to 6 months) and pore size distribution. The flow, flow retention, setting time, and drying shrinkage were evaluated using mortar mixtures. ASR mitigation potential of these admixtures was evaluated with a highly reactive aggregate using a concrete prism test. Finally, concrete mixtures were designed with specific performance targets and evaluated for slump, plastic air content, compressive strength, and bulk resistivity. It was observed that the salts maintained a reduced pore solution pH over the long term. The pore size characteristics were found to be similar to or better than the control mixture. The salts mitigated ASR successfully and had minimal impact on workability, air content, and compressive strength. Most salts behaved as set accelerators. Drying shrinkage was found to be slightly higher when compared with the control, but within the limits specified by the standards. Overall, it is concluded that these pH-reducing admixtures can be used with minimal adjustments to concrete mixture proportioning in order to reliably mitigate ASR.
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Data Availability Statement
All data, models, and code generated or used during the study appear in the published article.
Acknowledgments
This project was funded by two different grants. The first grant was provided by the United States National Science Foundation under CAREER Award No. 1254333 to the second author. The second grant was provided by the Pennsylvania State University under an Engineering for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (ENGINE) grant awarded to the second author. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this manuscript are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the funding organizations.
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Published In
Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 35 • Issue 9 • September 2023
Copyright
© 2023 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Sep 17, 2022
Accepted: Feb 22, 2023
Published online: Jun 28, 2023
Published in print: Sep 1, 2023
Discussion open until: Nov 28, 2023
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