Concrete--Environmental testing

Chloride diffusivity in high performance concrete is influenced by the exposure environment, aside from the concrete mixture properties like, water to cementitious ratio (w/cm) and presence of add-on pozzolans. In this study, a set of concrete specimens (eleven-different concrete mixtures) were cast and exposed to three different environmental conditions (Tidal, Splash and Barge) in which the solution was seawater or brackish water. These exposures simulated environmental field conditions. After the specimens had been wet cured for 32 days (on average), the specimens were exposed to three different field simulation conditions for up to 54 months. The specimens under the field simulated conditions were cored at 6, 10, 18, 30 and 54 months at four elevations and then the chloride profiles were obtained from the cores. The apparent diffusivity values for each profile were calculated based on Fick’s 2nd law. Then, the aging factor “m” was calculated by regression analysis of the diffusivity values vs. time (days) plotted in the log10-log10 scale. This was done for samples exposed to the three different exposure conditions and then the results were compared side-by-side. First, the “m” values were calculated using the exposure duration. Then, to study the effect of including the curing time on “m” value, the curing time was added to the exposure time and a new calculation and “m” value was obtained and compared with the previous results. Moreover, upon inspecting the chloride diffusivity values vs. time plots, it was observed that in some cases, a number of data points showed significantly higher or lower values in comparison with the rest of the data points. It was decided to recalculate the “m” values for these cases, and to only use selected data points instead of all data points (i.e., remove outlier data points). In terms of chloride diffusivity value, it was found that in most cases the specimens with higher water to cementitious (w/cm) ratio showed higher diffusivity, as expected. Further, the presence of pozzolans had a noticeable impact on the chloride diffusivity by decreasing the diffusion rate due to microstructure changes that occurred with time. In terms of “m” values, the result for the field simulated conditions showed a range of “m” values dependent on the specimen’s mixture composition and the elevation at which the specimens were cored. It was observed that the chloride diffusivity declined with time and after a certain amount of time (in this research, almost after 30 months) the diffusivity reduction became small and a transition in the slope of the diffusivity trend appeared in a number of cases. After the transition, the diffusivity trend reached either a plateau zone or continued with a significantly lower slope, depending on the time, composition and exposure. It was found that the specimens under tidal and splash field simulation conditions that had only fly ash in their mixtures showed higher “m” values when compared with samples that contained fly ash and silica fume or fifty percent slag.

Laboratory experiments were conducted to observe, document and evaluate the mechanical behavior of Fiber Reinforced Concrete after being submitted to five different environments for 8 months. The specimens were molded and reinforced with synthetic fibers with a composition similar to that used for dry-cast concrete. Four different types of fibers with different composition were used. The fibers were mixed with the concrete to create the samples and the samples were exposed to different environmental conditions. Some of these environments were meant to increase degradation of the interface fiber-concrete to simulate longevity and imitate harsh environments or marine conditions. The environments consisted of: a high humidity locker (laboratory conditions), submerged in the Intracoastal Waterway in a barge (SeaTech), a wet/dry cycle in seawater immersion simulating a splash/tidal zone, low pH wet/dry seawater immersion cycle and samples submerged in calcium hydroxide solution. The latter three were in an elevated temperature tank (87-95°F) to increase degradation process. The specimens were monitored weekly and the environments were controlled. Then, specimens were evaluated using different mechanical testing as the Indirect Tensile (IDT) test method, compressive strength according to ASTM standards. Results of testing were documented and observed in this study for further understanding of mechanical properties of Fiber Reinforced concrete. Forensic observation of fiber distribution after the IDT tests were also performed.

This study evaluates the effectiveness of using externally bonded CFRP plates for repairing damaged prestressed concrete structures as an alternative to the metal sleeve splice. Currently the metal sleeve splice is the most often used method for the repair of damaged prestressed concrete bridges. The use of bonded CFRP plates could be a viable alternative to the use of steel in this type of repair because of their high strength and stiffness, resistance to corrosion and low weight. The bond strength of CFRP plates bonded to concrete was evaluated by the use of a peel test and correlated by a finite element analysis. The peel test showed that the structural system was not significantly adversely effected by harsh environmental conditions. The results of this study showed that the use of CFRP plates is a feasible alternative to steel in the metal sleeve splice repair with some limiting factors.

This study presents the experimental and theoretical studies on debond of steel bonded to concrete, which aids in understanding the mechanics of the repaired damaged prestressed concrete girders with externally bonded steel plates. The bond strength of bonded steel plate specimen is determined experimentally by the debond test. The initial crack is introduced in the specimens at three different locations, which include the steel/adhesive interface, adhesive through-thickness, and adhesive/concrete interface. Certain debond test specimens are exposed to freeze/thaw and tidal cycles to evaluate the degradation in bond strength resulting from the environmental conditions. The fracture toughness for debonding would be evaluated and expressed as the critical strain energy release rate. A finite element analysis was performed to evaluate the compliance and stress distribution in the debond test specimens. Also, stress distribution of repaired AASHTO prestressed concrete bridge girders with metal sleeve splice was also determined at the interface of steel and concrete.

Durability of marine reinforced and unreinforced concretes was tested under accelerated environmental conditions. The specimens were subjected to alternate wet and dry cycles in specially constructed durability testing tanks. The specific objective was to evaluate the durability of different types of concretes with varying water-cementitious material ratios (0.3, 0.4, and 0.6), cement types (Types I and II), mineral admixtures (blast furnace slag, fly ash, microsilica), and steel types (black, galvinized and epoxy-coated rebars). The unreinforced cylindrical specimens were tested for compressive and splitting tensile strengths and the reinforced prismatic specimens for corrosion. The test results after 300 cycles of accelerated exposure indicated the adverse effects of the marine environment on the durability of concretes, resulting in loss of strength and corrosion resistance. The specimens with lower w/c ratios (0.3 and 0.4) showed good performance, whether or not they were admixture modified. However, mineral admixture inclusions improved the properties of strength and corrosion resistance of the specimens even with high w/c ratios (0.6). The specimens with regular rebars indicated least resistance to corrosion induced from the accelerated marine exposure compared to the ones with galvanized and epoxy-coated rebars.