Evaluation of the expansion attained to date by concrete affected by alkali–silica reaction. Part III: Application to existing structures

Abstract

The expansion attained by a concrete affected by alkali-silica reaction (ASR) is an important parameter in the evaluation of the corresponding structure. In part I, relationships were established in the laboratory between the ASR expansion and the stiffness damage test (SDT), the damage rating index (DRI), and the cumulated width of cracks observed at the surface of concrete specimens made with various types of reactive aggregates. In part II, these relationships were verified in the case of specimens made in laboratory but exposed outdoors. In part III, the aforementioned methods were applied to three ASR-affected structures. The measurement of crack widths at the surface of the affected members allowed a rather good estimation of the concrete expansion, provided the measurements were taken on the most severely exposed sections of these members. The DRI did not allow differentiating the most visually and mechanically affected concretes from the least affected concretes. The SDT proved to be the most interesting method to date for evaluating the expansion of ASR-affected concrete; however, it seemed to underestimate the expansion of the prestressed concrete members investigated.Key words: aggregates, alkali–silica reaction, concrete, petrography, expansion, stiffness, cracking.