Research and Development Office

Evaluation of Packaged Concrete Repair Material to Measure Variability between Batches and Packaging Facilities

Project ID: 1796
Principal Investigator: Shannon Harrel
Research Topic: Repair and Maintenance
Funded Fiscal Years: 2017
Keywords: None

Research Question

How do the published data from the packaged concrete repair material manufacturers compare to the results obtained using ICRI Guideline No. 320.3R-2012 "Guideline for Inorganic Repair Material Data Sheet Protocol"?
Do the properties of the same product vary when packaged in different parts of the country? (i.e. same product, different batch plant) Do the characteristics of the same product vary between different lots or batches? (i.e. same product, same plant, different date)
The concrete repair industry has grown to include a significant number of repair material manufacturers, each producing numerous repair materials. Currently, each manufacturer produces their own material data sheets with properties (strength, durability, unit weight, air content, etc.), but they don't always use the same tests to determine the material properties for their various products. They may also manufacture the repair materials in different parts of the country or alter constituent materials slightly from batch to batch, depending on the costs and availability of constituents. Additionally, they may use different test methods from another manufacturer, which makes it difficult to determine if products are equal. The Concrete, Geotechnical, and Structural Laboratory group recommends repair materials for use on Reclamation structures. Testing the materials using the same industry standard test protocol will provide confidence about which products are comparable, and that products manufactured from one company in different areas of the country meet the same requirements.

Need and Benefit

Need:
The Concrete, Geotechnical, and Structural Laboratory Group and Reclamation as a whole need a way to quickly evaluate what concrete repair materials should be used for a given situation. Currently, packaged concrete repair material manufacturers produce their own testing data, but they may use different test methods from another manufacturer, which makes it difficult to determine if products are equal. In addition, the repair materials are manufactured at different plants across the country and at different times, and we have no information about product variability as a result of this. Reclamation would benefit from having a list of pre-approved repair materials that have been tested by Reclamation so the designers and specifiers have confidence that the product will perform as advertised by the manufacturer. International Concrete Repair Institute (ICRI) has already shown that testing products using the same test methods is important by developing the testing protocol.
Benefit/Urgency:
Developing a list of packaged repair mortars that meet Reclamation requirements for physical properties and property consistency will save Reclamation repair projects money and time. Currently, when the Concrete, Geotechnical, and Structural Laboratory Group is asked to allow a substitute to a specified product, the team has to take an extensive amount of time studying the product documentation to determine if the material appears to be an equal. In addition, we don't have any information how the products vary when made at different times and in different parts of the country.

Contributing Partners

Contact the Principal Investigator for information about partners.

Research Products

Bureau of Reclamation Review

The following documents were reviewed by experts in fields relating to this project's study and findings. The results were determined to be achieved using valid means.

Evaluation of Packaged Concrete Repair Material to Measure Variability between Batches and Packaging Facilities (final, PDF, 3.7MB)
By Shannon Harrell
Research Product completed on September 30, 2017

Evaluation of Packaged Concrete Repair Material to Measure Variability between Batches and Packaging Facilities (final, PDF, 3.7MB)
By Shannon Harrell
Research Product completed on September 30, 2017

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