Chemical Compatibility Between Concrete Repair Materials and ASR Affected Concrete

Project ID: 8126
Principal Investigator: Westin Joy
Research Topic: Repair and Maintenance
Funded Fiscal Years: 2018, 2019 and 2020
Keywords: None

Research Question

Would alkalis in repair materials accelerate the ASR reaction at the interface and lead to deterioration of bond strength?

Need and Benefit

Reclamation's aging infrastructure is in constant need of repair. Concrete repairs can last the remainder of the structures service life if the repair material is compatible with the existing substrate. Often times, the concrete repairs are shorter lived (5-10 years if that) because the repair material is not compatible with the existing concrete substrate. At Boysen Dam, the Concrete, Geotechnical, and Structural laboratory group is seeing repairs that were performed in 2001, that already need replacement.

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.

Chemical Compatibility Between Concrete Repair Materials and ASR Affected Concrete (final, PDF, 16.4MB)
By Westin Joy and Caleb Nickel
Report completed on September 30, 2021

This research product summarizes the research results and potential application to Reclamation's mission.

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Last Updated: 6/22/20