ASR damage detection in concrete from ultrasonic methods

Abstract

Alkali-silica reaction (ASR) is a chemical reaction that can occur between alkaline components in cement paste and reactive forms of silica in susceptible aggregates when sufficient moisture is present. The ASR product, known as ASR gel, can cause expansion and cracking that damages the structure. We pass ultrasonic signals through concrete laboratory specimens and use three different ultrasonic methods to detect the onset of ASR damage, or the presence of ASR damage while still at the microscale. Our test specimens are fabricated with aggregate known to be reactive and are then exposed to an aggressive environment to accelerate ASR development. We use swept-sine excitations and obtain pitch-catch records from specimens that have been exposed to the accelerated environment. From this data, we demonstrate an ultrasonic passband method shows high frequency components diminish faster than low frequency components, and therefore the ultrasonic passband shifts to the low frequency side due to ASR damage. The test results also show that the ultrasonic passband is logically related to specimen size. We also demonstrate a stretching factor method is able to track the progress of ASR damage in concrete very well. These methods are shown to be more reliable than attenuation spectrum or attenuation methods that do not detect the ASR damage in concrete at early stages.