Relation of ASR-induced expansion and compressive strength of concrete

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine the loss in compressive strength of concrete cylinders due to alkali–silica reactivity (ASR) for which an aggregate exhibits reactive or innocuous behavior. For the stated purpose, the expansions of 14 aggregate groups, obtained from the accelerated mortar bar and modified concrete prism tests at various immersion ages, were correlated with the loss in compressive strength of the companion concrete cylinders at the immersion ages of 4 and 28 weeks. The test results concluded that the compressive strength generally was not sensitive to ASR at early age; however, it was significantly impacted at the extended immersion age when excessive expansions and cracks were experienced. The ASR classifications of the investigated aggregate groups based on the expansion limits of mortar bars and concrete prisms showed good correlations with those obtained from the proposed failure limits due to loss in compressive strength.