The alkali–silica reaction of seawater-mixed mortar

Abstract

The application of seawater concrete is receiving increasing attention due to the advantage of using seawater in alleviating water scarcity. One concern with seawater concrete applications is the potential for alkali–silica reaction (ASR) due to the elevated alkali concentration. In this paper, the ASR risk induced by mixed seawater in cement mortar incorporating non-reactive or reactive aggregates (RAs) was studied through short-term and long-term experiments. Experimental results indicate that seawater only increased ASR in the presence of RAs due to the high alkali concentration. Replacing cement with 70% ground granulated blast-furnace slag (GGBS) prevented expansion, although very few ASR products may be observed. SEM results indicated that seawater decreases the (Na + K)/Si ratio and increases the Ca/Si ratio of ASR products slightly. Compared with cement mortar, C–S–H in GGBS blended cement mortar has a higher (Na + K)/Si ratio, which indicates its higher alkali binding capacity.