Effects of thaumasite on bond strength of reinforcement in concrete

The conditions necessary for the formation of thaumasite are well known and much work is in progress to identify concrete mixes resistant to thaumasite form of sulfate attack (TSA). However, there have been no data to indicate how TSA affects the nature and strength of the bond between reinforcement steel and concrete and hence the load capacity of reinforced concrete elements. During works to repair and strengthen the thaumasite-affected Tredington-Ashchurch Overbridge in Gloucestershire, sections of column were removed and placed in storage. These column sections presented an opportunity to perform pullout tests on full size TSA-affected structural elements and unaffected control specimens from the same structure. In total 63 pullout tests were performed on plain round reinforcement bars embedded in two unaffected and four TSA-affected reinforced concrete elements. The sections were also characterised in terms of estimated in situ cube strength and depth of softened zone. A statistical analysis of the experimental results indicates that the bond of the plain round reinforcement bars in the unaffected concrete exceeded that of the plain round reinforcement bars in the TSA-affected concrete. TSA reduced the mean experimental bond coefficient by 24% for corner bars and 10% for other bars, representing an average reduction in mean experimental bond coefficient of 15% for all bars. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.