Effect of Alkali-Silica Reaction Expansion Rate and Confinement on Concrete Degradation

Alkali-silica reaction (ASR) is a major deterioration mechanism that affects the durability of concrete structures. As the slow rate of ASR development and the restrained expansion in field concrete might affect the development of ASR damage, an experimental program was performed to investigate the effects of the rate of ASR expansion and confinement on the degradation of mechanical properties of concretes. Literature data on the degradation of mechanical properties of concretes with ASR expansion were collected and analyzed to investigate the influence of the rate of ASR expansion and confinement on the degradation trends. Degradation of mechanical properties was found to be significantly influenced by the rate of ASR expansion and slightly affected by confinements. The slow rate of ASR expansion seems to be beneficial in limiting concrete degradation. The effects of confinement seem to be related to the direction of restraint and crack orientations.