FE approach to perform the condition assessment of a concrete overpass damaged by ASR after 50 years in service

•The proposed FE model shows to be promising to detect expansion to date in concrete structures.•Scattering between measured and calculated data ranged from 3 to 30% depending on the member.•The proposed FE model is able to match cracking orientation, intensity and main locations.•Results indicate t...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Engineering structures 2018-12, Vol.177, p.133-146
Main Authors: Gorga, R.V., Sanchez, L.F.M., Martín-Pérez, B.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alkali-silica reaction
Alkali-silica reactions
Bridges
Chemical reactions
Computer simulation
Concrete deterioration
Concrete structures
Damage assessment
Demolition
Expansion
Finite element
Finite element analysis
Finite element method
Iron
Mathematical models
Parameters
Reinforced concrete
Silica
Silicon dioxide
Structural damage
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Summary:•The proposed FE model shows to be promising to detect expansion to date in concrete structures.•Scattering between measured and calculated data ranged from 3 to 30% depending on the member.•The proposed FE model is able to match cracking orientation, intensity and main locations.•Results indicate that ASR affected RBC bridge was near global failure after 50 years in service.•Parameters such as leaching, creep and shrinkage should be further evaluated to improve the model. Modeling alkali-silica reaction (ASR) induced expansion and damage in reinforced concrete structures is quite complex, yet necessary to obtain accurate predictions of the structural responses of distressed concrete members. In order to predict the expansion and damage at the structural (macroscopic) scale, a new simple yet reliable finite element (FE) approach was developed and validated by the authors. It accounts for the most important parameters affecting ASR through an engineering-based approach, without the need for non-technical guesses or to “fit” model parameters. In this work, the proposed modelling approach is used to analyze the Robert-Bourassa/Charest overpass (Quebec City, Canada), which was demolished in 2010 due to severe structural distress induced by ASR. Results show that the proposed FE approach is capable of properly performing the condition assessment of the structure at the time of demolition based only on simple measurable parameters, thus proving its applicability to simulate ASR in slender reinforced concrete structures.
ISSN:0141-0296
1873-7323
DOI:10.1016/j.engstruct.2018.09.043