Literature review of modelling approaches for ASR in concrete: a new perspective

Abstract

The assessment of concrete structures affected by alkali-silica reaction (ASR) is a complex problem due to the multiscale nature of this longterm phenomenon. The reaction starts within the concrete constituents and developed at aggregate level by inducing swelling and deterioration of concrete material, which eventually affect the capacity of the structure. Due to this multiscale nature of the phenomenon, the problem is studied by various researchers in numerous manners. In this paper, a literature review of the main modelling approaches for ASR in concrete is presented within a new perspective. The models are categorised on the basis of their input and output parameters, instead of adopting the classical classification on the base of the scale (e.g. micro, meso and macro). The main aim of the review is to understand to which extent the available models are able to describe the deteriorating impact induced by ASR in concrete material and if the approaches can ultimately be extended to structural analyses. ARTICLE HISTORY

A 3D reactive transport model for simulation of the chemical reaction process of ASR at microscale

“…The change of the strain with time is derived from phenomenological laws or from reaction kinetic laws based on thermodynamic principles [8][9][10][11]. At aggregate level, three types of models can be found as concluded in [12]. In the first type of models, the effect of ASR is implemented into the model as an internal pressure directly at aggregate level, which is calculated based on the expansion test results [13][14][15][16][17].…”

Quantitative analysis of the evolution of ASR products and crack networks in the context of the concrete mesostructure

“…Some of the important features yet to be characterized/fully understood include, among others, the initial products' formation, the secondary stage products' spatial distribution and the corresponding cracking mechanisms [8,9]. Another very active research area concerns computational modelling of ASR damage [10]. The latter is an essential methodology for achieving in the future the prediction of the structural degradation under various boundary conditions [10][11][12][13][14].…”

“…Another very active research area concerns computational modelling of ASR damage [10]. The latter is an essential methodology for achieving in the future the prediction of the structural degradation under various boundary conditions [10][11][12][13][14]. However, due to the still limited understanding of the basic ASR cracking mechanisms, current numerical simulations have limited predictive power, since they are typically based on simplified chemo-mechanical models and on assumptions with limited validation.…”

The Influence of Interfacial Transition Zone on Strength of Alkali-Activated Concrete

“…This changes a phase composition of the hydration products in the ITZ, resulting in either its weakening or occurrence of critical deformations of expansion. The problem is that these processes are very slow and signs of corrosion can appear after months and in most cases after years of service [9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16].…”