Sorptivity-Based Service Life Predictions for Concrete Pavements

Published

September 1, 2001

Author(s)

Dale P. Bentz, M A. Ehlen, Chiara F. Ferraris, Edward J. Garboczi

Abstract

The degradation of concrete pavements is often controlled by the transport of a deleterious species (chloride or sulfate ions, or water in the case of freeze/thaw) into the concrete. With this in mind, a three-year research project, funded by the Federal Highway Administration, has culminated in the development of sorptivity-based service life models for concrete pavements and bridge decks. To develop a service life model, one needs to identify and model the suspected degradation mechanism, develop laboratory tests to evaluate the critical material properties, and adequately characterize the exposure environment. For this project, degradation mechanisms for sulfate attack (ettringite-induced expansion) and freeze/thaw degradation (critical saturation of the air void system) have been postulated. To evaluate sorptivity, a laboratory-based testing protocol for conditioning and assessing the sorption properties of field concrete cores has been developed and submitted to ASTM committee C09 for standardization. To characterize the exposure environment, a one-dimensional finite difference computer model which utilizes typical meteorological year weather data supplied by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory has been developed to predict the concrete pavement surface temperature and time-of-wetness history for a wide variety of geographical locations thoughout the United States. Finally, these methods and computational tools have been integrated into a computer software package, CONCLIFE, which provides sorptivity-based service life predictions.

Proceedings Title

International Conference on Concrete Pavements| 7th | The Use of Concretes in Developing Long-Lasting Pavement Solutions for the 21st Century | International Society for Concrete Pavements

Volume

7th

Issue

1

Conference Dates

September 9-13, 2001

Conference Title

International Conference on Concrete Pavements

Pub Type

Conferences

Download Paper

Local Download

Keywords

building technology, concrete, degradation, service life, simulation, sorption

Citation

Bentz, D. , Ehlen, M. , Ferraris, C. and Garboczi, E. (2001), Sorptivity-Based Service Life Predictions for Concrete Pavements, International Conference on Concrete Pavements| 7th | The Use of Concretes in Developing Long-Lasting Pavement Solutions for the 21st Century | International Society for Concrete Pavements, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=860329 (Accessed April 19, 2024)