The purpose of this book is to bring together a series of reviews on topics of current relevance to the durability of concrete and cement-based composites. One might reasonably ask why such a book is now believed to be needed as concrete and related materials have been used with outstanding success in major construction projects for well over two thousand years. Indeed numerous ancient concrete structures, such as the Pantheon in Rome, and masonry structures with mortar joints, such as the Pont du Gard Aqueduct near NõÃmes in southern France (see Fig. 1.1), have survived to the present day in excellent states of preserva- tion. These and other examples of Roman construction works incorporating hydraulic cements made from lime and volcanic earth (or similar vitrified alumino-silicates, known collectively as pozzolanas, after Pozzuoli near Naples where a natural source of such material exists) have shown remarkable dur- ability even where they have been exposed to damp, aggressive environments. An impressive illustration was provided by Davey (1974) whose photograph of part of a Roman breakwater that had been exposed to the sea near Naples for two millennia (reproduced in Fig. 1.2), demonstrates that the mortar joints had endured far more successfully than the now heavily eroded stone blocks which they had been connecting.
Another important (albeit extremely complex) aspect of permeation capacity in concrete involves measurement of ion diffusivities. Diffusion coefficients of specific […]
Permeation capacities as measured by ion diffusivities Read Post »
The fact that appreciable corrosion of steel does not usually happen in dense concrete is primarily due to the alkalinity
Many other chemicals, e.g. oils, fats, sugars, alkalis and salts, may attack concrete in particular circumstances. A wide range of such
General remarks The main difficulty in assessing the condition of prestressed concrete structures is that failure of the prestressed members
Monitoring techniques for prestressed concrete constructions Read Post »
Modelling the chemical degradation of concrete is complex because of the numerous chemical reactions and variety of conditions potentially involved.
There are many models of the mechanical behaviour of frc, within some (but certainly not all) of which one can
The critical degree of saturation is a function of the nature of the material and is a consequence of the distance
An alternative approach to that described in the preceding subsection is to determine a potential service life based on a
Samples which have undergone DEF exhibit a characteristic microstructure after expansion, in which clear rims are seen around aggregate particles,
Microstructural features and proposed mechanisms of DEF expansion Read Post »