ABOUT THE INTERNATIONAL CONCRETE ABSTRACTS PORTAL

  • The International Concrete Abstracts Portal is an ACI led collaboration with leading technical organizations from within the international concrete industry and offers the most comprehensive collection of published concrete abstracts.

International Concrete Abstracts Portal

  


Title: Alkali-Silica Reaction in Five Dams in Southwestern United States

Author(s): David Stark and G. W. De Puy

Publication: Symposium Paper

Volume: 100

Issue:

Appears on pages(s): 1759-1786

Keywords: alkali-aggregate reactions; concrete cores; concrete dams; cracking (fracturing); humidity; moisture; petrography; silica; tests; siliceous aggregates; General

DOI: 10.14359/3831

Date: 4/1/1987

Abstract:
The Bureau of Reclamation and Construction Technology Laboratories are conducting a joint program to study the effects of alkali-silica reactivity in concrete dams and to determine the remaining potential for further reactivity in the structures. The first phase of the study covers Coolidge Dam, near Globe, Arizona; Friant Dam, near Fresno, California; Matilija Dam, near Ventura, California; Parker Dan, near Lake Havasu City, Arizona; and Steward Mountain Dam, near Phoenix, Arizona. The three requirements for expansive alkali-silica reactivity are sufficient alkali, availability of moisture, and the presence of potentially reactive silica. The procedures used in this investigation include field measurements of the relative humidity of the concrete to determine if sufficient moisture is available to sustain a continued reaction, expansion measurements of cores immersed in water and in an NaOH solution, petrographic examination of the cores to identify reactive aggregate particles, and osmotic cell tests of aggregate particles to determine potential reactivity