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Alkali-Activated Natural Pozzolan/Slag Binder For Sustainable Concrete, Meysam Najimi Dec 2016

Alkali-Activated Natural Pozzolan/Slag Binder For Sustainable Concrete, Meysam Najimi

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This study aimed to fully replace Portland cement (PC) with environmentally friendly binders capable of improving longevity of concrete. The new binders consisted of different proportions of natural Pozzolan and slag which were alkaline-activated with various combinations of sodium hydroxide and sodium silicate. A step-by-step research program was designed to (1) develop alkali-activated natural Pozzolan/slag pastes with adequate fresh and strength properties, (2) produce alkali-activated natural Pozzolan/slag mortars to assess the effects of dominant variables on their plastic and hardened properties, and (3) finally produce and assess fresh, mechanical, dimensional, transport and durability properties of alkali-activated natural Pozzolan/slag concretes. The …


Sulfate Resistance Of Nanosilica Contained Portland Cement Mortars, Iani Batilov Batilov Dec 2016

Sulfate Resistance Of Nanosilica Contained Portland Cement Mortars, Iani Batilov Batilov

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Soils, sea water and ground water high in sulfates are commonly encountered hostile environments that can attack the structure of concrete via chemical and physical mechanisms which can lead to costly repairs or replacement. Sulfate attack is a slow acting deteriorative phenomenon that can result in cracking, spalling, expansion, increased permeability, paste-to-aggregate bond loss, paste softening, strength loss, and ultimately, progressive failure of concrete. In the presented research study, Portland cement (PC) mortars containing 1.5% to 6.0% nanosilica (nS) cement replacement by weight were tested for sulfate resistance through full submersion in sodium sulfate to simulate external sulfate attack. Mortars …


Improving The Laboratory Design Of Asphalt Mixtures To Enhance Asphalt Pavement Durability, Ali Hekmatfar Aug 2016

Improving The Laboratory Design Of Asphalt Mixtures To Enhance Asphalt Pavement Durability, Ali Hekmatfar

Open Access Dissertations

Most departments of transportation, including Indiana’s, currently use the Superpave mixture design method to design asphalt mixtures. This method specifies that the optimum asphalt content for a given gradation be selected at 4 percent air voids. During construction, these mixtures are typically compacted to 7-8 percent air voids. If mixtures were designed to be more compactable in the field they could be compacted to the same density as the laboratory mixture design, which would increase pavement durability by decreasing the in-place air voids. The objective of this research was to enhance the asphalt mixture design method in order to increase …


Survival Analyses For Bridge Decks In Northern United States, Habib Tabatabai, Chin-Wei Lee, Mohammad A. Tabatabai Jun 2016

Survival Analyses For Bridge Decks In Northern United States, Habib Tabatabai, Chin-Wei Lee, Mohammad A. Tabatabai

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Articles

The use of deicing salts in northern regions of the United States is a major contributor to the long-term deterioration of bridge decks. In this study, the 2008 U.S. National Bridge Inventory (NBI) records were used to develop survival models for non-reconstructed bridge decks in six northern states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York. The hypertabastic accelerated failure model was used to develop survival (reliability) and hazard (failure rate) functions for all six states. The NBI parameters included were the deck rating, type of superstructure (concrete or steel), deck surface area, age, and average daily traffic (ADT). …


Progress In Durability Study Of Frp Materials, Zeng-Zhu Zhu, Ying-Wu Zhou, Li-Li Sui, Feng Xing, Jia Du Jun 2016

Progress In Durability Study Of Frp Materials, Zeng-Zhu Zhu, Ying-Wu Zhou, Li-Li Sui, Feng Xing, Jia Du

International Conference on Durability of Concrete Structures

During the past decades, FRP strengthened RC structures have attracted worldwide interest in both application and research. Nowadays, as more and more infrastructures are being suffered from severe corrosions due to harsh and extreme environments, the durability of FRP strengthened RC structures has generally emerged as the most important issue in research. Thus, the paper presents the latest progress in durability study of the FRP materials through an in-depth review and analysis on existing extensive investigations. The time-dependent performances of two types of FRP materials of carbon FRP (CFRP) and glass FRP (GFRP) under severe environments of humidity, high temperature, …


Research On Concrete Durability Improving For Existing Island-Building And Its Application, Mao Jianghong, Zhu Yaofeng, Xu Fangyuan, Jin Weiliang, Xu Yidong, Chen Xu Jun 2016

Research On Concrete Durability Improving For Existing Island-Building And Its Application, Mao Jianghong, Zhu Yaofeng, Xu Fangyuan, Jin Weiliang, Xu Yidong, Chen Xu

International Conference on Durability of Concrete Structures

China’s coastal cities contain a large number of islands with abundant human activities, in which buildings are in a typical marine corrosion environment and the corrosion of reinforced concrete structures is very prominent. This paper makes research work on two aspects: (1) the durability assessment and durability improvement after a thorough investigation of the architecture of Xiangtan County, Ningbo city, on an island and (2) the application research of the bidirectional electromigration rehabilitation (BIEM) technology to enhance the durability of existing island building life. This paper designs a set of BIEM equipment based on solar power supply and develops a …


Study Of Water Permeability Of Lightweight Concrete, Xiaoxiao Xu, Haibin Yang, Hongzhi Cui, Zitao Lin, Tommy Yiu Lo Jun 2016

Study Of Water Permeability Of Lightweight Concrete, Xiaoxiao Xu, Haibin Yang, Hongzhi Cui, Zitao Lin, Tommy Yiu Lo

International Conference on Durability of Concrete Structures

The relationship between water permeability and different levels of the tested layers from the top surface to the bottom surface of the lightweight concrete specimens is determined in this study. It is beneficial to develop the design criteria for a durable lightweight concrete. The water permeability coefficient K of the samples was determined by water permeability test using GWT. It is found that the water permeability coefficient K of the three layers in each set of samples tends to decrease as the level of the tested from the top surface increase. Larger Rebound Number and higher density in the bottom …


Corrosion Of Steel In Concrete And Its Prevention In Aggressive Chloride-Bearing Environments, Luca Bertolini, Maddalena Carsana, Matteo Gastaldi, Federica Lollini, Elena Redaelli Jun 2016

Corrosion Of Steel In Concrete And Its Prevention In Aggressive Chloride-Bearing Environments, Luca Bertolini, Maddalena Carsana, Matteo Gastaldi, Federica Lollini, Elena Redaelli

International Conference on Durability of Concrete Structures

This keynote paper deals with the durability of reinforced concrete (RC) structures exposed to aggressive environments characterized by high concentration of chloride ions, namely, marine environments or the use of de-icing salts. The mechanism of chloride-induced corrosion of steel in concrete is introduced, and its influence on the service life of RC structures is analyzed. Factors affecting the time to corrosion initiation are described with regard to both concrete properties and environmental exposure conditions. Design approaches available for achieving durability targets associated with the design service life are analyzed, focusing on studies carried out by the authors in recent years …


Impact Of Extreme Summer Temperatures On Bridge Structures, Ryan Hagedorn May 2016

Impact Of Extreme Summer Temperatures On Bridge Structures, Ryan Hagedorn

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Climate change and its effect on weather in the United States is a well-documented phenomenon. In particular, extreme heat waves have become more intense, more frequent, and longer lasting, especially in the southern United States. As with much of America’s transportation infrastructure, prestressed concrete bridge girders experience the effects of these heat waves. Uneven heating of optimized bridge girder sections results in large non-linear temperature gradients. In this study, temperature was monitored in three different AASHTO I-girders to determine the vertical and transverse temperature gradients in a pre-deck placement condition. It was determined that the current design standard, which uses …


Rehabilitation And Strengthening Of Reinforced Concrete Members Using A Fiber Reinforced Cementitious Matrix Composite, Zena Riyadh Aljazaeri Jan 2016

Rehabilitation And Strengthening Of Reinforced Concrete Members Using A Fiber Reinforced Cementitious Matrix Composite, Zena Riyadh Aljazaeri

Doctoral Dissertations

“Externally bonded fiber reinforced cementitious matrix (FRCM) for structural members was tested and evaluated as a new class of composite material for repairing and strengthening infrastructures. In comparison with fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) composites, FRCM composite has a superior high temperature resistance and great compatibility with concrete substrates. Experimental investigation is ongoing in the United States to evaluate the structural and durability performance of FRCM composite to be implemented in field applications. This experimental program consisted of testing 12 strengthened reinforced concrete (RC) beams to study the fatigue and flexure performance under environmental exposure and sustained stress, 10 strengthened RC …