FEM Approach to Appraise Bridges Affected by Alkali-Silica Reaction (ASR)

Modeling the expansion and damage generated by alkali-silica reaction (ASR) in reinforced concrete structures is quite complex, yet necessary to obtain accurate predictions of the structural responses of distressed concrete members. Several ASR models have been developed over the past decades to predict expansion and damage at the material (microscopic) or the structural (macroscopic) scales. However, those models tend to either neglect or overemphasize the critical physicochemical parameters of the reaction, which limits their applicability. Therefore, a new simple yet reliable finite element approach is proposed in order to fill this gap. It accounts for the most important parameters affecting ASR through an engineering approach, without the need for non-technical guesses or to “fit” model parameters. The proposed model is validated through the computational simulation of reinforced concrete specimens cast and monitored in the laboratory. An application example of a real ASR-affected bridge is also provided.