Calcined Clay Pozzolan as an Admixture to Mitigate the Alkali-Silica Reaction in Concrete

Abstract

Calcined clay pozzolan has been used to replace varying portions of high alkali Portland limestone cement in order to study its effect on the alkali-silica reaction (ASR). Portland limestone cement used for the study had a total Na 2 O eq of 4.32. Mortar-bar expansion decreased as pozzolan content in the cement increased. The highest expansion was recorded for reference bars with no pozzolan, reaching a maximum of 0.35% at 42 days whilst the expansion was reduced by between 42.5% and 107.8% at 14 days and between 9.4% and 16.4% at 84 days with increasing calcined clay pozzolan content. Mortar bars with 25% pozzolan were the least expansive recording expansion less than 0.1% at all test ages. X-ray diffractometry of the hydrated blended cement paste powders showed the formation of stable calcium silicates in increasing quantities whilst the presence of expansive alkali-silica gel, responsible for ASR expansion, decreased as pozzolan content increased. The study confirms that calcined clay pozzolan has an influence on ASR in mortar bars and causes a significant reduction in expansion at a replacement level of 25%.