Investigation of Deterioration of Joints in Concrete Pavements: Field Study of Penetrating Sealers

Thursday, March 31, 2016 - 15:45

The objective of this research was to assess the efficacy of various waterproofing sealers applied to pavement joints with respect to limiting water ingress. The measure of water ingress was the chloride concentration profile as measured by scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectroscopy.

The fieldwork was conducted at the MnROAD facility. Cores were retrieved from pavements to assess the before condition. Various silane- and siloxane-based sealers were applied in 2013, and the pavements were exposed to service for two years. After two years, cores were retrieved.

The chloride profiles for various pavement sites were compared before and after application of the sealer. No appreciable differences were noted. The lack of measured differences is attributed to the short time span allowed for ingress. The older pavements measured had a considerable degree of chloride ingress and, as such, small changes were difficult to detect. The newer pavement analyzed also showed no appreciable change, but it would be worth re-analyzing after more time has elapsed (e.g., two more years).

The full report is available from Iowa State University at http://www.intrans.iastate.edu/research/documents/research-reports/joint_deterioration_penetrating_sealers_field_study_w_cvr.pdf

 


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