High-Strength Self-Consolidating Concrete (HS-SCC) and High-Volume Fly Ash Concrete (HVFAC) for Infrastructure Elements: Implementation

1 Ph.D. and 1 M.S.

The objective of this research is to provide an implementation test bed and showcase for the use of HS-SCC and HVFA concrete as well as evaluate MoDOT NU Girder shear behavior consisting of HS-SCC. This study will also investigate the in-situ performance of both HS-SCC and HVFAC in Missouri bridges including to monitor the serviceability and structural performance of the concrete members in the structure i.e., monitor deflections of prestressed girders from casting through service conditions, perform condition survey, monitor any signs of distress.

Because of its unique nature, high-strength self-consolidating concrete (HS-SCC) has the potential to significantly reduce costs associated with transportation-related infrastructure, benefiting both MoDOT and the residents of Missouri. HS-SCC is a highly flowable, nonsegregating concrete that can be placed without any mechanical consolidation, and thus has the following advantages over conventional concrete:

• decreased labor and equipment costs during concrete placement,
• decreased potential for and costs to repair honeycombing and voids,
• increased production rates of precast and cast-in-place elements, and
• improved finish and appearance of cast and free concrete surfaces.

In addition to HS-SCC, innovative materials such as High Volume Flay Ash Concrete (HVFAC) also provides a significant potential to produce more cost effective mix designs for cast-in-place concrete. Since the 1930’s, fly ash – a pozzolanic material – has been used as a partial replacement of portland cement in concrete to improve the material’s strength and durability, while also limiting the amount of early heat generation. From an environmental perspective, replacing cement with fly ash reduces concrete’s overall carbon footprint and diverts an industrial by-product from the solid waste stream (currently, about 40 percent of fly ash is reclaimed for beneficial reuse and 60 percent is disposed of in landfills). In this implementation study, a level of 50% fly ash to cement proportions will be utilized.

This project aims to implement research undertaken at Missouri S&T and elsewhere on HS-SCC and HVFAC into an implementation project. It also aims to study the shear behavior in full-scale NU girders that are fabricated with HS-SCC.

Relationship to other Research/Projects

Field implementation project. New project request.

Transportation-Related Keywords

Technology Transfer Activities

Project Technical Report, Technical Presentation to Technical Societies, and Publication of findings into Conference and Journal Publication. NUTC Newsletter Article.

Project Deliverables

Anticipated Benefits

Implementation of HS-SCC into MoDOT NU Girders and Field Implementation of HVFAC into MoDOT CIP Bridge Pier Caps. Improved understanding of shear behavior of HS-SCC in full-scale shear member testing.

Milestones