Effects of coarse aggregate content on sulfuric acid deterioration of concrete

Abstract

Recently, the deterioration of concrete structures caused by sulfuric acid attacks has been serious. However, a prediction method for concrete deterioration due to sulfuric acid attack has not been established yet. In this study, the effects of the coarse aggregate content on sulfuric acid deterioration of concrete were investigated. In the experiment, the coarse aggregate content and water cement ratio of concrete were varied and concrete specimens were immersed in four different concentrations of sulfuric acid solution (0.006 mol/L, 0.09 mol/L, 1 mol/L, and 2 mol/L). The erosion depth, mass loss and neutralization depth were measured at fixed periods. The results showed that the increase in the volume of coarse aggregate led to the decrease in the rate of sulfuric acid deterioration of concrete. Coarse aggregate was found to contribute to preventing the removal of gypsum produced by the reaction of sulfuric acid with calcium compounds.