Accounting for coupled deterioration mechanisms when designing durable concrete containing mineral by-products

Sustainability of concrete materials often focuses on the benefits of incorporating mineral by-products as alternative binders, thus reducing the cement amount requirements while not compromising performance. Yet performance is typically addressed from one perspective controlling the deterioration such as damaged caused by frost action, carbonation or chloride ingress alone. In this 3-year project, normal strength concrete was tested in the laboratory and at field sites with combinations of freeze-thaw, carbonation and chloride exposure at various ages to evaluate the influence of multiple attack types. Durability models are improved to account for deterioration interactions rather than single attack types alone. This paper shares some of the key laboratory and field test findings for mixtures containing by-products. The results are being used to update durability prediction tools which improve service life models for sustainability indicators used in design of concrete structures.