Kinetic analysis and thermodynamic simulation of alkali‐silica reaction in cementitious materials.

This work aims to study the alkali‐silica reaction (ASR) with incorporated kinetic‐thermodynamic analysis. The model reactant tests were first conducted to study the silica dissolution in the simulated pore solution under different temperatures. Then, the kinetic model for silica dissolution was further improved by considering the influence of effective surface area. The improved kinetic model was also incorporated into the GEMS thermodynamic simulation. The model analysis demonstrated the silica dissolution rate is decreased mainly caused by reduced hydroxyl activity with increased saturation degree. The dissolved silica first reacted with the portlandite phase and formed the Calcium–Silicate–Hydrate (CSH) gel. The ASR gel can only be generated under high silicate ion concentration after the consumption of portlandite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]