Effect of mixture proportions and constituents on the material and structural performance of ECC link slabs

Concrete bridge decks have joints, which are created because of the method used to build a bridge structure. These joints allow water and other deleterious materials to pass through the bridge deck corroding the deck and the supporting girders. Link slabs are provided to conceal these joints. A link slab is a thin slab made of special concrete called ECC. The main ingredient of ECC is fly ash which comes from coal-fired thermal plants. These plants emit a large amount of pollutants. Hence, Canada and many other countries have decided to decommission all coal-fired plants. Ontario has already decommissioned its last coal-fired thermal plant in 2014. This has created an acute shortage of fly ash. In the near future, fly ash will not be available. Hence, this Mitacs research project will develop ECC using alternative materials such as slag and GCC which are and will be readily available.

Faculty Supervisor:

Sreekanta Das

Student:

Adeyemi Adesina;Erfan Zandi Zandi Lak

Partner:

Facca Incorporated

Discipline:

Engineering - civil

Sector:

Construction and infrastructure

University:

University of Windsor