Alkali-aggregate reactivity (AAR) is one of the major causes of damage in concrete. Potential susceptibility of aggregates to this reaction can be determined using several methods. This study compares gravel alkali reactivity results obtained from different tests conducted on coarse aggregates with complex petrography. The potential for the reactivity in the aggregates was revealed in the chemical test using treatment with sodium hydroxide. Optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction were used to identify the reactive constituents. The expansion measured in the mortar bars test confirmed that the aggregate was potentially capable of alkali silica reactivity with consequent deleterious effect on concrete.

The study presented research on the possibility of using acoustic emission to detect and analyze the development of the alkali-silica reaction (ASR) in cement mortars. The experiment was conducted under laboratory conditions using mortars with reactive opal aggregate, accelerating the reaction by ensuring high humidity and temperature, in accordance with ASTM C227. The progress of corrosion processes was monitored continuously for 14 days. The tests were complemented with measurements of the expansion of the mortars and observations of microstructures under a scanning electron microscope. The high sensitivity of the acoustic emission method applied to material fracture caused by ASR enabled the detection of corrosion processes already on the first day of the test, much sooner than the first recorded changes in linear elongation of the specimens. Characteristic signal descriptors were analyzed to determine the progress of corrosion processes and indicate the source of the cracks. Analysis of recorded 13 AE parameters (counts total, counts to peak, duration, rise time, energy, signal strength, amplitude, RMS, ASL, relative energy, average frequency, initial frequency and reverberation frequency) indicates that the number of counts, signal strength and average frequency provide most information about the deleterious processes that occur in the reactive aggregate mortars. The values of RA (rise time/amplitude) and AF (average frequency) enabled the classification of detected signals as indicating tensile or shear cracks. The acoustic emission method was found suitable for monitoring the course of alkali-aggregate reaction effects.

The reaction of alkalis with aggregate containing reactive forms of silica (ASR) plays a significant role in shaping the durability of concrete, as the strongly hygroscopic reaction products generated lead to internal stress, causing its expansion and cracking. This study presents an extended analysis of corrosive processes occurring in mortars with reactive natural aggregate from Poland, using computed tomography and scanning microscopy methods. Numerous cracks in the grains and the surrounding cementitious matrix were observed, indicating a high degree of advancement of corrosive processes. Over time, the proportion of pores with reduced sphericity increased, indicating ongoing degradation of the mortars. The usefulness of computed tomography in studying the progress of ASR was demonstrated. Scanning microscopy confirmed that the cause of mortar degradation is the formed ASR gel with a typical composition, located within the volume of reactive grains, cracks propagating into the cementitious matrix, and accumulated in air voids.