Evaluating Alkali-Silica Reaction in Low Cement Content Eco-Efficient Concrete Mixtures Through Concrete Prism Test

The concrete industry’s NetZero 2050 roadmaps emphasizes the need of producing eco-efficient concrete where optimization of the concrete’s mix-design and decreasing cement content are among the available options to reduce CO2 emissions by 30%. Previous research has shown suitable performance in the fresh and short-term hardened states of eco-efficient mixtures when mix-designed through particle packing models; however, evaluation of the long-term performance in terms of alkali silica reaction (ASR) remains necessary. This study thus evaluates the expansion and damage due to ASR of two eco-efficient mixtures with two cement contents (325 and 250 kg/m3) in comparison to the standard conventional concrete made with 420 kg/m3 of cement. Overall expansion is governed by the total alkali content, where the eco-efficient mixtures achieved expansion levels of 0.47% and 0.18%, respectively, compared to the control mixture at 0.55%.