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Evaluation
Three factors which allowed the deck to continue
in fairly uninterrupted service were
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The relatively thick section of the deck,
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The short span of 8' (2.5 m) or less between supporting beams,
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The protective coating that was applied in 1985. |
Random cracking present in the deck was primary in a direction parallel
to the main tendons and the span. This would indicate that loading
on the deck had not yet developed enough stress in bending to crack
the underside, or tension face, of the deck between supports. Cracks
perpendicular to the span appeared over beams, where the top flange
of the beam is embedded in the slab, creating a weak point.  Since
this is also the theoretical point of maximum negative moment it
is not uncommon to expect cracking at this location. Other cracking
parallel to the span seems to follow embedded electrical or plumbing
conduits, and is expected and non-stress related.
The application of the protective coating eliminated
most of the moisture from getting to the concrete and penetrating
though its pore structure or through existing cracks. This slowed
the ASR process and greatly reduced the formation of new cracks.
It also reduced the intrusion of moisture and oxygen which is required
for corrosion of the tendons to spread easily. Although it is generally
accepted that once ASR or corrosion exist, they cannot be completely
eliminated; in this case, the degradation has been significantly
reduced.
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| Load-tests confirmed the
increased capacity of the deck. |
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