Mitigating freeze-thaw deterioration of pavement concrete under multi-field coupling by superabsorbent polymers: Fid-Bau Portal

Mitigating freeze-thaw deterioration of pavement concrete under multi-field coupling by superabsorbent polymers

Yao, Chao / Shen, Aiqin / Lyu, Zhenghua / Zeng, Guopeng

Abstract Rapid deterioration has become a crucial issue when pavement concrete is exposed to multiple actions in cold regions. This study aims to explore the feasibility of using superabsorbent polymers (SAP) to restrict the deterioration of pavement concrete subjected to the coupling effect of the fatigue load, hydrodynamic scouring induced by rolling tires, and freeze–thaw cycles. Toward this end, an accelerated coupling test was performed to compare the evolution of mass loss and relative dynamic elastic modulus of ordinary concrete and SAP-modified concrete. The attenuation behaviors of water absorption and microstructure were also assessed by using a water absorption test and scanning electron microscopy combined with MATLAB and Image-Pro Plus, respectively. The results demonstrated that the incorporation of SAP in concrete contributed to an approximately 20–40% decline in mass loss and a 20–30% decrease in relative dynamic elastic modulus under multi-field coupling, but the enhancement weakened owing to the salt ions and increased damage. In addition, the SAP contributed to a smaller increase in water absorption and a weaker degree of microstructural deterioration. These results indicated that the application of SAP has the potential to reduce the risks to pavement durability and safety induced by multi-field coupling.

Highlights • The evolution of concrete with SAP under the multi-field coupling was investigated. • SAPs significantly suppressed the coupling damage of pavement concrete. • Salt ions had a negative effect on the regulation capability of SAP. • Increasing the damage degree weakened the SAP-induced enhancement performance. • The Voigt model can be used to describe the water absorption process.