Rilem activities on alkali-silica reactions: from 1988-2019

Since 1988, the International Union of Laboratories and Experts in Construction Materials, Systems and Structures (Rilem) technical committees (TCs) have been seeking to establish universally applicable test methods for assessing the alkali-reactivity potential of aggregates, and from later on, for concrete mixes. TC 106, in the years 1988 to 2001 focused on accelerated aggregate tests, and presented the findings at the International Conferences on Alkali Aggregate Reactions (ICAAR) in Kyoto in 1989, London in 1992, Melbourne in 1996 and Quebec in 2000. The successor committee TC 191-ARP in the years 2001 to 2006 also included work on diagnosis/appraisal and specification, and presented the findings at the ICAAR in Beijing in 2004. TC 219-ACS in the years 2006 to 2014 introduced work on performance testing and modelling, and presented its findings at the ICAARs in Trondheim in 2008 and in Austin in 2012. The major recommendations were published as a Rilem state-of-the-art report in 2015. In 2014, the TC 258-AAA was established, and it scheduled the completion of work on performance-based assessment for 2019. The preliminary findings will be published at the ICAAR in Sao Paolo in 2016.