Chemo-damage modeling and cracking analysis of AAR-affected concrete dams

A chemo-damage model for cracking analysis of concrete dams affected by alkali-aggregate reaction (AAR) is proposed, which combines the plastic-damage model for concrete with the AAR kinetics law. The chemo-damage model is first verified by a stress-free AAR expansion test. The expansion deformation obtained from the simulation is in good agreement with the measurement, demonstrating that the proposed model has a sufficient accuracy to predict the expansion of AAR-affected concrete. Subsequently, the expansion deformation and cracking process of the AAR-affected Fontana gravity dam is analyzed. It shows that permanent displacements in the upstream direction and the vertical direction are gradually increased during the long-term operation period, and that their maximal values reach 1.6 and 3.6 cm, respectively. A crack is observed on the wall in the foundation drainage gallery, and extends towards the downstream face of the dam. With the further development of AAR, another crack forms on the downstream face, and then intersects with the gallery crack to penetrate the downstream side profile of the dam. The third crack occurs in the upstream side wall of the gallery and propagates a short distance towards the upstream face of the dam. The simulated cracking pattern in the dam due to AAR is similar to the in situ observation.