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Monitoring and evaluation of performance of thin-bonded overlay for protection of bridge decks
To protect the bridge deck and reduce maintenance costs, Thin-Bonded Overlays (TBOs) has been used as a protective layer on concrete bridge decks. The main function of TBO is to slowdown the penetration of moisture and chemicals from deicers into concrete and thus reduce the risk of steel corrosion in reinforced concrete decks. In this study, three types of TBOs, a polyester, an epoxy, and a methyl methacrylate (MMA) were selected to be evaluated. Each overlay was installed on E-17-QM and monitored for approximately one year. The performance of each overlay was evaluated on: skid resistance, bond strength, resistance to chloride ingress, freeze-thaw resistance, and cost. The MMA proved to be best at preventing the intrusion of chlorides, while Epoxy proved to be the most durable. The short-term results indicate that all three thin bonded overlays can be used as an effective topical protection system to reduce chloride ion ingress and increase the service life of highway bridge decks.Author(s):
Benjamin Gallaher
University of Colorado at Boulder
United States
Yunping Xi
University of Colorado at Boulder
United States