Enhancing alkali-silica reaction resistance with nanomaterials: A comparative study of nano metakaolin and carbon nanotubes

Alkali-silica reaction (ASR) is a major durability concern affecting concrete infrastructure. Research on the mitigation of ASR has seen a resurgence due to the reduced availability of common mitigation materials like supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) and lithium-based compounds. This study explored the efficacy of using nano metakaolin (NMK) and carbon nanotubes (CNTs) for ASR mitigation. In addition to examining ASR resistance, compressive strength, and bulk resistivity of the mixtures with and without nanomaterials were examined. The results show that when NMK and CNT are incorporated at appropriate dosages significant improvement in ASR resistance, compressive strength, and resistivity can occur.