Properties of the Thirty Years Old Concrete in Unfinished Żarnowiec Nuclear Power Plant

The construction of Żarnowiec Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) facilities was discontinued in 1989, despite the high level of work advancement. Already a large part of the concrete structures was built, now submerged in water from Żarnowieckie Lake. These structures were exposed over 30 years to the environmental conditions (rain, and varying high and low temperatures) without any special maintenance treatment. The technological documentation archives are not available. Experimental testing of specimens drilled out from different concrete structure elements was performed in September 2014.The goal of the research was the identification of the composition of concrete and its present properties, especially the recognition of the effects of long-term environmental impact. The scope of the research covered macroscopic and microscopic analysis of concrete, compressive strength test, permeability test defined as the rate of chloride ions migration and water absorption. Unfortunately, the most important parts of the concrete structure are not available for testing because they are under water level. The obtained results allowed to classify the concrete structural elements in nuclear power plants buildings as of a quite good quality.