Evaluation of alkali–silica reactivity using ASR kinetic model

•The proposed kinetic model improved the reliability of accelerated mortar bar tests.•The previously suggested failure limit could not consistently classify aggregates.•The proposed K-A-M-J method of this study was a better predictor of ASR classification.

The purpose of this study was to examine reliability of kinetic models to evaluate and compare the alkali–silica reactivity (ASR) of fourteen aggregate sources. To this aim, linear expansion of mortar bars made with fourteen distinct aggregate sources was measured over the test durations of 14, 28, and 56 days. The previously suggested ASR kinetic model, known as Kolmogorov–Avrami–Mehl–Johnson (K–A–M–J) model, was utilized to interpret the ASR classifications of the investigated aggregates. Additionally, a modified K–A–M–J model was developed to better predict the degree of reactivity of the trial aggregates. When compared to the original model, the failure limits obtained from the proposed modified kinetic model showed better correlations with the findings obtained from the expansion limits in evaluating alkali–silica reactivity of the investigated aggregates.