FIELD INVESTIGATIONS OF CONCRETE BRIDGE DECKS IN INDIANA

Deicing salts used first began to be used on bridge decks in the late 1950s, and corrosion of the reinforcing steel related to the use of deicing salts emerged as a problem in the 1960s. Epoxy-coated reinforcement was first proposed as a solution to the problem of bridge deck deterioration due to reinforcing steel corrosion in the early 1970s. Since epoxy-coated bars were thought to significantly increase the service life of bridge decks, although the increase was never clearly quantified, it was generally accepted that epoxy-coated bars were cost-effective. This article is the first of a 2-part series presenting the results of extensive field investigations of existing and new concrete bridge decks in Indiana. Results show that an alarming number of defects, an average of 40 defects/m of bar, are being created on epoxy-coated bars in the concrete casting operation. Other findings are also provided.