Abstract
One of the, if not the most, vexing problems for bridge maintenance personnel is the deterioration of bridge components below leaking joints. The joints may be open or closed, construction or expansion, but all seemingly leak shortly after construction or resealing. The bridge components affected by the leaking joints may be steel or concrete but the end result is the same, deterioration. Due to the extended Time of Wetness (TOW) and the high levels of contaminants (deicing chemicals), structural steel coatings and reinforcing steel in concrete consistently fail first at these locations. Bridge maintenance personnel are seeking a low-level-of-effort processes and user friendly coatings/treatments for maintaining these problem areas.
The Kentucky Transportation Center (KTC) in cooperation with the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) selected an interstate bridge with a deck joint that had a badly deteriorated strip seal. Under the failed seal, significant corrosion of the structural steel and delamination of the concrete pier were observed. KTC researchers performed a low-level-of-effort surface preparation on the corroded steel surfaces and applied nine experimental protective coatings. The concrete surfaces on pier columns were pressure washed and eight experimental coatings/stains were applied. All coatings are being evaluated for user friendliness during application and follow-on performance.
