Farmington Hills, Mich. (July 17, 2013) - The Concrete Research Council (CRC), a Council of the ACI Foundation, announces its recent funding of three concrete research projects.

The first project that has been approved this year to receive $10,000 from the CRC focuses on “Mitigation of Steel Reinforcement Corrosion via Bioactive Agents.”  The principal investigators are Dr. Aaron Sakulich, Worchester Polytechnic Institute, and Dr. Jessica Schiffman, University of Massachusetts Amherst.  Research will be conducted on the use of natural, renewable, bioactive agents that have been encapsulated within practical, low-cost, lightweight aggregates.  The work is supported by ACI 213, Lightweight Aggregate and Concrete.  The expected completion date is March 2014.

Dr. Tatjana Jevremovic of the University of Utah has also been chosen to receive $10,000 from the CRC for research on “Low Activation Concrete with Low Activation Reinforcing Bars.”  A large volume of concrete and reinforcing steel bars in the U.S. needs to be disposed as low-level radioactive waste after a lifespan of use in nuclear power plants, spent fuel storages, or radioactive waste disposal sites.  Designing concrete mixtures that will not reach the activation levels for radioactive waste will be researched by Dr. Jevremovic. The project is supported by ACI 349, Concrete Nuclear Structures. The expected completion date is July 2014.

The CRC also approved Dr. Charles Eastman, Georgia Institute of Technology, $10,000 for his research on “National BIM Standard for Cast in Place Concrete (Phase Two).”  The second phase of research to create a National BIM standard involves translation of exchange requirements into IFC-based code and instructions for translator implementation by software companies. The project is supported by ACI 131 Building Information Modeling of Concrete Structures. The expected completion date is June 2014. 

Previously funded research projects have also been completed and research reports are available on the CRC website:

“Development of Anchorage System for FRP Strengthening Applications using Integrated FRP Composite Anchors,” was completed by Sergio F. Breña and Geoffrey N. McGuirk of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Massachusetts Amherst.  Results were published in the International Journal of Concrete Structures and Materials.

“R&D Consortium on De-Icing Salt Scaling Resistance of Concrete Incorporating Supplementary Cementing Materials,” was completed by R. Douglas Hooton, University of Toronto, Marc Jolin, Laval University, and Alan Bilodeau and Benoit Fournier, International Centre for Sustainable Development of Cement and Concrete.

The Mission of the CRC is to advance the knowledge and sustainable aspects of concrete materials, construction, and structures by soliciting and selecting research proposals, assisting in financing them, guiding the research, and publishing the results, in coordination with ACI technical committees where possible.

The CRC places an emphasis on the research needs of ACI committees and accepts research proposals at any time.  Please visit the CRC website at ConcreteResearchCouncil.org for the current listing of ACI Committee research needs, copies of final research reports, and guidance on submitting research proposals.  

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For more information, contact:

Julie Webb
Marketing Communications Specialist
American Concrete Institute
248-848-3148
Julie.Webb@concrete.org

ACI Foundation—Located in Farmington Hills, Mich., the ACI Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and a wholly-owned subsidiary of the American Concrete Institute (ACI). The ACI Foundation is designed to receive, administer, and expend funds for educational, research, scientific, and charitable purposes to increase the knowledge and understanding of concrete materials and to support programs that improve concrete design and construction. The ACI Foundation consists of three councils: the Concrete Research Council, the Scholarship Council, and the Strategic Development Council. More information can be found at www.ACIFoundation.org.