Additional Authors: Sheng Wang
Since cracking is inevitable in concrete structures, consequent leakage is often observed in both liquid‐containing and underground concrete structures. In the former case, the leakage is primarily due to sustained water load inside the tank which is often readily apparent on the outside walls for above ground tanks. In the latter case, leakage results from ground water infiltration into the building. In both cases, as a minimum, such leakage can cause both serviceability and long‐term durability concerns for these structures. In some cases, cracking may also result in serious issue of leakage of radioactive substances. Note that for both these cases, the current nuclear regulation and the industry standards do not specifically address the leak‐tightness of these structures.
The objective of this paper is to provide a proposal for design of leak‐tight nuclear safety related liquid‐containing and buried structures by meshing the appropriate provisions of design, leak‐tightness and durability of the ACI 350 Code for Concrete Liquid‐Containing Structures with those of the ACI 349 Code for Concrete Nuclear Structures.
To read the full paper, check out the link below.
Leak_Tightness_Design_Nuclear_Safety_Related_Liquid_Containing_Buried_Concrete_Structures.pdf