INVESTIGATION INTO THE EFFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON CONCRETE PROPERTIES

Abstract

The study examined the effects of climate change orchestrated by environmental degradation and global warming on the engineering properties of concrete. The climatic parameters considered in this work were temperature and rainfall. Rainwater samples were collected from three industrial areas and one non-industrial area in Ogun State and were analysed for acidity. Test cubes cast and cured under ambient temperature in the concrete laboratory of the Federal Polytechnic, Ilaro were subjected to varying conditions of temperature and immersed in rainwater samples for 1, 2 and 3 months. The effects of these climate indicators on compressive strength, shrinkage, thermal cracking, and aesthetics of concrete were studied. The result indicated that rainwater samples from industrial areas were more acidic having significant influence on the properties of concrete. It is therefore suggested that buried and water retaining structures should be accorded adequate protection against the negative impacts of climate change during conception and design.