SEDL / STP / STP713-EB / STP27465S

Electrochemistry of Reinforcing Steel in Salt-Contaminated Concrete

Locke, CE
Associate professor and graduate student, University of Oklahoma, School of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Norman, Okla

Siman, A
Associate professor and graduate student, University of Oklahoma, School of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Norman, Okla

Pages: 14    Published: Jan 1980

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Abstract

Corrosion rates of reinforcing steel have been measured in concrete using the polarization resistance technique. The corrosion rates have been calculated for seven different sodium chloride content and two different surface conditions of steel in concrete. The results from partially coated reinforcing steel specimens indicate the existence of a critical sodium chloride concentration between 0.1 and 0.2 percent by weight of concrete at which the rate of corrosion increases significantly. Anodic and cathodic Tafel slopes have also been determined experimentally. The high values of Tafel slopes may be attributed in part to IR drop; however, more research is needed to clarify this matter.