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CORROSION POTENTIAL ASSESSMENT

Presented by: Charanjeet Verma


MCRM
15001515003

CONTENTS
1. INTRODUCTION
2. CORROSION PROCESS
3. TESTING OF CORROSION
4. CONCLUSION

INTRODUCTION
Corrosion of the rebars is the main cause of damage and early failure of
reinforced concrete structures with enormous costs for maintenance,
restoration and replacement worldwide. Maintenance and planning of the
restoration of these structures as well as quality control needs a rapid, nondestructive inspection technique that detects corrosion of the rebars at an
early stage, defines adequately which areas of structures require repair and
provide a measure of the corrosion rate.

Corrosion of steel in concrete structures is as an oxidation process, followed by


the breakdown of the passive film of the steel, due to then entry of chloride ions or
carbon dioxide. In the initial phase the corrosion crack doesnt happen directly on
the surface of the concrete structure, but only shows up when the corrosion
product reaches its threshold value. In addition, after the appearance of corrosion
cracks on the surface, the rate of corrosion increases significantly due to the
increased inflow of chloride ions or carbon dioxide through the cracks.

DEFINITION
ASCE defines corrosion as the chemical or electrochemical
reaction between a material, Usually a metal, and its
environment that produces a deterioration of the material and
its properties.
For steel embedded in concrete ,corrosion results in the
formation of rust which has two to four times the volume of the
original steel and none of the good mechanical properties.
Corrosion also produces pits or holes in surface of reinforcing
steel, reducing strength capacity as a result of the reduced
cross-sectional area.

THEORY OF CORROSION
Steel reinforcement bars are protected by alkaline environment (passivity)
provided by the pore fluid in hardened concrete.
Corrosion starts when passivation is broken down by : carbonation or ingress
of chlorides.
Corrosion is either localized or generalized form (generalized form is most
disruptive due to expansion of rusting steel.

CORROSION MECHANISM

FACTORS
The degree of depassivation of the steel;
The setting up of corrosion macro cells by differential absorption of oxygen &
chlorides in variable quality concrete;
The lowering of the resistivity of the concrete by water & chlorides down to 5000
ohm.cm or less;
The availability of oxygen to fuel the corrosion process.

CORROSION DAMAGE

Testing for Reinforcement Corrosion


Reinforcement corrosion may lead to structural weakening due to :
- loss of steel cross-section (bars or strands);
- cracking & spalling;
- internal delamination ( concrete fracture plane occurs at the level of the corroding
steel mesh).
To identify the risk of corrosion (not apparent at the surface);
To identify the extent of corrosion (partially observable at the surface);
To assess the integrity of a structure which may have experienced corrosion.

TESTING METHODS AS PER CPWD


1.Cover-Meter/Profo-meter

2.Half Cell Method

3.Resistivity Measurement

Non-destructive method for measuring


- thickness of cover concrete
reinforcement diameter
reinforcement spacing
Non-destructive method for measuring/ plotting
corrosion potential for assessing probability of corrosion
Non-destructive method for assessing electrical
resistivity of concrete

4.Permeability

Assessment of in-situ
permeability of concrete due to
water and air

5.Initial Surface

An indicator of surface permeability Absorption

COVER METER SURVEY


The necessity to provide adequate cover thickness to control
corrosion needs no emphasis. A cover thickness survey is
useful to determine existing cover thickness in a specified
location, where a damage has been identified and elsewhere,
for comparison on the same structure. The cover thickness
can be measured non-destructively using commercially
known cover meters. The cover meters are also used to
identify the location and diameter of rebar: COVERMASTER
and PROFOMETER are commercially available instruments,
which are used to measure the cover thickness and rebar
size. Table 1 shows how the cover reading are to be
interpreted for corrosion assessment.

Fig: Cover meter of Profometer

Sl.No.
1.

Test Results

Interpretations

Required cover thickness and good

Relatively not corrosion prone

quality concrete
2.

Required cover thickness and bad

Corrosion prone

quality cover concrete


3.

Very less cover thickness, yet good Quality cover


concrete

Corrosion prone

Half-Cell Potential

Corrosion being an electrochemical phenomenon, the electrode potential of steel wire


with reference to standard electrode undergoes changes depending on corrosion
activity.
A schematic survey on well-defined grid points gives useful information on the presence
or probability of corrosion activity. The same grid points are used for other
measurements, namely, rebound hammer and UPV could be used for making the data
more meaningful. The common standard electrodes used are:
i. Copper Copper sulphate electrode (CSE)
ii. Silver Silver chloride electrode (SSE)
iii. Standard Calomel electrode (SCE)

The measurement consists of giving an electrical connection to the rebar and observing
the voltage difference between the bar and a reference electrode in contact with
concrete surface. (Fig. 1. (a)) Generally the voltage potential becomes more and more
negative as the corrosion becomes more and more active. However less negative
potential values may also indicate the presence of corrosion activity, if the pH values are
less.

The general guidelines for identifying the probability of corrosion based on half-cell potential values
Half Cell Potential Reading Range

Probability of Corrosion being active


Cu-CuSO

Silver-Silver Chloride Electrode

Electrode
>95 percent

More negative than


350 mV

More negative
than 700 mV

50 percent

- 200 to - 350 mV

- 500 to - 700 mV

<5 percent

More positive than

More positive than

200 mV

500 mV

Resistivity Measurement
Resistivity Mapping

The electrical resistance of concrete plays an important role in determining the quality
of concrete from the point of view corrosion susceptibility potential at any specific
location. This parameter is expressed in terms of Resistivity in ohm-cm.
For general monitoring, a resistivity check is important because long-term corrosion
can be anticipated in concrete structures where accurately measured values are
below 10000 ohm-cm. further if resistivity values fall below 5000 ohm-cm, corrosion
must be anticipated at a much earlier period (possibly within 5 years) in the life of a
structure. Table 2 indicates the general guidelines of resistivity values based on which
areas having probable corrosion risk can be identified in concrete structures
Resistivity ohm cm.

Corrosion Probability

Greater than 20,000

Negligible Low

10,000 20,000

High

5,000- 10,000

Very High

Less than 5,000

Resistivity meter

Sl.No.
1.

2.
3.

4.

5.

Test Results
High resistivity greater than 10,000 ohm - cm
and low potentials more positive than
200 mV (CSE)
Low resistivity below 10,000 ohm cm and
potentials between 200 m V to -350 mV
(CSE)
Low resistivity about 5,000 ohm cm and
potential 200 mV to -350 mV (CSE)
Low resistivity below 5,000 ohm cm and
potential more negative than 350 mV (CSE)

Interpretations
No active corrosionrelatively cathodic

Higher potential gradient and high conductivity

High rate of corrosion

Initiation of corrosion
activity relatively
anodic
Presence of corrosion
activity anodic
High intensity of
corrosion fully
anodic

Corrosion Probability based on Resistivity and Potential Mapping

PREVENTION OF CORROSION

METHODS
1.Material selection
2.Improvements in material
3.Alteration of environment
4.Cathode and anodic protection
5. Coating

CONCLUSIONS
- MANY METHODS ARE AVAILABLE TO
PREVENT/MITIGATE CORROSION
- ONE OR A NUMBER OF METHODS MAY BE USED
SIMULTANEOUSLY FOR EFFECTIVE PROTECTION
- PROPER SELECTION OF METHODS IS ESSENTIAL FOR
OPTIMIZING COST

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