Examples of reinforcement corrosion monitoring by embedded sensors in concrete structures

Abstract An increasing number of concrete structures are being monitored to enhance their durability. However, the literature provides only some guidance for the interpretation of the monitoring results [Broomfield JP. Corrosion of steel in concrete, understanding investigation and repair. 2nd ed. UK: Taylor & Francis; 2006; Andrade C, Alonso C. On-site measurements of corrosion rate of reinforcements. Constr Build Mater 2001;15(2–3):141–45; EN 206 2000. Concrete—Part 1: specification, performance, production and conformity]. Past experience shows the difficulty of interpreting the data collected due to the influence of temperature and moisture, and of using these data to predict future evolution of any deterioration processes. This paper presents several examples of recorded data for corrosion potential, electrical resistance and corrosion rates, along with a methodology to obtain a representative corrosion rate, averaged per year. The representative value can be used in corrosion predictive models to calculate the remaining service life.

[1]  Cruz Alonso,et al.  Corrosion rate evolution in concrete structures exposed to the atmosphere , 2002 .

[2]  C. Andrade,et al.  Quantitative measurements of corrosion rate of reinforcing steels embedded in concrete using polarization resistance measurements , 1978 .

[3]  M. Raupach,et al.  Investigations on the influence of oxygen on corrosion of steel in concrete—Part 2 , 1996 .

[4]  Cruz Alonso,et al.  Relative humidity in the interior of concrete exposed to natural and artificial weathering , 1999 .

[5]  Carmen Andrade,et al.  Recommendation of Rilem TC 154-EMC: “Electrochemical techniques for measuring corrosion in concrete”—measurements with embedded probes , 2007 .

[6]  Carolyn M. Hansson,et al.  Galvanostatic pulse technique with the current confinement guard ring: The laboratory and finite element analysis , 2008 .

[7]  Sebastián Feliu,et al.  Confinement of the Electrical Signal for in Situ Measurement of Polarization Resistance in Reinforced Concrete , 1990 .

[8]  J. Broomfield.  Corrosion of Steel in Concrete: Understanding, investigation and repair , 1996 .

[9]  Carmen Andrade,et al.  Multiple-electrode method for estimating the polarization resistance in large structures , 1996 .

[10]  J. A. Page,et al.  Corrosion rates of steel in concrete , 1986 .

[11]  Carmen Andrade,et al.  Influence of temperature on the service life of rebars , 1993 .

[12]  T. Liu,et al.  Modeling the Dynamic Corrosion Process in Chloride Contaminated Concrete Structures , 1998 .

[13]  Carmen Andrade,et al.  Errors in the electrochemical evaluation of very small corrosion rates—II. Other electrochemical techniques applied to corrosion of steel in concrete , 1985 .

[14]  Carmen Andrade,et al.  On-site measurements of corrosion rate of reinforcements , 2001 .

[15]  Marta Castellote,et al.  Some principles of service life calculation of reinforcements and in situ corrosion monitoring by sensors in the radioactive waste containers of El Cabril disposal (Spain) , 2006 .

[16]  Lars-Olof Nilsson.  Assessing moisture conditions in marine concrete structures , 1997 .

[17]  Steve Millard,et al.  RESISTIVITY ASSESSMENT OF IN-SITU CONCRETE: THE INFLUENCE OF CONDUCTIVE AND RESISTIVE SURFACE LAYERS , 1992 .