Non Destructive Technique for Steel Corrosion Detection Using Heat Induction and IR Thermography

Steel corrosion in concrete is a main cause of deterioration and early failure of concrete structures. A novel integration of electromagnetic heat induction and infrared (IR) thermography is proposed for nondestructive detection of steel corrosion in concrete, by taking advantage of the difference in thermal characteristics of corroded and non-corroded steel. This paper focuses on experimental investigation of the concept. An inductive heater is developed to remotely heat the embedded steel from concrete surface, which is integrated with an IR camera. Concrete samples with different cover depths are prepared. Each sample is embedded with a single rebar in the middle, resulting an identical cover depth from the front and the back surfaces, which enable heat induction from one surface and IR imaging from the other simultaneously. The impressed current (IC) method is adopted to induce accelerated corrosion on the rebar. IR video images are recorded during the entire heating and cooling periods. The test results demonstrate a clear difference in thermal characteristics between corroded and non-corroded samples. The corroded sample shows higher rates of heating and cooling than those of the non-corroded sample. This study demonstrates a potential for nondestructive detection of rebar corrosion in concrete.