Chloride ingress in cracked concrete: A laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) study

Chloride ingress in cracked concrete: A laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) study

Savija, B.
Schlangen, E.
Pacheco Farias, J.
Millar, S.
Eichler, T.
Wilsch, G.

Civil Engineering and Geosciences

Structural Engineering

2014-10-25

racks are always present in reinforced concrete structures. In the presented research, influence of mechanical cracks on chloride ingress is studied. A compact reinforced concrete specimen was designed, mimicking the cracking behaviour of beam elements. Cracks of different widths were induced by means of mechanical loading. These cracked specimens were then subjected to weekly cycles of wetting and drying with NaCl solution. After the exposure, the specimens were cut, and chloride distributions were determined using Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS), an innovative technique which enables simultaneous determination of different elements with high spatial resolution and minimal specimen preparation. By combining element distributions of different elements, it is possible to discriminate between coarse aggregate particles, and the mortar matrix. It was found that the wider the crack is, the higher the ingress of chloride ions. This was, however, different for two tested concrete mixes. Due to highly inhomogeneous chloride distribution around the cracks, use of fine-scale experimental techniques for chloride mapping is advised, based on the presented study.

http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:50229eb7-361f-437f-aa92-c061ef8faca8

https://doi.org/10.3151/jact.12.425

Japan Concrete Institute

1346-8014

Journal of Advanced Concrete Technology, 12 (10), 2014

Institutional Repository

journal article

© 2014 Japan Concrete Institute