Discussion of the evolution of the chloride migration coefficient of Portland cement concrete tested by the rapid chloride migration (RCM) test at long-term curing periods up to 5 years
Chloride-induced corrosion of reinforced concrete is one of the main deterioration mechanisms leading to shortening of the service life of concrete structures. Therefore, assessment of the resistance of concrete to chloride ingress plays an important role in predicting the service life of such structures. The Rapid Chloride Migration (RCM) test is one of the accelerated test methods commonly used in Europe. It is commonly assumed that for a properly cured Portland cement concrete without degradation, the chloride migration coefficient should decrease with increasing curing age due to on-going hydration and microstructure densification. However, recent experiments show that the rapid chloride migration coefficient of Portland cement concrete decreases at early curing age, but increases at later curing ages up to 5 years. In this paper, the evolution of the rapid chloride migration coefficient of Portland cement concrete during long-term curing periods up to 5 years is discussed. The test conditions for the RCM test and the test results obtained from RCM tests are described. Finally, possible causes for the increase in DRCM that occurred during late curing of the samples are investigated in order to explain this increase.
Ageing of portland cement concrete cured under moist conditions
Deterioration of microstructure in cement concrete will cause changes in the transport properties of the concrete. Transport properties at different ages of the concrete provide information about the microstructural changes of the material. A way to measure the transport properties, i.e. the chloride diffusion coefficient, in the laboratory is rapid chloride migration (RCM) Test. With this test, the resistance of concrete to chloride ingress is evaluated. Changing losing resistance represents deterioration and ageing of concrete. In this study, RCM tests were carried out for Portland cement concrete cured in moist conditions at various curing ages up to 3 years. Scanning electron microscopy/energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM/EDS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis were performed to identify the reaction product, like delayed ettringite. The experimental results show that the resistance of Portland cement concrete to chloride ingress decreases when ettringite is formed in concrete. Based on the result it is concluded that delayed ettringite formation contributes to the deterioration of Portland cement concrete, and should thus be considered as a relevant factor in the ageing process of concrete structures at moist curing condition.
Mechanical behaviour and durability of high volume fly ash cementitious composites
The purpose of this research is to separate different morphological particles of ASTM class F fly ash, and study their effect on mechanical behaviour and durability of high volume cementitious mixtures. In this research wet separation of raw fly ash is carried out, which resulted in three layers of different morphological particles. The first layer of particles float, comprise of about 1-5% of fly ash, is identified as cenospheres or hollow spheres. The second layer of particles is measured to be 55-60% of raw fly ash and consisting of porous spherical and rounded particles rich in Si and Al. The third layer particles is measured to be about 35-40% of raw fly ash. High volume fly ash cementitious composites containing second or third layer particles are tested under compression and bending, highlighting a higher strength and ductility in comparison to cementitious ones containing raw fly ash particles. KEYWORDS. Cementitious matrix; Raw fly ash; Second layer particles; Third layer particles.