Amount of Chlorides in Corrosion Products of Weathering Steel

Abstract

Abstract The article focuses on the study of microclimate conditions under bridge structures and their influence on the characteristics of corrosion products developed on the surface of structures designed from weathering steels. The development of a protective corrosion product layer on weathering steel is influenced mainly by the time of wetness, structural solution of the bridge and concentration of corrosion stimulators in the atmosphere. The main corrosion stimulators in the air are sulfur dioxide and chlorides. Since the 1990s, concentrations of sulfur dioxide in Central Europe have significantly decreased. Currently, chlorides are the main corrosive stimulator, primarily from deicing salts used in winter road maintenance. The extent and scope of corrosion damage to a steel structure located in an environment with high chloride deposition is not uniform across all exposed surfaces. The submitted article therefore focuses on monitoring the dependence between the amount of chlorides deposited and the location and orientation of typical surfaces of steel bridge structures.