Analysis of chloride diffusivity in concrete containing red mud

Abstract

Red mud is a solid waste produced in the alumina production process and, due to its high pH, is classified as hazardous. Its incorporation in concrete mixtures, acting as due to the particles fineness, might be an interesting reuse alternative. The focus of this paper is to study the chloride diffusivity of concrete mixtures containing red-mud. The concentration of chlorides was monitored by measuring the conductivity of the anolyte, which was distilled water initially. In addition, the estimation of the chloride ions diffusion coefficients in steady and non-steady conditions, Ds and Dns, was obtained from the ''time-lag'' and ''equivalent time'' between diffusion and migration experiments. Due to superfine particle-size distribution and the filler effect, the red mud addition seems to assure lower chloride diffusivity.