Relating water permeability to electrical resistivity and chloride penetrability of concrete containing different supplementary cementitious materials

Abstract

Electrical test methods for predicting concrete penetrability have been widely accepted for use in assessing quality and durability of concrete; however, these methods are indirect and have not been related to concrete water permeability. This research compares three standardized electrical test methods, AASHTO T 358, AASHTO TP 119, and ASTM C1202, to hydraulic/water permeability. As no consensus standardized water permeability test method is available, a uniaxial, steady-flow permeameter test that has generally been used within the research community was employed for this research. The results demonstrate that the electrical test methods investigated for predicting concrete penetrability are not necessarily appropriate for concrete mixtures containing alternative supplementary cementitious materials. Materials with electrically conductive components in pore solution or bulk matrix perform poorly in electrical testing such as surface or bulk resistivity, or chloride ion penetrability testing, although water permeability indicates comparable performance to traditional supplementary cementitious materials.