The influence of cement type and admixture on life span of reinforced concrete utility poles subjected to the high salinity environment of Northeastern Brazil, studied by corrosion potential testing

Abstract

Reinforced concrete structures installed in coastal zones have constantly been threatened by environmental damaging elements. The chloride ion is known as one of the most aggressive of these elements, causing, among other damages, corrosion of the steel reinforcement and then degradation of the concrete matrix. The goal of this work was to determine the influence of cement type on the resistance and durability of reinforced concrete samples with 25 mm cover thickness, when submitted to aging in a 3.4% sodium chloride aqueous solution and in a high salinity marine environment. Reinforced concrete light poles were cast following the same batching procedures, and after the curing period, they were exposed to atmosphere in a corrosion station near Aracaju, Sergipe State, Northeastern Brazil's coast. Two concrete mixtures were made using CPII-F 32 (filler-modified Portland cement): a mix with no admixture and a mix with addition of 8% silica fume swapping fine aggregates. Another mixture was batched with CPV-ARI RS (high-early-strength Portland cement, with sulfur resistance). All the three mixtures were designed with cement content of about 350 kg/m³. The performance of the structures was evaluated from the results of physicochemical, mechanical and electrochemical testing, after over a year of natural aging. Corrosion potentials of the reinforced concrete samples and of the cast utility poles were measured in terms of the aging time at the natural environment and under chloride ion accelerated aging at laboratory. The half-cell potential measurements showed that the best results were obtained from the mixture containing CPII-F 32 cement and silica fume, followed by the concrete made with CPV-ARI RS cement. The mixture batched with CPII-F 32 cement without admixture presented the worst durability performance.