Accelerated Testing of Chloride Diffusivity in Cement Based Materials: New Test Operating Mode

Abstract

Penetration of aggressive ions, such as chlorides, through concrete is one of the factors which causes the depassivation of reinforcement and therefore may shorten the service life of a reinforced concrete structure. Most research work focusing on natural or accelerated diffusion tests generally relies on the validity of Fick's laws. In this paper, we present both a new accelerated diffusion cell and an original test operating mode. The theoretical approach is based upon the study of diffusion-migration mechanism within the pore solution. The experimental results presented here have been obtained with tests on samples of saturated mortar.