 Durability of concrete

Durability of concrete is to withstand the processes of deterioration

to which concrete is expected to be exposed.

 For many conditions of exposure of concrete structures, both strength

Chapter 10 Durability of concrete
and durability have to be considered explicitly at the design stage.

Causes of inadequate durability:

 Transport of fluids in concrete
 Physical
 Carbonation External factors
 Chemical
 Acid attack Internal factors
 Mechanical
 Sulfate attack
 Deterioration of concrete is rarely due to one isolated cause.
 Permeability always enters the picture of durability.

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Transport of fluids in concrete

Three fluids relevant to durability:  If the porosity is high and the pores are interconnected, the permeability
 Water, pure or carrying aggressive ions, is high.
 Carbon dioxide
Influence of the presence of aggregate:
 Oxygen
 Longer and more tortuous path is formed
Permeability is referred to the ease with which fluids, both liquids
 Effective area for flow is reduced
and gases
gases, can enter into and move through the concrete
concrete.
Influence of the pore system: Flow, diffusion, and sorption
 Cement paste Permeability refers to flow under a pressure differential;
 ITZ Diffusion is the process in which a fluid moves under a differential in
 Pores in aggregate (usually discontinuous) concentration---diffusivity;
 Despite the higher porosity of the interface zone, the permeability of Sorption is the result of capillary movement in the pores in concrete
concrete is controlled by the bulk of the hardened cement paste, which is which are open to the ambient medium---capillary suction.
the only continuous phase in concrete.
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Coefficient of permeability

Flow in capillary pores in saturated concrete follows Darcy's law: Coefficient of permeability of concrete: K in m/s
dq 1 K'  g h K'  g
 K
dt A  L 

dq/dt = rate of flow of water inm3/s

The flow equation can thus be written as:
p in m2
A = cross-sectional area of the sample
 h = drop in hydraulic head through the sample, measured in m dq 1 h
K
L = thickness of the sample in m dt A L
 = dynamic viscosity of the fluid in N s/m2
 = density of the fluid in kg/m3
g = acceleration due to gravity

Intrinsic permeability: K' is the intrinsic permeability in m2, which is

independently of the fluid involved.

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 Diffusion Diffusion coefficient

Diffusion: When the transport of a gas or a vapour is the result of The diffusion can be expressed by Fick's first law as:
a concentration gradient, diffusion takes place. dc
J  D
dL
 Carbon dioxide---carbonation of hydrated cement paste
 Oxygen---corrosion of embedded steel dc/dL = concentration gradient in kg/m4 or moles/m4
D = diffusion coefficient in m2/s
 The
Th diff
diffusivity
i it coefficient
ffi i t off a gas iis iinversely
l proportional
ti l to
t the
th J = mass transport rate in k / 2 s (or
i kg/m l / 2 s))
( moles/m
square root of its molar mass. L = thickness of the sample in meters
 Oxygen diffuses, theoretically, 1.17 times faster than carbon dioxide.
 The diffusion through water is 4 orders of magnitude slower than
through air.
 The diffusion coefficient changes with age because the change of the
pore system.

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Water permeability of concrete

 The permeability of concrete is not a simple function of its porosity, but

depends also on the size, distribution, shape, tortuosity, and continuity of the
pores.
 Thus, although the cement gel has a porosity of 28 percent, its permeability
is only about 7 x 10-16 m/s.
 Water can flow more easily through the capillary pores than through the
much smaller gel pores
 The cement paste as a whole is 20 to 100 times more permeable than the gel
itself.
 The permeability of hardened cement paste is controlled by its capillary
porosity.

Relation between permeability and capillary porosity of cement paste

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Note:

 Testing concrete for permeability has not been generally standardized.

 The scatter of permeability test results made on similar concrete at the

same age, and using the same equipment, is large. Differences such as 6
times are not significant, so that reporting the order of magnitude, is
adequate.

Relation between permeability and water/cement ratio for mature cement

pastes (93 per cent of cement hydrated)

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 Air and vapour permeability

Relation between permeability and diffusivity  Since gases are compressible, the pressure difference between outlet
and inlet pressure should be taken into account in the gas permeability
 Test results show that diffusivity of
concrete to gas in m2/s is linearly related determination.
to the intrinsic permeability in m2 on a The intrinsic permeability coefficient K (m2) for gas is
log-log scale. 2qp0 L
K
A( p 2  pa2 )

 The relation can be exploited to A = cross-sectional area of the specimen in m2

establish the value of diffusivity from L = its thickness in m
tests on permeability, which are easier  = dynamic viscosity in N s/m2
to perform. q = volume flow rate in m3/s
p0 = the pressure at which the volume flow rate is measured
Relation between permeability p = the inlet pressure in N/m2 (absolute value)
and diffusivity for oxygen pa = the outlet pressure in N/m2 (absolute value)
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Gas slippage effect on intrinsic permeability Carbonation

 Theoretically, the intrinsic permeability coefficient of a given

concrete should be the same regardless of whether a gas or a liquid is Carbonation: Air contains CO2 which, in the presence of moisture,
used in the tests. forms carbonic acid and reacts with hydrated cement.

 However, gases yield a higher value of the coefficient because of the

 The rate of carbonation of concrete increases with an increase in the
phenomenon of gas slippage; this means that, at the flow boundary, the
concentration of CO2.
gas has a finite velocity.
 In
I th
the cementt paste,
t ththe one which
hi h reacts
t with
ith CO2 mostt readily
dil is
i
Ca(OH)2, the product of the reaction being CaCO3.
 When, however, Ca(OH)2 becomes depleted the carbonation of calcium
silicate hydrate, C-S-H, is also possible and forms more porous structures.

 The difference between gas permeability and liquid permeability is

larger at lower values of the intrinsic permeability coefficient.
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Effects of carbonation Rate of carbonation

 Carbonation shrinkage
(Carbonation per se does not cause deterioration of concrete )  Carbonation occurs at a decreasing rate form the surface of concrete to
the interior of concrete.
 Reduction in pH value
(from between 12.6 to 13.5 to the value of 8.3)  The diffusion of CO2 is slow if the pores in hydrated cement paste are
filled with water.

 The highest rate of carbonation occurs at a relative humidity of between

When the low pH front reaches the vicinity of the surface of the
50 and 70 per cent.
reinforcing steel, the protective oxide film is removed and corrosion
can take place.

 It is important to know the depth of carbonation and specifically whether

the carbonation front has reached the surface of the embedded steel.

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Under steady hygrometric conditions: the depth of carbonation D (mm)
increases in proportion to the square root of time.
(A) 20 oC and 65% relative humidity

D  Kt 0.5 (B) Outdoors, protected by a roof

K = carbonation coefficient in mm/year0.5 (C) Horizontal surface outdoors

t = time of exposure in years.
years
( K = 3 or 4 mm/year0.5 for low-strength concrete)

Exp.
w/c=0.60 15 years Progress of carbonation with
D=15 mm time of exposure under different
w/c=0.45 100 years conditions

 The expression is not applicable to the unsteady exposure conditions.

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Factors influencing carbonation

Temperature effect:

 Small variations in temperature have little effect on carbonation;

 A high temperature increases the rate of carbonation unless drying

overshadows the temperature effect.

Controlling factor of carbonation:

• Diffusivity of the hardened cement paste

(microstructure related)

Relation between the depth of carbonation and compressive strength of

concrete after 2 years' exposure in air at a relative humidity of 6%.
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Carbonation of concrete containing blended cements Measurement of carbonation

 The depth of carbonation is greater when the amount of Ca(OH)2  Chemical analysis,
present is lower.  X-ray diffraction,
 The denser structure of the hardened cement paste is beneficial in  Infra-red spectroscopy
reducing the rate of carbonation.  Thermo-gravimetric analysis

A common and simple method:

Fillers effect: Treating a freshly broken surface of
 Since they have no effect on the microstructure of the hardened concrete with a solution of phenolphthalein in
cement paste, they do not influence carbonation. diluted alcohol.

 The free Ca(OH)2 is coloured pink;

 The carbonated portion is uncoloured.

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 Further aspects of carbonation What is the mechanism of carbonation shrinkage?

Positive consequences:
The shrinkage is probably caused by:
 Since CaCO3 occupies a greater volume than Ca(OH)2, the porosity
 The dissolving of crystals of Ca(OH)2 while under a compressive
of carbonated concrete is reduced.
stress (such as imposed by the drying shrinkage),
 Water released by Ca(OH)2 on carbonation may aid the hydration
 and depositing of CaCO3 in spaces free from stress;
of unhydrated cement.
 The compressibility of the hydrated cement paste is thus
 They result in increased surface hardness and increased strength at
temporarily increased.
the surface.
 If carbonation proceeds to the stage of dehydration of C-S-H, this
Negative consequences:
also produces carbonation shrinkage.
 Carbonation shrinkage
 Reduction in pH value

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Acid attack on concrete

 Concrete containing Portland cement, being highly alkaline, is not  Concrete can be attacked by liquids with a pH value below 6.5,
resistant to attack by strong acids or compounds which may convert
to acids. Below 5.5 Severe attack

Chemical attack occurs by way of Below 4.5 Very severe attack

 Decomposition of the products of hydration

 Formation of new compounds:  Use of blended cements is beneficial in reducing the ingress of
aggressive substances.
 if soluble, may be leached out;
 if not soluble, may be disruptive.
Note:
 The most vulnerable is CH, and C-S-H can also be attacked.
 The attacking compounds must be in solution.

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Sulfate attack on concrete

 Solid salts do not attack concrete but, when present in solution, they Calcium sulfate
can react with hydrated cement paste.
Attacks only calcium aluminate hydrate:
Sodium sulfate
Forming 3CaO·Al2O3·3CaSO4·32H2O
Attacks CH:
Ca(OH)2 + Na2SO4·10H2O → CaSO4·2H2O + 2NaOH +8H2O ettringite

gypsum Magnesium sulfate

Attacks calcium silicate hydrates, Ca(OH)2, calcium aluminate hydrate

Attacks calcium aluminate hydrate:
2(3CaO·Al2O3·12H2O) + 3(Na2SO4·l0H2O) 3CaO·2SiO2·aq+3MgSO4·7H2O
→ 3CaO·Al2O3·3CaSO4·32H2O + 2Al(OH)3 + 6NaOH + 17H2O → 3CaSO4·2H2O+3Mg(OH)2+2SiO2·aq.+xH2O

ettringite gypsum

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 Summary

 Because of the very low solubility of Mg(OH)2, this reaction proceeds to

completion;  Transport of fluids in concrete
 So that, under certain conditions, the attack by magnesium sulfate is  Carbonation
more severe than by other sulfates;  Acid attack
 Sulfate attack
 The critical consequence
q of the attack by
y magnesium
g sulfate is the
destruction of C-S-H.

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