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Title: Nondestructive detection and characterization of carbonation in concrete

Journal Article · · AIP Conference Proceedings
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4864904· OSTI ID:22263826
; ;  [1];  [2];  [3]
  1. Georgia Institute of Technology, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering (United States)
  2. Georgia Institute of Technology, GW Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering (United States)
  3. Georgia Institute of Technology, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Georgia Institute of Technology, GW Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering (United States)

Exposure of concrete to the environment leads to changes in composition, microstructure, and properties; these effects often start from the surface of a concrete structure. A specific, widespread environmental effect is carbonation, where carbon dioxide penetrates the surface of concrete and reacts with calcium hydroxide that is a product of Portland cement hydration in concrete. Carbonation is of interest not only because it can lead to the initiation of reinforcement corrosion, but also carbon is increasingly used during curing to alter the surface properties of cement-based materials as a method to 'sink' carbon in cement-based materials. Nonlinear Rayleigh surface wave measurements are performed on uncarbonated and carbonated concrete samples to assess any mechanical changes induced by carbonation,. In order to minimize the effects of contact conditions, the generated signals are detected by a noncontact air-coupled transducer (100 kHz) at locations along the propagation axis. The nonlinearity parameter, β is used to quantitatively characterize the degree of carbonation. To more accurately analyze the data, corrections are made for the effects of attenuation and diffraction. A comparison between the carbonated and uncarbonated samples demonstrates that pores and micro-cracks are affected by the carbonation product and these significantly change the measured nonlinearity parameter.

OSTI ID:
22263826
Journal Information:
AIP Conference Proceedings, Vol. 1581, Issue 1; Conference: 40. annual review of progress in quantitative nondestructive evaluation, Baltimore, MD (United States), 21-26 Jul 2013, 10. international conference on Barkhausen noise and micromagnetic testing, Baltimore, MD (United States), 21-26 Jul 2013; Other Information: (c) 2014 AIP Publishing LLC; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0094-243X
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English