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Introduction: Corrosion-induced deterioration of infrastructure is a growing global concern. The development and application of corrosion inhibitors are one of the most effective approaches to protect steel rebar from corrosion. Hence, this study focuses on a novel hydrazone derivative, (E)-N′-(4-(dimethylamino)benzylidene)-2-(5-methoxy-2-methyl-1H-indol-3-yl)aceto-hydrazide (HIND), and its potential application to mitigate corrosion in steel rebar exposed to chloride-contaminated concrete pore solutions (ClSCPS). Objectives: The research aims to evaluate the anti-corrosion capabilities of HIND on steel rebar within a simulated corrosive environment, focusing on the mechanisms of its inhibitory effect. Methods: The corrosion of steel rebar exposed to the ClSCPS was studied through weight loss and electrochemical methods. The surface morphology of steel rebar surface was characterized by FE-SEM-EDS, AFM; oxidation states of the steel rebar and crystal structures were examined using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) methods. Further, experimental findings were complemented by theoretical studies using self-consistent-charge density-functional tight-binding (SCC-DFTB) simulations. The performance of HIND was monitored at an optimal concentration over a period of 30 days. Results: The results indicated a significant reduction in steel rebar corrosion upon introducing HIND. The inhibitor molecules adhered to the steel surface, preventing further deterioration and achieving an inhibition efficiency of 88.4% at 0.5 mmol/L concentration. The surface morphology analysis confirmed the positive effect of HIND on the rebar surface, showing a decrease in the surface roughness of the steel rebar from 183.5 in uninhibited to 50 nm in inhibited solutions. Furthermore, SCC-DFTB simulations revealed the presence of coordination between iron atoms and HIND active sites. Conclusion: The findings demonstrate the potential of HIND as an effective anti-corrosion agent in chloride-contaminated environments. Its primary adsorption mechanism involves charge transfer from the inhibitor molecules to iron atoms. Therefore, applying HIND could be an effective strategy to address corrosion-related challenges in reinforced infrastructure.

Porous silicon nitride structures were fabricated for a humidity sensor. The porous silicon structures were fabricated by the metal-assisted chemical etching process, and the conformal silicon nitride thin film was deposited by the atomic layer deposition process. The optimized porous sensor with the 10 nm-thick silicon nitride thin film had a hydrophilic surface and compared to other sensors, had an excellent humidity sensing response. Especially, it showed a superior humidity sensing response at 1 kHz with fast response and recovery times of 13.3 s and 12.4 s, respectively, were observed. Based on the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy results, the equivalent circuits and humidity sensing mechanism were discussed. The chemical stability of the silicon nitride was characterized using Tafel analysis in alkaline electrolytes. Additionally, the sensor's humidity sensing capabilities were tested under cement-embedded conditions.

Copper's potential in various applications is constrained due to environmental degradation, particularly in high-salinity environments, representing a sustainability concern. Herein, two novel hydroquinazolinones, namely 1-((4-hydroxynaphthalen-1-yl)methyl)-2-phenyl-2,3-dihydroquinazolin-4(1H)-one (DQ-H) and 1-((4-hydroxynaphthalen-1-yl)methyl)-2-(p-tolyl)-2,3-dihydroquinazolin-4(1H)-one (DQ-CH3), were analyzed for their ability to inhibit copper corrosion in a 3.5 % NaCl solution. The compounds, characterized by 1H and 13C NMR, were evaluated via potentiodynamic polarization curves, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, and weight loss measurements. Comprehensive analyses utilizing scanning electron microscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared, and UV–vis spectroscopy have revealed insights into the surface morphology and the interactive nature of inhibitor molecules with the copper surface. Our findings highlight the formation of a strong, sustainable inhibitor film on the copper surface due to the addition of hydroquinazolinones, thereby exhibiting an enhanced polarization resistance and decreased double-layer capacitance. Both DQ-H and DQ-CH3 demonstrated a considerable inhibition effect, with efficiencies of 92 % and 94 % respectively, illustrating their potential for sustainable copper protection. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) results indicated a significant increase in polarization resistance from 605.7 (blank) to 9403 and 12861 Ω cm2, after the addition of DQ-H and DQ-CH3, respectively. Furthermore, the adsorption attributes of the compounds on the Cu(111) surface were examined using first-principles density functional theory simulation, revealing several covalent bonds formation. Our work aims to contribute to sustainability efforts in materials science by offering a corrosion-protective solution that is less harmful to the environment and more efficient in preserving copper's durability, particularly in saline environments.

ABSTRACT The casein kinase 2 (CK2) complex has garnered extensive attention over the past decades as a potential therapeutic target for diverse human diseases, including cancer, diabetes, and obesity, due to its pivotal roles in eukaryotic growth, differentiation, and metabolic homeostasis. While CK2 is also considered a promising antifungal target, its role in fungal pathogens remains unexplored. In this study, we investigated the functions and regulatory mechanisms of the CK2 complex in Cryptococcus neoformans, a major cause of fungal meningitis. The cryptococcal CK2 complex consists of a single catalytic subunit, Cka1, and two regulatory subunits, Ckb1 and Ckb2. Our findings show that Cka1 plays a primary role as a protein kinase, while Ckb1 and Ckb2 have major and minor regulatory functions, respectively, in growth, cell cycle control, morphogenesis, stress response, antifungal drug resistance, and virulence factor production. Interestingly, triple mutants lacking all three subunits (cka1Δ ckb1Δ ckb2Δ) exhibited more severe phenotypic defects than the cka1Δ mutant alone, suggesting that Ckb1/2 may have Cka1-independent functions. In a murine model of systemic cryptococcosis, cka1Δ and cka1Δ ckb1Δ ckb2Δ mutants showed severely reduced virulence. Transcriptomic, proteomic, and phosphoproteomic analyses further revealed that the CK2 complex controls a wide array of effector proteins involved in transcriptional regulation, cell cycle control, nutrient metabolisms, and stress responses. Most notably, CK2 disruption led to dysregulation of key signaling cascades central to C. neoformans pathogenicity, including the Hog1, Mpk1 MAPKs, cAMP/PKA, and calcium/calcineurin signaling pathways. In summary, our study provides novel insights into the multifaceted roles of the fungal CK2 complex and presents a compelling case for targeting it in the development of new antifungal drugs.IMPORTANCEThe casein kinase 2 (CK2) complex, crucial for eukaryotic growth, differentiation, and metabolic regulation, presents a promising therapeutic target for various human diseases, including cancer, diabetes, and obesity. Its potential as an antifungal target is further highlighted in this study, which explores CK2’s functions in C. neoformans, a key fungal meningitis pathogen. The CK2 complex in C. neoformans, comprising the Cka1 catalytic subunit and Ckb1/2 regulatory subunits, is integral to processes like growth, cell cycle, morphogenesis, stress response, drug resistance, and virulence. Our findings of CK2’s role in regulating critical signaling pathways, including Hog1, Mpk1 MAPKs, cAMP/PKA, and calcium/calcineurin, underscore its importance in C. neoformans pathogenicity. This study provides valuable insights into the fungal CK2 complex, reinforcing its potential as a target for novel antifungal drug development and pointing out a promising direction for creating new antifungal agents.

Aluminum alloy, specifically 2024, is extensively utilized in the automotive and aerospace industries due to its light weight and superior mechanical properties. This study explores the corrosion behavior and mechanical characteristics of this alloy following quenching and aging heat treatments. Accelerated corrosion tests involved immersing samples in a salt spray chamber with a 5% NaCl solution, maintained at a temperature of 40 °C with a neutral pH. The alloy's microstructure and corrosion behavior were examined before and after the corrosion test, which included a heat treatment at 495 °C and aging for five days. Multiple tests, such as Vickers microhardness, optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and tensile tests were performed. The surface characteristics, specifically the refined microstructure and residual stresses, were analyzed and their impact on localized corrosion was evaluated. The maximum strength value rose from 411 MPa to 512 MPa, and elongation increased correspondingly. Concerning corrosion sensitivity, a reduction was observed in the following order: AA2024-T3 (natural condition), AA2024-T3 (tempered condition), and AA2024-T3 (aged condition). The aged treatment appeared to enhance corrosion resistance, potentially due to the minimized size of corrosion products observed post-etching in various regions.

This study aims to reveal the potential of Light-transmitting concrete (LTC) in transmitting natural light or sunlight, and to investigate the relationship between fibre diameter, fibre spacing, solar incidence angle, surface area, and light transmittance properties. The artificial neural network model as well as explicit equations from the model were developed to predict the light transmittance of LTC. The surface area was altered by varying LTC block arrangements from one to six. It was found that light incidence angle significantly affected the light transmittance of LTC. The highest light transmittance of LTC was achieved near solar noon, but it decreased drastically as soon as the solar incidence angle exceeded the acceptance angle. The effect of the LTC surface area and solar incidence angle on light transmittance diminished with a smaller fibre diameter or larger fibre spacing. The ANN model and explicit equations developed from the network provide good accuracy in predicting light transmittance of LTC.

This study evaluates the corrosion inhibition capabilities of two novel hydrazone derivatives, (E)-2-(5-methoxy-2-methyl-1H-indol-3-yl)-N′-(4-methylbenzylidene)acetohydrazide (MeHDZ) and (E)-N′-benzylidene-2-(5-methoxy-2-methyl-1H-indol-3-yl)acetohydrazide (HHDZ), on carbon steel in a 15 wt.% HCl solution. A comprehensive suite of analytical techniques, including gravimetric analysis, potentiodynamic polarization (PDP), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), demonstrates their significant inhibition efficiency. At an optimal concentration of 5 × 10−3 mol/L, MeHDZ and HHDZ achieve remarkable inhibition efficiencies of 98% and 94%, respectively. EIS measurements reveal a dramatic reduction in effective double-layer capacitance (from 236.2 to 52.8 and 75.3 µF/cm2), strongly suggesting inhibitor adsorption on the steel surface. This effect is further corroborated by an increase in polarization resistance and a significant decrease in corrosion current density at optimal concentrations. Moreover, these inhibitors demonstrate sustained corrosion mitigation over extended exposure durations and maintain effectiveness even under elevated temperatures, highlighting their potential for diverse operational conditions. The adsorption process of these inhibitors aligns well with the Langmuir adsorption isotherm, implying physicochemical interactions at the carbon steel surface. Density functional tight-binding (DFTB) calculations and molecular dynamics simulations provide insights into the inhibitor-surface interaction mechanism, further elucidating the potential of these hydrazone derivatives as highly effective corrosion inhibitors in acidic environments.

ABSTRACT Blocking of nutrient uptake and amino acid biosynthesis are considered potential targets for next-generation antifungal drugs against pathogenic fungi, including Cryptococcus neoformans. In this regard, the sulfate assimilation pathway is particularly attractive, as it is only present in eukaryotes such as plants and fungi, yet not in mammals. Here, we demonstrated that the adenylyl sulfate kinase (Met14) in the sulfate assimilation pathway is not essential yet is required for the viability of C. neoformans due to its involvement in biosynthesis of two sulfur-containing amino acids, cysteine and methionine. Met14-dependent cysteine and methionine biosynthesis was found to significantly contribute to a diverse range of pathobiological processes in C. neoformans. Met14-dependent cysteine rather than methionine biosynthesis was also found to play pivotal roles in cell growth and tolerance to environmental stresses and antifungal drugs. In contrast, the Met14-dependent methionine biosynthesis was found to be more important than cysteine biosynthesis for the production of major cryptococcal virulence factors of melanin pigments and polysaccharide capsules. Finally, we also found that despite its attenuated virulence in an insect model, Galleria mellonella, the met14Δ mutant yielded no difference in virulence in a murine model of systemic cryptococcosis. Hence, clinical inhibition of Met14-dependent amino acid biosynthetic pathways may not be advantageous for the treatment of systemic cryptococcosis. IMPORTANCE Current antifungal drugs have several limitations, such as drug resistance, severe side effects, and a narrow spectrum. Therefore, novel antifungal targets are urgently needed. To this end, fungal sulfur amino acid biosynthetic pathways are considered potential targets for development of new antifungal agents. Here, we demonstrated that Met14 in the sulfate assimilation pathway promotes growth, stress response, and virulence factor production in C. neoformans via synthesis of sulfur-containing amino acids methionine and cysteine. Met14-dependent cysteine rather than methionine synthesis was found to be critical for growth and stress responses, whereas Met14-dependent methionine synthesis was more important for the production of antiphagocytic capsules and antioxidant melanin in C. neoformans. Surprisingly, deletion of the MET14 gene was found to attenuate cryptococcal virulence in an insect model, yet not in a murine model. Collectively, our results showed that Met14-dependent cysteine and methionine biosynthesis play roles that are distinct from each other in C. neoformans. Moreover, Met14 is unlikely to be a suitable anticryptococcal drug target.

Abstract The fabrication of freestanding bendable films without polymer substrates is demonstrated as a capacitive humidity-sensing material. The bendable and porous SiO2/Si films are simply prepared by electrochemical-assisted stripping, metal-assisted chemical etching, followed by oxidation procedures. The capacitive humidity-sensing properties of the fabricated porous SiO2/Si film are characterized as a function of the relative humidity and frequency. The remarkable sensing performance is demonstrated in the wide RH range from 13.8 to 79.0%. The sensing behavior of the porous SiO2/Si film is studied by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy analysis. Additionally, the reliability of the porous SiO2/Si sensing material is confirmed by cyclic and long-term sensing tests.

The corrosion of materials remains a critical challenge with significant economic and infrastructural impacts. A comprehensive understanding of adsorption characteristics of phytochemicals can facilitate the effective design of high-performing environmentally friendly inhibitors. This study conducted a computational exploration of hydroxytyrosol (HTR) and tyrosol (TRS) (potent phenolic compounds found in olive leaf extracts), focusing on their adsorption and reactivity on iron surfaces. Utilizing self-consistent-charge density-functional tight-binding (SCC-DFTB) simulations, molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, and quantum chemical calculations (QCCs), we investigated the molecules’ structural and electronic attributes and interactions with iron surfaces. The SCC-DFTB results highlighted that HTR and TRS coordinated with iron atoms when adsorbed individually, but only HTR maintained bonding when adsorbed alongside TRS. At their individual adsorption, HTR and TRS had interaction energies of −1.874 and −1.598 eV, which became more negative when put together (−1.976 eV). The MD simulations revealed parallel adsorption under aqueous and vacuum conditions, with HTR demonstrating higher adsorption energy. The analysis of quantum chemical parameters, including global and local reactivity descriptors, offered crucial insights into molecular reactivity, stability, and interaction-prone atomic sites. QCCs revealed that the fraction of transferred electron ∆N aligned with SCC-DFTB results, while other parameters of purely isolated molecules failed to predict the same. These findings pave the way for potential advancements in anticorrosion strategies leveraging phenolic compounds.

Abstract Lauric acid (LA) has been recommended as economic, eco-friendly, and commercially viable materials to be used as phase change materials (PCMs). Nevertheless, there is lack of optimized parameters to produce microencapsulated PCMs with good performance. In this study, different amounts of LA have been chosen as core materials while tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) as the precursor solution to form silicon dioxide (SiO2) shell. The pH of precursor solution was kept at 2.5 for all composition of microencapsulated LA. The synthesized microencapsulated LA/SiO2 has been characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-Ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and Transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The SEM and TEM confirm the microencapsulation of LA with SiO2. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) revealed better thermal stability of microencapsulated LA/SiO2 compared to pure LA. PCM with 50% LA i.e. LAPC-6 exhibited the highest encapsulation efficiency (96.50%) and encapsulation ratio (96.15%) through Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) as well as good thermal reliability even after 30th cycle of heating and cooling process.

The inhibition of mild steel deterioration via organic substances has become popular nowadays. Among the myriads of organic substances applied as potential inhibitors, quinoxalines stand out as toxic-free, cheap and effective compounds in different electrolytes. This report investigates the computational aspects of selected quinoxaline compounds tested as suppressors of mild steel deterioration in HCl medium using quantum chemical method (Density Functional Theory, DFT) and quantitative structure property relationship (QSPR). Feature selection tool was utilized to choose five top molecular descriptors (constitutional indices) that were used to characterize the quinoxaline molecules. Linear (ordinary least squares regression) and nonlinear (artificial neural network) modelling were adopted to correlate the selected constitutional indices of the studied quinoxalines with their experimental inhibition performances. The nonlinear model showed better performance as shown by the obtained results; RMSE of 5.4160, MSE of 29.3336, MAD of 2.3816 and MAPE of 5.0389. The developed models were utilized to determine the inhibition performances of ten new quinoxaline-based corrosion inhibitors which showed excellent inhibition performances of 87.88 to 95.73%.

Natural-based corrosion inhibitors have gained great research interest thanks to their low cost and higher performance. The Cupressus arizonica fruit essential oil (CAFEO) has a higher extraction yield than leaves; however, it has less antibacterial and antifungal activities. The three main components in the CAFEO were α-pinene (51.07%), myrcene (17.92%), and limonene (9.66%). Essential oils with a higher percentage of α-pinene were found to have outstanding corrosion inhibition properties. Therefore, herein, the CAFEO was investigated as a green corrosion inhibitor for carbon steel (CS) in 1.0 mol/L HCl using electrochemical, i.e., potentiodynamic polarization (PDP) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and scanning electron microscope (SEM) techniques. The experimental results revealed that CAFEO successfully inhibited the carbon steel corrosion in 1.0 mol/L HCl solution. Results from PDP indicated that the inhibitor had a mixed-type effect with a predominance cathodic character. EIS data showed that the charge transfer resistance of the CS electrode increased from 20.9 Ω cm2 in blank solution to 294.5 Ω cm2 in HCl solution inhibited with 0.5 g/L of CAFEO at 298 K, leading to a significant decrease in the double layer capacitance values and an inhibition efficiency (η%) of 93%. The high temperatures showed a negative effect on the corrosion inhibition efficiency of the tested inhibitor. At 323 K, the η% of CAFEO decreased to 77%. Besides, SEM images showed that the inhibitor formed a protective barrier against acid attack, preventing carbon steel from corrosion. Theoretical calculations by Density Functional Theory (DFT) were performed to investigate the reactivity of the three main components of CAFEO.

Abstract Calcined hwangtoh is a pozzolanic material that is increasingly being used as a mineral admixture in the concrete industry. This study shows a hydration model for cement–hwangtoh blends and evaluates the various properties of hwangtoh-blended concrete using reaction degrees of binders. First, a kinetic reaction model is proposed for analyzing the pozzolanic reaction of hwangtoh. The reaction of hwangtoh includes three processes: the initial dormant period, boundary reaction process, and diffusion process. The mutual interactions between the binary reactions of cement and hwangtoh are thought to be in line with the items in capillary water and calcium hydroxide. Second, the reaction degrees of cement and hwangtoh are determined based on a blended hydration model. Furthermore, the chemical (chemically combined water and calcium hydroxide contents), mechanical (compressive strength), thermal (hydration heat), and durability aspects (carbonation depth) of hwangtoh-blended concrete are systematically predicted. The results show good agreement with experimental results.

In this work, two compounds of isonicotinohydrazide organic class, namely (E)-N′-(1-(4-(dimethylamino)phenyl)ethylidene) isonicotinohydrazide (MAPEI) and (Z)-N′-(2-oxo-2, 3-dihydro-1H-inden-1-ylidene) isonicotinohydrazide (OHEI) were synthesized and evaluated for corrosion protection of N80 steel in a concentrated acidic medium (15 wt.% HCl) at a temperature of 303 K. The weight loss method (gravimetric method) and electrochemical techniques, i.e., electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and potentiodynamic polarization curves (PPC), were used to evaluate the inhibition and adsorption characteristics of tested compounds. Further, surface characterization using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) was used to assess the surface morphology of steel before and after inhibition. Weight loss experiments at 303 K and 363 K showed that tested compounds’ performance decreased with the increase in temperature, particularly at low concentrations of inhibitors whereas they exhibited good stability at higher concentrations. Electrochemical tests showed that MAPEI and OHEI inhibitors were effective at 5 × 10−3 mol/L, reaching an inhibition efficiency above 90%. It was also determined that the adsorption of both inhibitors followed the Langmuir adsorption isotherm model. Furthermore, SEM analysis showed that the investigated compounds can form a protective layer against steel corrosion in an acidic environment. On the other hand, the corrosion inhibition mechanism was established from density functional theory (DFT), and the self-consistent-charge density-functional tight-binding (SCC-DFTB) method which revealed that both inhibitors exerted physicochemical interactions by charge transfer between the s- and p-orbitals of tested molecules and the d-orbital of iron. The results of this work are intended to deepen the research on the products of this family to control the problem of corrosion.

The development of corrosion inhibitors with outstanding performance is a never-ending and complex process engaged in by researchers, engineers and practitioners. The computational assessment of organic corrosion inhibitors’ performance is a crucial step towards the design of new task-specific materials. Herein, the electronic features, adsorption characteristics and bonding mechanisms of two pyridine oximes, namely 2-pyridylaldoxime (2POH) and 3-pyridylaldoxime (3POH), with the iron surface were investigated using molecular dynamics (MD), and self-consistent-charge density-functional tight-binding (SCC-DFTB) simulations. SCC-DFTB simulations revealed that the 3POH molecule can form covalent bonds with iron atoms in its neutral and protonated states, while the 2POH molecule can only bond with iron through its protonated form, resulting in interaction energies of −2.534, −2.007, −1.897, and −0.007 eV for 3POH, 3POH+, 2POH+, and 2POH, respectively. Projected density of states (PDOSs) analysis of pyridines–Fe(110) interactions indicated that pyridine molecules were chemically adsorbed on the iron surface. Quantum chemical calculations (QCCs) revealed that the energy gap and Hard and Soft Acids and Bases (HSAB) principles were efficient in predicting the bonding trend of the molecules investigated with an iron surface. 3POH had the lowest energy gap of 1.706 eV, followed by 3POH+ (2.806 eV), 2POH+ (3.121 eV), and 2POH (3.431 eV). In the presence of a simulated solution, MD simulation showed that the neutral and protonated forms of molecules exhibited a parallel adsorption mode on an iron surface. The excellent adsorption properties and corrosion inhibition performance of 3POH may be attributed to its low stability compared to 2POH molecules.

Exterior finishes protect reinforced concrete buildings against environmental factors, improve their durability, and enhance their exterior design. In this study, the influence of different metal types used in arc thermal metal spraying on the adhesion between concrete and metal coatings was analyzed. Five metals with different melting points were tested, and the differences between their melting points and surface temperatures immediately after thermal spraying were measured. The bonding strength of each metal was evaluated. Additionally, the interface between the concrete surface and metal coating was analyzed using image analysis and optical microscopy. The results demonstrated that Zn achieved the highest bonding strength (1.84 MPa), which had the lowest melting point and surface temperature immediately after spraying, while Cu/Sn achieved the lowest strength (1.38 MPa), which had the highest temperatures. The bonding strength had a closer relationship (R2 = 0.9946) with the difference between the melting point and surface temperature immediately after spraying than that (R2 = 0.9589) with the surface temperature immediately after spraying. The bonding strength increased as the ratio of the non-interfacial failure area to the total area increased, ensuring a stronger attachment to the concrete surface. Overall, the results showed that the bonding strength was significantly affected by the metal type.

The surface treatment of concrete enhances the bonding of its metal coatings. Therefore, in the present study, on the concrete surface, prior to the deposit of an 85Zn-15Al coating via an arc thermal spraying process, different surface treatments were considered for the effective electromagnetic pulse (EMP) shielding properties of the concrete. However, the direct coating on a concrete surface possesses lower bond adhesion, therefore it is of the utmost importance to treat the concrete surface prior to the deposition of the metal coating. Moreover, to obtain better bond adhesion and fill the defects of the coating, the concrete surface is treated by applying a surface hardener (SH), as well as a surface roughening agent (SRA) and a sealing agent (SA), respectively. The metal spraying efficiency, adhesion performance, and bonding strength under different concrete surface treatment conditions were evaluated. The EMP shielding effect was evaluated under the optimal surface treatment condition. The proposed method for EMP shielding exhibited over 60% of spraying efficiency on the treated surface and a bonding strength of up to 3.9 MPa for the SH–SRA–SA (combining surface roughening and pores/defects filling agents) specimen compared to the control one, i.e., 0.8 MPa. The EMP shielding values of the surface-treated concrete with surface hardener, surface roughening agent, and sealing agent, i.e., SH–SRA–SA specimens, exhibited 96.6 dB at 1000 MHz. This was about 12 times higher than without coated concrete.

Natural-based corrosion inhibitors have gained great research interest thanks to their low cost and higher performance. In this work, the chemical composition of the methanolic extract of Ammi visnaga umbels (AVU) was evaluated by gas chromatography (GC) coupled with mass spectrometry (MS) and applied for corrosion inhibition of carbon steel (CS) in 1.0 mol/L HCl using chemical and electrochemical techniques along with scanning electron microscope (SEM) and theoretical calculations. A total of 46 compounds were identified, representing 89.89% of the overall chemical composition of AVU extract, including Edulisin III (72.88%), Binapacryl (4.32%), Khellin (1.97%), and Visnagin (1.65%). Chemical (Weight loss) and electrochemical (potentiodynamic polarization curves (PPC), and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS)) techniques revealed that investigated extract can be used as an effective corrosion inhibitor for carbon steel in 1.0 mol/L HCl solution. At a low dose of 700 ppm, the inhibitory action of AVU extract reached an inhibition efficiency of 84 percent. According to polarization tests, the investigated extract worked as a mixed inhibitor, protecting cathodic and anodic corrosion reactions. The EIS test showed that upon the addition of AVU extract to HCl solution, the polarization resistance increased while the double layer decreased. SEM images showed a protected CS surface in the inhibited solution. Quantum chemical calculations by Density Functional Theory (DFT) for the main components confirmed the major role of heteroatoms and aromatic rings as adsorption sites. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulation was used to study the adsorption configuration of the main components on the Fe(110) surface. Outcomes from this study further confirmed the significant advantage of using plant-based corrosion inhibitors for protecting metals and alloys.

Reinforced concrete is among the most multifaceted materials used in the construction field. Maintaining the resistance of reinforced concrete to weathering, abrasion, and chemical attack, particularly in aggressive natural conditions such as seawater environments, is challenging. The main factor in the degradation of reinforced-concrete durability is chloride penetration, which accelerates iron alloy corrosion and facilitates structural degradation. In this study, calcium-iron-based layered double hydroxides (CaFe-LDHs) were fabricated at room temperature, followed by structural modulation, and their effectiveness in mitigating iron alloy corrosion due to chloride ions (in 3.5 wt% of NaCl) was investigated. The synthesized CaFe-LDHs with phase transfer notably improved the Cl− removal capacity (Qmax) to 881.83 mg/g, which is more than three times that reported based on previous studies. The novelty of this research lies in the sophisticated structural and phase transformations of the as-synthesized CaFe-LDHs, determination of crucial factors for chloride ion removal, and suggestion of calcium-iron-based layered double oxide (CaFe-LDO)-based chloride ion removal mechanisms considering chemical and ion-exchange reactions. Moreover, when the phase-transformed LDHs, C-700 LDOs, were applied to inhibit iron alloy corrosion, a noticeable inhibition efficiency of 98.87% was obtained, which was an 11-fold improvement compared to the case of iron alloys without LDOs. We believe this work can provide new insights into the design of CaFe-LDOs for the enhancement of the lifespan of reinforced concrete structures.

Bentonite and marconite are the low resistance moisture retaining conductive backfill materials used in earthing applications. Both the products contains some drawbacks: bentonite has limited moisture retaining capacity and marconite has 15–20% impurities which will corrode the earth connections resulting in the loss of the system which are found to be very expensive. Taking into consideration of the above drawbacks, the present study aimed at developing a cost effective and highly conductive backfill material for earthing application with improved performance. For this study, commercially available bentonite and metakaolin (binary) clay was activated through physical, chemical and thermal treatments and the corrosion performance of binary clay was evaluated by using mild steel (MS) and galvanized (GI) steel Among the three activation methods, chemical activation method was found beneficial for mild steel in binary clay media. The conductivity of the chemically activated clay was 204.7 mS/cm, pH was 12.58, and the particle size distribution was found to be 40–50 µm indicates the better corrosion resistance and quite suitable for earthing applications. Chemical activation of the clay mainly involves the breaking of bonds and dissolution of the three-dimensional network structure of glass which in turn cause Na+ ions move closer to the center point of crystal structure and the solubility of SiO2 in clay markedly increases. Potential-time studies showed that galvanizing loses its coating property within ten days in all the three type of clays used. Activation process significantly reduced the corrosion rate (44 and 74 times) in the case of thermally activated (TAC) and chemically activated clay (CAC) respectively. Earth excavation studies were conducted to monitor the corrosion of MS and GI using embedded MnO2 sensor. This investigation opens up a lot of scope for utilizing activated binary clay for all earthing applications. Keywords: Bentonite, Metakaolin, Activated clay, Corrosion studies, Mild steel, Galvanized iron

Using a concrete surface, the ingress of aggressive ions and the initiation of the corrosion reaction of an embedded steel rebar were studied. To reduce the corrosion reaction of the embedded steel rebar, either a coating on the steel rebar or a repair material was used on the concrete surface. Therefore, in the present study, 200 µm thick Cu, Ti, and 85Zn-15Al were used as repair materials, and their coatings were deposited on the concrete surface using a twin-wire arc thermal spray process. Different experiments such as bond adhesion, water permeability, immersion in a 5 wt.% NaCl solution, and accelerated carbonation were performed to assess the durability of the coatings, and the characterization of the coatings was performed by using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The Cu and 85Zn-15Al coatings exhibited severe defects and porosity; therefore, these coatings exhibited very low bond adhesion, whereas the Ti coating showed a dense and compact morphology, and its bond adhesion value was 11 times greater than that of the Cu coating. The NaCl immersion results can be used to determine the extent of the deterioration of different coatings in coastal areas; based on these results, the Cu coating exhibited delamination, while 85Zn-15Al showed white rust deposition. By contrast, there was no detrimental effect of NaCl immersion on the Ti coating during the 28 days under study, and the coating exhibited characteristics identical to those observed after deposition. The Ti coating reduced the carbonation depth by 1.5–2 times that of the Cu and 85Zn-15Al coatings after four and eight weeks of exposure. The present study suggests that Ti can be the potential metal used as a repair material for concrete to enhance the durability of buildings and infrastructure.

Abstract High-volume slag (HVS) can reduce the CO2 emissions of concrete, but increase the carbonation depth of concrete. In particular, because of the effects of climate change, carbonation will accelerate. However, the uptake of CO2 as a result of carbonation can mitigate the harm of CO2 emissions. This study proposes an optimal mixture design method of low-CO2 HVS concrete considering climate change, carbonation, and CO2 uptake. Firstly, net CO2 emissions are calculated by subtracting the CO2 emitted by the material from the uptake of CO2 by carbonation. The strength and depth of carbonation are evaluated by a comprehensive model based on hydration. Secondly, a genetic algorithm (GA) is used to find the optimal mixture. The objective function of the GA is net CO2 emissions. The constraints of the GA include the strength, carbonation, workability, and range of concrete components. Thirdly, the results show that carbonation durability is a control factor of the mixture design of low-strength HVS concrete, while strength is a control factor of the mixture design of high-strength HVS concrete. After considering climate change, the threshold of strength control increases. With the increase of strength, the net CO2 emissions increase, while the CO2 uptake ratio decreases.

Zinc (Zn) coating is being used to protect steel structures from corrosion. There are different processes to deposit the coating onto a steel substrate. Therefore, in the present study, a 100 µm thick Zn coating was deposited by arc and plasma arc thermal spray coating processes, and the corrosion resistance performance was evaluated in artificial seawater. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) results showed that the arc thermal spray coating exhibited splats and inflight particles, whereas plasma arc spraying showed a uniform and dense morphology. When the exposure periods were extended up to 23 d, the corrosion resistance of the arc as well as the plasma arc thermal spray coating increased considerably. This is attributed to the blocking characteristics of the defects by the stable hydrozincite (Zn5(OH)6(CO3)2).

Structural health monitoring (SHM) can be more efficient with the application of a wireless sensor network (WSN). However, the hardware that makes up this system should have sufficient performance to sample the data collected from the sensor in real-time situations. High-performance hardware can be used for this purpose, but is not suitable in this application because of its relatively high power consumption, high cost, large size, and so on. In this paper, an optimal remote monitoring system platform for SHM is proposed based on pulsed eddy current (PEC) that is utilized for measuring the corrosion of a steel-framed construction. A circuit to delay the PEC response based on the resistance–inductance–capacitance (RLC) combination was designed for data sampling to utilize the conventional hardware of WSN for SHM, and this approach was verified by simulations and experiments. Especially, the importance of configuring sensing modules and the WSN for remote monitoring were studied, and the PEC responses caused by the corrosion of a specimen made with steel were able to be sampled remotely using the proposed system. Therefore, we present a remote SHM system platform for diagnosing the corrosion condition of a building with a steel structure, and proving its viability with experiments.

Copper is the third-most-produced metal globally due to its exceptional mechanical and thermal properties, among others. However, it suffers serious dissolution issues when exposed to corrosive mediums. Herein, two thiazolidinedione derivatives, namely, (Z)-5-(4-methylbenzylidene)thiazolidine-2,4-dione (MTZD) and (Z)-3-allyl-5-(4-methylbenzylidene)thiazolidine-2,4-dione (ATZD), were synthesized and applied for corrosion protection of copper in 3.5 wt.% NaCl medium. The corrosion inhibition performance of tested compounds was evaluated at different experimental conditions using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), potentiodynamic polarization curves (PPC) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). EIS results revealed that the addition of studied inhibitors limited the dissolution of copper in NaCl solution, leading to a high polarization resistance compared with the blank solution. In addition, PPC suggested that tested compounds had a mixed-type effect, decreasing anodic and cathodic corrosion reactions. Moreover, surface characterization by AFM indicated a significant decrease in surface roughness of copper after the addition of inhibitors. Outcomes from the present study suggest that ATZD (IE% = 96%) outperforms MTZD (IE% = 90%) slightly, due to the presence of additional –C3H5 unit (–CH2–CH = CH2) in the molecular scaffold of MTZD.

High fluidity concrete exhibits an excellent self-compacting property. However, the application of typical high-fluidity concrete is limited in the normal strength range (18~35 MPa) due to the large amount of binder. Therefore, it is important to solve these problems by adding a viscosity modifying agent (VMA) with a superplasticizer (PCE), which helps to improve the fluidity of the concrete. In addition, the rheology and stability of the concrete with VMA can be improved by preventing bleeding and segregation issues. Current studies focused on the physical phenomena of concrete such as the fluidity, rheological properties, and compressive strength of normal-strength, high-fluidity concrete (NSHFC) with different types of a polycarboxylate-based superplasticizer (NPCE). The obtained results suggested that the combinations of all-in-one polycarboxylate-based superplasticizers (NPCE) did not cause any cohesion or sedimentation even stored for a long time. The combination of three types of VMA showed the best fluidity (initial slump flow of 595~630 mm) without any segregation and bleeding, and the compressive strength at 28 days was also found to be the highest: 34–37 MPa. From these results, the combination of PCE (2.0%) + HPMC (0.3%) + WG (0.1%) + ST (0.1%) showed an 18% higher plastic viscosity and -4.4% lower yield stress than Plain.

Supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) and chemical additives (CA) are incorporated to modify the properties of concrete. In this paper, SCMs such as fly ash (FA), ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS), silica fume (SF), rice husk ash (RHA), sugarcane bagasse ash (SBA), and tire-derived fuel ash (TDFA) admixed concretes are reviewed. FA (25–30%), GGBS (50–55%), RHA (15–20%), and SBA (15%) are safely used to replace Portland cement. FA requires activation, while GGBS has undergone in situ activation, with other alkalis present in it. The reactive silica in RHA and SBA readily reacts with free Ca(OH)2 in cement matrix, which produces the secondary C-S-H gel and gives strength to the concrete. SF addition involves both physical contribution and chemical action in concrete. TDFA contains 25–30% SiO2 and 30–35% CaO, and is considered a suitable secondary pozzolanic material. In this review, special emphasis is given to the various chemical additives and their role in protecting rebar from corrosion. Specialized concrete for novel applications, namely self-curing, self-healing, superhydrophobic, electromagnetic (EM) wave shielding and self-temperature adjusting concretes, are also discussed.

An attempt has been made on a constructive approach to evaluate the performance of snail shell ash (SSA) for its corrosion performance under marine environments. Corrosion performance of steel rebar in chloride-contaminated SSA with (0% to 50%) replacement levels of cement extract medium was examined through electrochemical and weight loss techniques. Initially, snail shell powder (SSP) is made by pulverizing and subsequently SSA is by thermal decomposition methods. Both SSP and SSA were characterized by X-ray diffraction, Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and energy dispersion X-ray spectroscopy. Concrete cubes with 0% to 50% replacement levels of cement by SSA were evaluated for their mechanical properties. A critical level of 20 to 30% SSA improved both corrosion resistance and strength of concrete. Extrapolation modeling for the strength and corrosion rate with respect to later age were made. SSA is a suitable replacement material for natural limestone in cement productions.

In the present study, 0.115 M L-arginine (LA) has been used as an eco-friendly inhibitor in simulated concrete pore solutions (SP-0) in order to form passive films on a steel rebar–solution interface until 144 h. Hence, 0.51 (SP-1) and 0.85 M NaCl (SP-2) were added in LA containing SP-0 solution to breakdown the passive film and to initiate corrosion reactions. The electrochemical results show that the charge transfer resistance (Rct) of steel rebar exposed to SP-1 and SP-2 solutions increased with respect to immersion periods. The sample exposed to the SP-2 solution initiated the corrosion reaction at the steel rebar–solution interface after 24 h of NaCl addition and formed pits; on the other hand, the sample without NaCl added, i.e., SP-0, showed agglomeration and dense morphology of corrosion products.

We designed the flexible chloride ion selective sensor that directly monitors electrochemical reactions of chloride ions without using a reference electrode. A flexible polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) substrate was utilized to provide bendability to the fabricated sensor. As an ion selective material, Ag nanoparticles were employed on the MWCNTs loaded on the PTFE substrate. Enhanced adsorption property of the fabricated sensor toward the chloride ions was given by incorporation of hydrophilic copper benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxylate (Cu-BTC) with great flexibility and stability. Accordingly, compared to the bare sensor the sensing performance of the Cu-BTC treated Ag NPs/AgCl electrode sensor was improved by indicating the decrease in response and recovery time about 4 times. It elucidated that the Cu-BTC layer could work as an effective medium between the Ag-NPs surface and electrolyte containing chloride ions. As a result of contact angle measurement, the hydrophilicity much increased in the Cu-BTC treated sensor because the exposed surface of the sensor not treated by the Cu-BTC largely consisted of hydrophobic MWCNTs. Furthermore, the Cu-BTC layer could hold the electrolyte for effective adsorption of analytes with large specific surface area.

The draft genome sequence of the halophilic bacterium Halobacillus mangrovi KTB 131, isolated from Topan salt of the Jeon-nam in Korea, was established. The genome comprises 4,151,649 bp, with a G + C content of 41.6%. The strain displays a high number of genes responsible for secondary metabolite biosynthesis, transport, and catabolism compared to other Halobacillus bacterial genus members. Numerous genes responsible for various transport systems, solute accumulation, and aromatic/sulfur decomposition were detected. The first genomic analysis encourages further research on comparative genomics and potential biotechnological applications. The whole draft genome sequence of Halobacillus mangrovi KTB 131 is now available (Bioproject PRJNA380285).

This study focuses on the effects of superabsorbent polymers (SAP) and belite-rich Portland cement (BPC) on the compressive strength, autogenous shrinkage (AS), and micro- and macroscopic performance of sustainable, ultra-high-performance paste (SUHPP). Several experimental studies were conducted, including compressive strength, AS, isothermal calorimetry, X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), attenuated total reflectance (ATR)–Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), ultra-sonic pulse velocity (UPV), and electrical resistivity. The following conclusions can be made based on the experimental results: (1) a small amount of SAP has a strength promotion effect during the first 3 days, while BPC can significantly improve the strength over the following 28 days. (2) SAP slows down the internal relative humidity reduction and effectively reduces the development of AS. BPC specimens show a lower AS than other specimens. The AS shows a linear relationship with the internal relative humidity. (3) Specimens with SAP possess higher cumulative hydration heat than control specimens. The slow hydration rate in the BPC effectively reduces the exothermic heat. (4) With the increase in SAP, the calcium hydroxide (CH) and combined water content increases, and SAP thus improves the effect on cement hydration. The contents of CH and combined water in BPC specimens are lower than those in the ordinary Portland cement (OPC) specimen. (5) All samples display rapid hydration of the cement in the first 3 days, with a high rate of UPV development. Strength is an exponential function of UPVs. (6) The electrical resistivity is reduced due to the increase in porosity caused by the release of water from SAP. From 3 to 28 days, BPC specimens show a greater increment in electrical resistivity than other specimens.

This study clarifies the effects of pre-soaked zeolite sand as an internal curing material on the hydration, strength, autogenous shrinkage, and durability of alkali-activated slag (AAS) mortars. The liquid-to-binder ratio (L/b) of all of the AAS mortars was 0.55. Sodium hydroxide solution was used as an alkali activator and an internal curing liquid. Calcined zeolite and natural zeolite sand replaced the standard sand at 15% and 30%, respectively. The setting time, autogenous shrinkage, compressive strength, ultrasonic pulse velocity, and surface electrical resistivity were tested. The following conclusions were drawn: (1) The addition of zeolite significantly reduces the autogenous shrinkage of AAS mortar. Compared with the control group, 30% calcined zeolite reduced the autogenous shrinkage by 96.4%. Moreover, the autogenous shrinkage of the AAS mortars was noticed in two stages (a variable temperature stage and an ambient temperature stage), and the two stages split at one day of age. (2) The compressive strength of all of the specimens increased as the zeolite sand content increased, and the highest compressive strength was obtained for AAS combined with 30% natural zeolite sand. (3) Internal curing accelerated the formation of the second peak of heat flow and reduced the accumulated heat release. (4) Calcined zeolite sand delayed the setting time of the AAS mortars. (5) The addition of zeolite significantly reduced the surface electrical resistivity of the AAS mortars. In summary, zeolite sand is extremely useful as an internal curing agent to reduce autogenous shrinkage and to increase the compressive strength of AAS mortars.

Advancement in electronic and communication technologies bring us up to date, but it causes electromagnetic interference (EMI) resulting in failure of building and infrastructure, hospital, military base, nuclear plant, and sensitive electronics. Therefore, it is of the utmost importance to prevent the failure of structures and electronic components from EMI using conducting coating. In the present study, Cu, Cu-Zn, and Cu-Ni coating was deposited in different thicknesses and their morphology, composition, conductivity, and EMI shielding effectiveness are assessed. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) results show that 100 µm coating possesses severe defects and porosity but once the thickness is increased to 500 µm, the porosity and electrical conductivity is gradually decreased and increased, respectively. Cu-Zn coating exhibited lowest in porosity, dense, and compact morphology. As the thickness of coating is increased, the EMI shielding effectiveness is increased. Moreover, 100 µm Cu-Zn coating shows 80 dB EMI shielding effectiveness at 1 GHz but Cu and Cu-Ni are found to be 68 and 12 dB, respectively. EMI shielding effectiveness results reveal that 100 µm Cu-Zn coating satisfy the minimum requirement for EMI shielding while Cu and Cu-Ni required higher thickness.

The electromagnetic pulse (EMP) is a destructive phenomenon which harms the building, telecommunication, and IT based infrastructure. Thus, it is required to reduce the effect of EMP using shielding materials. In the present study, we have used different thickness of concrete walls by incorporating 1 and 5 wt% of carbon black, as well as 100 µm thick Zn−Al coating using the arc thermal metal spraying method (ATMSM). The EMP was evaluated using waveguide measurement fixture for shielding performance of the concrete wall in the range of 0.85 to 1 GHz frequency. The results reveal that the maximum value, i.e., 41.60 dB is shown by the 5-300-N specimen before application of Zn−Al coating where the thickness of concrete wall was 300 mm and 5% carbon black. However, once the 100 µm thick Zn−Al coating was applied on concrete specimen, this value was increased up to 89.75 dB. The increase in shielding values around 48 dB after using the Zn−Al coating is attributed to the reflection loss of the metal thermal spray coating. Thus, the Zn−Al coating can be used for EMP application instead of metallic plate.

Ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) conventionally has been incorporated with ordinary Portland cement (OPC) owing to reduce the environmental load and enhance the engineering performance. Concrete with GGBFS shows different strength development of normal concrete, but sensitive, to exterior condition. Thus, a precise strength evaluation technique based on a quantitative model like full maturity model is required. Many studies have been performed on strength development of the concrete using equivalent age which is based on the apparent activation energy. In this process, it considers the effect of time and temperature simultaneously. However, the previous models on the apparent activation energy of concrete with mineral admixtures have limitation, and they have not considered the effect of temperature on strength development. In this paper, the apparent activation energy with GGBFS replacement ratio was calculated through several experiments and used to predict the compressive strength of GGBFS concrete. Concrete and mortar specimens with 0.6 water/binder ratio, and 0 to 60% GGBFS replacement were prepared. The apparent activation energy (Ea) was experimentally derived considering three different curing temperatures. Thermodynamic reactivity of GGBFS mixed concrete at different curing temperature was applied to evaluate the compressive strength model, and the experimental results were in good agreement with the model. The results show that when GGBFS replacement ratio was increased, there was a delay in compressive strength.

The draft genome sequence of Halorubrum sp. SAH-A6, isolated from commercial rock salts of the Danakil depression, Ethiopia. The genome comprised 3,325,770 bp, with the G + C content of 68.0%. The strain has many genes which are responsible for secondary metabolites biosynthesis, transport and catabolism as compared to other Halorubrum archaea members. Abundant genes responsible for numerous transport systems, solute accumulation, and aromatic/sulfur decomposition were detected. The first genomic analysis encourages further research on comparative genomics, and biotechnological applications. The NCBI accession number for this genome is SAMN04278861 and ID: 4278861 and strain deposited with accession number KCTC 43215.

Prestressed concrete beams of size 150 × 150 × 1000 mm were designed, and two bonded cold-drawn 7 mm steel wires were stressed at 70% UTS under service conditions before concreting. The beams were cast with M40 grade concrete mix with various percentages of chlorides ranging from 0, 1, 2, and 3% by weight of cement and cured for 28 days. After 28 days, the stretching forces were released, the prestressing steel wire was allowed to regain its original length, the tensile stresses were transformed into a compressive stress in the concrete, and the stress corrosion behavior was assessed. Stress corrosion cracking (SCC) is due to the simultaneous action of stress, corrosive media, and material properties. The stress corrosion behavior of ungrouted pretensioned steel was assessed by using various electrochemical techniques such as electrochemical noise, open-circuit potential measurement, AC impedance, and potentiodynamic polarization measurements. The same experiments were conducted for rebars embedded in the concrete beam with various percentages of chlorides ranging from 0, 1, 2, and 3% by weight of chloride. After 30 days of exposure, the beams were tested for their flexural strength measurements to find out the load-bearing capacity.

Shear performance of plain UHPC (ultrahigh-performance concrete) construction joints is studied in both experimental and analytical ways. In push-off tests, three different contact surfaces of the construction joint were considered, while the case without any joint was provided for the reference. Test results indicate that the geometry of contact surfaces greatly affects shear performance of the construction joint. With simplifying structural behavior of contact surfaces and UHPC substrate, the finite-element analysis model is developed for every case studied by utilizing the ABAQUS software and validated against the test results. Agreement between experimental and numerical simulation results is excellent especially in terms of displacement, strength, and failure mechanism. It is expected that the present work provides a basis for further study on reinforced UHPC construction joints.

This study investigates the effects of micropalm oil fuel ash (mPOFA) on compressive strength and pore structure of cement mortar. Various experimental techniques, such as compression test, isothermal calorimetry, mercury intrusion porosimetry, and X-ray diffraction, are performed to figure out the effect of using mPOFA as partial replacement of cement on the hydration of cement and determine its optimal replacement level to increase mechanical property of the mortar specimens. 10 wt.% of cement replacement with mPOFA is found to give the highest level of compressive strength, achieving a 23% increase over the control specimens after 3 days of curing. High K2O contents in mPOFA stimulate C3S in cement to form C-S-H at early ages, and high surface area of mPOFA acts as a nucleus to develop C-S-H. Also, small mPOFA particles and C-S-H formed by pozzolanic reaction fill the pores and lead to reduction in large capillary pores. In XRD analysis, a decrease in Ca(OH)2 and SiO2 contents with age confirmed a high pozzolanic reactivity of mPOFA.

The corrosion characteristics of 304 stainless steel (SS) and titanium (Ti) coatings deposited by the arc thermal spray process in pH 4 solution were assessed. The Ti-sprayed coating exhibits uniform, less porous, and adherent coating morphology compared to the SS-sprayed coating. The electrochemical study, that is, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), revealed that as exposure periods to solution were increased, the polarization resistance (Rp) decreased and the charge transfer resistance (Rct) increased owing to corrosion of the metallic surface and simultaneously at the same time the deposition of oxide films/corrosion on the SS-sprayed surface, while Ti coating transformed unstable oxides into the stable phase. Potentiodynamic studies confirmed that both sprayed coatings exhibited passive tendency attributed due to the deposition of corrosion products on SS samples, whereas the Ti-sprayed sample formed passive oxide films. The Ti coating reduced the corrosion rate by more than six times compared to the SS coating after 312 h of exposure to sulfuric acid- (H2SO4-) contaminated water solution, that is, pH 4. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) results confirmed the uniform and globular morphology of the passive film on the Ti coating resulting in reduced corrosion. On the other hand, the corrosion products formed on SS-sprayed coating exhibit micropores with a net-like microstructure. X-ray diffraction (XRD) revealed the presence of the composite oxide film on Ti-sprayed samples and lepidocrocite (γ-FeOOH) on the SS-coated surface. The transformation of TiO and Ti3O into TiO2 (rutile and anatase) and Ti3O5 after 312 h of exposure to H2SO4 acid reveals the improved corrosion resistance properties of Ti-sprayed coating.

Ground granulated blast furnace slag is widely used as a mineral admixture to replace partial Portland cement in the concrete industry. As the amount of slag increases, the late-age compressive strength of concrete mixtures increases. However, after an optimum point, any further increase in slag does not improve the late-age compressive strength. This optimum replacement ratio of slag is a crucial factor for its efficient use in the concrete industry. This paper proposes a numerical procedure to analyze the optimum usage of slag for the compressive strength of concrete. This numerical procedure starts with a blended hydration model that simulates cement hydration, slag reaction, and interactions between cement hydration and slag reaction. The amount of calcium silicate hydrate (CSH) is calculated considering the contributions from cement hydration and slag reaction. Then, by using the CSH contents, the compressive strength of the slag-blended concrete is evaluated. Finally, based on the parameter analysis of the compressive strength development of concrete with different slag inclusions, the optimum usage of slag in concrete mixtures is determined to be approximately 40% of the total binder content. The proposed model is verified through experimental results of the compressive strength of slag-blended concrete with different water-to-binder ratios and different slag inclusions.

In this study, the ability of lithium nitrite and amino alcohol inhibitors to provide corrosion protection to reinforcing steel was investigated. Two types of specimens—reinforcing steel and a reinforced concrete prism that were exposed to chloride ion levels resembling the chloride attack environment—were prepared. An autoclave accelerated corrosion test was then conducted. The variables tested included the chloride-ion concentration and molar ratios of anti-corrosion ingredients in a CaOH2-saturated aqueous solution that simulated a cement-pore solution. A concentration of 25% was used for the lithium nitrite inhibitor LiNO2, and an 80% solution of dimethyl ethanolamine ((CH3)2NCH2CH2OH, hereinafter DMEA) was used for the amino alcohol inhibitor. The test results indicated that the lithium nitrite inhibitor displayed anti-corrosion properties at a molar ratio of inhibitor of ≥0.6; the amino alcohol inhibitor also displayed anti-corrosion properties at molar ratios of inhibitor greater than approximately 0.3.

The arc thermal metal spraying method (ATMSM) provides proven long-term protective coating systems using zinc, aluminum and their alloys for steel work in a marine environment. This paper focuses on studying experimentally the anti-corrosion criteria of ATMSM on steel specimens. The effects of the types of spraying metal and the presence or absence of sealing treatment from the thermal spraying of film on the anti-corrosion performance of TMSM were quantitatively evaluated by electrochemical techniques. The results showed that ATMSM represented a sufficient corrosion resistance with the driving force based on the potential difference of more than approximately 0.60 V between the thermal spraying layer and the base substrate steel. Furthermore, it was found that the sealing treatment of specimens had suppressed the dissolution of metals, increased the corrosion potential, decreased the corrosion current density and increased the polarization resistance. Metal alloy Al–Mg (95%:5%) by mass with epoxy sealing coating led to the most successful anti-corrosion performance in these electrochemical experiments.

Salting is one of the oldest food preservation techniques. However, salt is also the source of living halophilic microorganisms that may affect human health. In order to determine the microbial communities of commercial salts, an investigation were done using amplicon sequencing approach in four commercial salts: Ethiopian Afdera salt (EAS), Ethiopian rock salt (ERS), Korean Jangpan salt (KJS), and Korean Topan salt (KTS). Using domain-specific primers, a region of the 16S rRNA gene was amplified and sequenced using a Roche 454 instrument. The results indicated that these microbial communities contained 48.22–61.4% Bacteria, 37.72–51.26% Archaea, 0.51–0.86% Eukarya, and 0.005–0.009% unclassified reads. Among bacteria, the communities in these salts were dominated by the phyla Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria, and Firmicutes. Of the archaea, 91.58% belonged to the class Halobacteria, whereas the remaining 7.58, 0.83, and 0.01% were Nanoarchaea, Methanobacteria, and Thermococci, respectively. This comparison of microbial diversity in salts from two countries showed the presence of many archaeal and bacterial genera that occurred in salt samples from one country but not the other. The bacterial genera Enterobacter and Halovibrio were found only in Korean and Ethiopian salts, respectively. This study indicated the occurrence and diversity of halophilic bacteria and archaea in commercial salts that could be important in the gastrointestinal tract after ingestion.

The chloride diffusion coefficient is considered to be a key factor for evaluating the service life of ground-granulated blast-furnace slag (GGBS) blended concrete. The chloride diffusion coefficient relates to both the concrete mixing proportions and curing ages. Due to the continuous hydration of the binders, the capillary porosity of the concrete decreases and the chloride diffusion coefficient also decreases over time. To date, the dependence of chloride diffusivity on the binder hydration and curing ages of slag-blended concrete has not been considered in detail. To fill this gap, this study presents a numerical procedure to predict time-dependent chloride diffusion coefficients for slag-blended concrete. First, by using a blended cement hydration model, the degree of the binder reaction for hardening concrete can be calculated. The effects of the water to binder ratios and slag replacement ratios on the degree of the binder reaction are considered. Second, by using the degree of the binder reaction, the capillary porosity of the binder paste at different curing ages can be determined. Third, by using the capillary porosity and aggregate volume, the chloride diffusion coefficients of concrete can be calculated. The proposed numerical procedure has been verified using the experimental results of concrete with different water to binder ratios, slag replacement ratios, and curing ages.

The effect of calcium nitrite (Ca(NO2)2) was assessed by electrochemical means such as open circuit potential (OCP), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and potentiodynamic studies in saturated Ca(OH)2 solution contaminated with 0.99 and 7.91 g/L NaCl. The preliminary results of OCP showed that the potential is shifted towards positive (noble) side as content of inhibitor increased. The EIS results indicate that Ca(NO2)2 works effectively in reduction and initiation of corrosion of steel rebar in NaCl contaminated Ca(OH)2 solution. Potentiodynamic studies revealed the pitting tendency of steel rebar exposed in 0.99 g/L NaCl at [Cl−/NO2-] = 1.2 attributed to low conductivity of passive film which causes interference for Cl− ions attack during anodic polarization. The 85.75% efficiency is found in 0.99 g/L at [Cl−/NO2-] = 1.2. The Ca(NO2)2 inhibitor transformed the unstable iron oxides/hydroxides into stable and protective oxides/hydroxides due to its strong oxidizing nature. Therefore, this inhibitor is sufficiently and significantly reducing the corrosion of steel rebar at even its low concentration with 0.99 and 7.91 g/L NaCl solution.

Structural lightweight concrete (SLWC) has superior properties that allow the optimization of super tall structure systems for the process of design. Because of the limited supply of lightweight aggregates in Korea, the development of structural lightweight concrete without lightweight aggregates is needed. The physical and mechanical properties of specimens that were cast using normal coarse aggregates and different mixing ratios of foaming agent to evaluate the possibility of creating structural lightweight concrete were investigated. The results show that the density of SLWC decreases as the dosage of foaming agent increases up to a dosage of 0.6%, as observed by SEM. It was also observed that the foaming agent induced well separated pores, and that the size of the pores ranged from 50 to 100 μm. Based on the porosity of concrete specimens with foaming agent, compressive strength values of structural lightweight foam concrete (SLWFC) were obtained. It was also found that the estimated values from proposed equations for compressive strength and modulus of elasticity of SLWFC, and values obtained by actual measurements were in good agreement. Thus, this study confirms that new structural lightweight concrete using normal coarse aggregates and foaming agent can be developed successfully.