Coupled diffusion of chloride and other ions in saturated concrete

Corrosion of reinforcing steel due to chloride ions is one of the severe deterioration problems in longterm performance of reinforced concrete structures. The deterioration process is frequently found in marine concrete structures, highway pavements, and bridges exposed to deicing salts. The diffusion of chloride ions is associated and strongly affected by other ions in the pore solution in concrete. In this paper, chloride penetration into concrete structures was mathematically characterized by the Nernst-Planck equation which considered not only diffusion mechanism of the chloride ions but also ionic interaction among other ions coming from externally applied deicers and within the Portland cement paste. Electroneutrality was used to determine the electrostatic potential induced by the ionic interaction. The material models of chloride binding capacity and chloride diffusion coefficient were incorporated in the governing equations. The governing equations were solved by using finite element method. A numerical example was used to illustrate the coupling effect of multi-ionic interactions and the effect of influential parameters. The numerical results obtained from the present model agreed very well with available test data.