Spectral Induced Polarization Techniques in Soil Corrosivity Assessments

We presented a laboratory method for investigating the spectral induced polarization (SIP) response of soil samples and the implications for overall soil corrosivity. This study was important in order to advance the understanding of soil electrical properties, which can be used diagnostically to assess infrastructure integrity. Presently, isolated measurements of soil resistivity are the only (electrical) parameters that are routinely used to identify soil corrosivity. Our work showed that the low frequency soil spectral properties may lead to better soil corrosivity assessments when coupled effects from clay and salinity were present. In particular, unfolding and interpreting the soil spectral properties using the Cole-Cole model revealed that the normalized chargeability parameter mn was highly appropriate for identifying the character of potentially corrosive soils.