Abstract
Chloride ion transport behaviour has been reported to be significantly influenced by the use of supplementary cementing materials in concrete, both due to physical effects such as pore structure refinement and chemical effects including chloride binding. This paper provides experimental results on diffusion of chloride ions through concretes containing limestone calcined clay as a cement replacement material at ~50% replacement level, demonstrating the beneficial effects of high-volume replacement of cement with calcined clay. A numerical simulation framework that considers the pore structure of concrete, the concentration-dependence of diffusion coefficient, and Freundlich binding is also presented. The diffusion model is augmented with a scalar isotropic damage variable that accounts for random distribution of microcracks under fatigue loading (e.g., in a bridge deck). The modeling approach can be used to evaluate the influence of binder composition and damage on effective service life of chloride-exposed concrete structures, thereby aiding in binder selection.
Keywords
chloride transport, low-carbon cement, tortuosity, binding, modeling, damage parameter.
DOI
10.5703/1288284318108
Recommended Citation
Yang, Pu; Neithalath, Narayanan; Santhanam, Manu; and Dhandapani, Yuvaraj, "Chloride Transport in Low Clinker Content Concretes and Modeling" (2025). International Conference on Durability of Concrete Structures. 6.
https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/icdcs/2025/keynote/6
Chloride Transport in Low Clinker Content Concretes and Modeling
Chloride ion transport behaviour has been reported to be significantly influenced by the use of supplementary cementing materials in concrete, both due to physical effects such as pore structure refinement and chemical effects including chloride binding. This paper provides experimental results on diffusion of chloride ions through concretes containing limestone calcined clay as a cement replacement material at ~50% replacement level, demonstrating the beneficial effects of high-volume replacement of cement with calcined clay. A numerical simulation framework that considers the pore structure of concrete, the concentration-dependence of diffusion coefficient, and Freundlich binding is also presented. The diffusion model is augmented with a scalar isotropic damage variable that accounts for random distribution of microcracks under fatigue loading (e.g., in a bridge deck). The modeling approach can be used to evaluate the influence of binder composition and damage on effective service life of chloride-exposed concrete structures, thereby aiding in binder selection.
