Development of solid state embeddable reference electrode for corrosion monitoring of steel in reinforced concrete structures

•Mn3O4 spinel materials were synthesized and characterized.•Using synthesized materials, solid state pellet electrode was fabricated.•Potential stability was studied in alkaline medium.•The fabricated electrode shows stable potential in alkaline medium.•The feasibility of steel rebar corrosion assessments was studied.

Corrosion of steel reinforcement concrete structures is monitored through the surface mounting techniques using liquid based reference electrodes. Due to the limited usage of liquid based reference electrodes solid state reference electrode are introduced recently. In the present study, we fabricated and characterized Mn3O4 based pellet electrode for corrosion assessment of steel rebar in high alkaline medium through electrochemical methods and the results are compared with conventional saturated calomel reference electrode (SCE). The results indicate that the fabricated pellet electrode exhibits better characteristics suitable for high alkaline concrete environment and differentiate the passive and active status of steel rebar.

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