Corrosion behavior of concrete mixes with masonry chips as coarse aggregate

This study is primarily centered towards a quantitative evaluation of the corrosion behavior of commonly used masonry chip concrete mixes as an assessor of durability performance of infrastructures. In South Asian regions like Bangladesh, the construction domain is inclined towards using masonry chips as coarse aggregate owing to its low cost and profound availability. However, reinforced concrete structures with brick aggregate impart high susceptibility towards corrosion while putting long-term sustainability at stake. This phenomenon is further prominent in the coastal areas where high saline conditions are prevalent. Meanwhile, there is no significant study available to assess the corrosion behavior of commonly used masonry chips which is relatable to the degree of durability degradation. Hence, a comprehensive study has been designed to infer the corrosion characteristics of concrete mixes made with brick aggregate in saline environment by using an accelerated corrosion technique. Corrosion proneness of different concrete mixes with a variation in water-cement ratio and mix proportion was analyzed within the scope of this study. An overall comparison of the corrosion performance of brick aggregate was also made to the similar behavior of stone aggregate to have a comparative overview of the durability performance of the commonly used aggregates in concrete mixes. Furthermore, an insightful correlation has been obtained between the corrosion potential readings and weight loss of the embedded rebar which can be used as a quantitative basis to deduce the durability of a structure. Thereby, this project suffice as an initial study to provide a clear understanding on the corrosion performance of commonly used concrete mixes and as an aid for an early in-situ evaluation of the health of infrastructures.