Modeling Half-Cell Potentials and Their Relationship to Corrosion of Reinforcing Steel

Monitoring corrosion using modern sensing technologies is needed for civil engineers to effectively maintain deteriorated reinforced concrete (RC) structures. In this thesis, the half-cell potential (HCP) method is used to evaluate and quantify the corrosion potential in artificially corroded RC slabs. Weekly ponding and drying was applied to four lab RC slabs for fifty-two weeks to produce artificial corrosion. Seventy-two HCP data points were collected on Slabs 1 and 2; Seventy HCP data points were taken on Slabs 3 and 4. The measurements were used to model time and space-dependent behavior of HCP data. Concrete cover, corrosion rate, and distance from the locatio of HCP measurement to the voltmeter were considered. From the HCP data and its analysis, time-dependent HCP models were developed. It was found that concrete cover has a negative effect on the corrosion rate in RC slabs. HCP values decrease with distance from the voltmeter.