Diffusion of a mixture of cations and anions dissolved in water

In service life modeling of concrete, the ion transport in the pore solution is crucial. The main deterioration phenomena associated with ions in the pore solution are (1) corrosion due to external chloride ions reaching the embedded reinforcement bars; (2) carbonation due to presence of dissolved carbon dioxide (which will form carbonic acid with water) supplied from the surrounding air. and (3) leaching of hydroxide ions from the pore solution to the surrounding environment. Models dealing with diffusion of ions are usually based on the mass balance equations for the individual diffusing ions together with constitutive relations for the mass density flows and for the mass exchange among the constituents. The important consequences of electroneutrality among the diffusing ions, however, is often omitted in models dealing with diffusion of ions in the pore solution of concrete. Here a method will be examined that allows diffusion of different ions in water, which satisfies both the electroneutrality requirement and the mass balance laws. For simplicity the effect of built-up electric double layers on the charged pore walls will not be treated. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.