Electrochemical Corrosion and Electrical Resistivity of Reinforced Recycled Aggregate Concrete

It is planned to improve the durability of reinforced concrete structures and the total or partial replacement of their components by the use of recyclable materials; as strategies to contribute to the concrete industry sustainability. The electrical resistivity and its relationship with the microstructure and electrochemical corrosion resistance in reinforced concrete manufactured with sustainable characteristics, that is, with recycled aggregates and supplementary cementitious materials; was evaluated in this study. The electrical resistivity in reinforced concretes is closely related to the microstructure of the cementitious matrix, and with the pore structure and distribution. As a consequence of the their components nature, it is assumed that the proposed sustainable concretes present different microstructure and porosity than the conventional concretes; because of this, the electrical and electrochemical response of those systems was analyzed with the help of the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy technique.