Chloride ingress in cracked concrete studied using laser induced breakdown spectroscopy

Cracks are always present in reinforced concrete structures. It is a goal of the current research to study the influence of mechanical cracks on chloride ingress. A compact reinforced concrete specimen was designed, mimicking the cracking behaviour of beam elements. Cracks of different widths were induced by means of mechanical loading. These cracked specimens were then subjected to 45 weekly cycles of wetting and drying with NaCl solution. After the exposure, the specimens were cut, and chloride profiles determined using Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS), an innovative technique which enables simultaneous determination of different elements with high spatial resolution and minimal specimen preparation. Combining different element distributions, it is possible to discriminate between coarse aggregate particles, and the mortar matrix.Structural EngineeringCivil Engineering and Geoscience