The influence of defects at the steel/concrete interface for chloride-induced pitting corrosion of naturally-deteriorated 20-years-old specimens studied through X-ray Computed Tomography

Although reinforcement corrosion is a well-known issue, which are the locations of the steel/concrete interface most sensitive to pitting corrosion is still an unclear issue. In this study, X-ray computed tomography is used to characterize eight 20-years-old reinforced concrete cores naturally deteriorated due to chloride-induced corrosion. The deepest and most frequent corrosion pits were observed at the portion of the reinforcement oriented to the outdoor environment and in proximity to interfacial air voids. Therefore, the presence of interfacial air voids should be considered as a relevant factor when assessing the risk of corrosion of reinforced concrete structures. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.