Experimental study on the effectiveness of Electrochemical Chloride Extraction (ECE) for reinforced concrete

Chloride-induced corrosion is a widespread damage phenomenon in reinforced concrete structures that leads to a substantial reduction in their service life. Fortunately, different repair techniques are available, including electrochemical techniques, such as cathodic protection (CP) and electrochemic...

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Main Authors: De Brabandere Justine, Wybo Manon, Van Belleghem Bjorn, Godefroidt Emile, Soetens Tim
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: EDP Sciences 2025-01-01
Series:MATEC Web of Conferences
Online Access:https://www.matec-conferences.org/articles/matecconf/pdf/2025/03/matecconf_cs2025_02003.pdf
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author De Brabandere Justine
Wybo Manon
Van Belleghem Bjorn
Godefroidt Emile
Soetens Tim
author_facet De Brabandere Justine
Wybo Manon
Van Belleghem Bjorn
Godefroidt Emile
Soetens Tim
author_sort De Brabandere Justine
collection DOAJ
description Chloride-induced corrosion is a widespread damage phenomenon in reinforced concrete structures that leads to a substantial reduction in their service life. Fortunately, different repair techniques are available, including electrochemical techniques, such as cathodic protection (CP) and electrochemical chloride extraction (ECE). While CP has proven to be an effective method to stop reinforcement corrosion, ECE, where an electrical field is used to force chloride ions out of concrete, is less seen in practice. In this research, the influence of different parameters on the effectiveness of ECE is investigated. The results of this research show that for concrete samples containing around 0.75 m% Cl- ~cement mixed-in chlorides the removal rate ranged from 50-60% in the concrete cover to 20-30% around the reinforcement and behind it, irrespective of different influencing factors. However, when a higher initial chloride concentration, namely 2.68 m% Cl- ~cement was present within the concrete, the removal rate was 1.4 times higher. Besides, when an ingressed chloride profile was created with approximately 0.75 m% Cl- ~cement at the level of reinforcement, the removal rate was between 1.7 and 2.8 times higher. Lastly, it must be noted that an examination of the corrosion potential indicated that all samples had a low probability of reinforcement corrosion after ECE-treatment, showing that ECE successfully removed enough chlorides to reduce the risk for active corrosion.
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issn 2261-236X
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spelling doaj-art-61b124bca09049128039c5ea9f43e1bf2025-08-20T02:35:29ZengEDP SciencesMATEC Web of Conferences2261-236X2025-01-014090200310.1051/matecconf/202540902003matecconf_cs2025_02003Experimental study on the effectiveness of Electrochemical Chloride Extraction (ECE) for reinforced concreteDe Brabandere Justine0Wybo Manon1Van Belleghem Bjorn2Godefroidt Emile3Soetens Tim4SANACON bv, Ghent University spin-offMagnel-Vandepitte Laboratory for Structural Engineering and Building Materials, Ghent UniversitySANACON bv, Ghent University spin-offSANACON bv, Ghent University spin-offSANACON bv, Ghent University spin-offChloride-induced corrosion is a widespread damage phenomenon in reinforced concrete structures that leads to a substantial reduction in their service life. Fortunately, different repair techniques are available, including electrochemical techniques, such as cathodic protection (CP) and electrochemical chloride extraction (ECE). While CP has proven to be an effective method to stop reinforcement corrosion, ECE, where an electrical field is used to force chloride ions out of concrete, is less seen in practice. In this research, the influence of different parameters on the effectiveness of ECE is investigated. The results of this research show that for concrete samples containing around 0.75 m% Cl- ~cement mixed-in chlorides the removal rate ranged from 50-60% in the concrete cover to 20-30% around the reinforcement and behind it, irrespective of different influencing factors. However, when a higher initial chloride concentration, namely 2.68 m% Cl- ~cement was present within the concrete, the removal rate was 1.4 times higher. Besides, when an ingressed chloride profile was created with approximately 0.75 m% Cl- ~cement at the level of reinforcement, the removal rate was between 1.7 and 2.8 times higher. Lastly, it must be noted that an examination of the corrosion potential indicated that all samples had a low probability of reinforcement corrosion after ECE-treatment, showing that ECE successfully removed enough chlorides to reduce the risk for active corrosion.https://www.matec-conferences.org/articles/matecconf/pdf/2025/03/matecconf_cs2025_02003.pdf
spellingShingle De Brabandere Justine
Wybo Manon
Van Belleghem Bjorn
Godefroidt Emile
Soetens Tim
Experimental study on the effectiveness of Electrochemical Chloride Extraction (ECE) for reinforced concrete
MATEC Web of Conferences
title Experimental study on the effectiveness of Electrochemical Chloride Extraction (ECE) for reinforced concrete
title_full Experimental study on the effectiveness of Electrochemical Chloride Extraction (ECE) for reinforced concrete
title_fullStr Experimental study on the effectiveness of Electrochemical Chloride Extraction (ECE) for reinforced concrete
title_full_unstemmed Experimental study on the effectiveness of Electrochemical Chloride Extraction (ECE) for reinforced concrete
title_short Experimental study on the effectiveness of Electrochemical Chloride Extraction (ECE) for reinforced concrete
title_sort experimental study on the effectiveness of electrochemical chloride extraction ece for reinforced concrete
url https://www.matec-conferences.org/articles/matecconf/pdf/2025/03/matecconf_cs2025_02003.pdf
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AT vanbelleghembjorn experimentalstudyontheeffectivenessofelectrochemicalchlorideextractioneceforreinforcedconcrete
AT godefroidtemile experimentalstudyontheeffectivenessofelectrochemicalchlorideextractioneceforreinforcedconcrete
AT soetenstim experimentalstudyontheeffectivenessofelectrochemicalchlorideextractioneceforreinforcedconcrete