Executive Summary : | Corrosion of reinforcement is a significant issue in reinforced concrete structures (RC) and is a major concern in the design, maintenance, and repair of civil/naval structures. As these structures age, the risk of corrosion in steel rebar increases, necessitating more frequent testing and repairs to control damage and slow down the corrosion process. To develop an efficient real-time corrosion monitoring system for RC structures, non-destructive techniques (NDT) are being used for damage detection. However, each NDT has its advantages and limitations, with some providing qualitative measurements and others providing quantitative values. To effectively assess corrosion of existing structures, a combination of various NDT methods is required. Corrosion assessment with various devices can be time-consuming and costly, and electrochemical techniques require electrical contact with the steel rebar, causing damage to the concrete cover. Therefore, a method or device capable of assessing corrosion qualitatively and quantitatively in a non-invasive manner is necessary. The proposed research includes experimental work, including collecting information about the corrosion state of steel rebar in concrete, corrosion monitoring using established electrochemical techniques, developing a damage assessment methodology for corrosion assessment, developing a device based on the developed methodology, and validating results with established electrochemical test results. Currently, qualitative NDT methods like half-cell potential or concrete resistivity tests are widely used in India for corrosion assessment of existing structures, while quantitative NDT based on polarization techniques are used mainly for laboratory research purposes. A single device capable of assessing corrosion qualitatively and quantitatively without electrical contact is highly useful for field applications. |