Document Type
Conference Paper
Rights
Available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike 4.0 International Licence
Disciplines
2.1 CIVIL ENGINEERING, Municipal and structural engineering, Electrical and electronic engineering, 2.3 MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
Abstract
Corrosion of embedded steel in reinforced concrete (RC) is a world-wide problem, that reduces structural performance and lifespan. Chloride attack may be a result of seawater, de-icing salts or contaminated admixtures, brought on by ingress of chlorides into the concrete. Electrochemical Chloride Extraction (ECE) is a non-destructive treatment for contaminated RC structures, that due to uncertainty of treatment times and applied current densities, is only 50% effective. It is often diesel powered has an environmental impact and often very costly due to the long treatment times. To improve the efficiency of ECE the influences of concrete resistance, cement type and duration of treatment have been investigated in an experimental programme. The use of Photovoltaic (PV) panels to improve the efficiency of ECE is presented which replace fossil fuels as a power source enabling a more environmentally sustainable treatment. These findings will increase the life span of vital infrastructure and reduce expensive ongoing repairs with decreased traffic congestion and inconveniences associated with bridge repairs.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21427/D7K807
Recommended Citation
O'Callaghan, L., Holmes, N. & Norton, B. (2016) Using Photovoltaics to Power Electrochemical Chloride Extraction from Concrete, Civil Engineering Research in Ireland Conference, (CERI2016) NUI Galway from 29-30 August.
Included in
Civil Engineering Commons, Electrical and Electronics Commons, Energy Systems Commons, Structural Engineering Commons
Publication Details
Civil Engineering Research in Ireland
Conference 2016