Concrete Durability Presented by Acceptable Chloride Level and Chloride Diffusion Coefficient in Concrete: 10-Year Results in Marine Site

Materials and Structures (2014) 47:15011511
DOI 10.1617/s11527-013-0131-4
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Concrete durability presented by acceptable chloride level

and chloride diffusion coefficient in concrete: 10-year results
in marine site
T. Cheewaket C. Jaturapitakkul W. Chalee
Received: 22 November 2011 / Accepted: 21 June 2013 / Published online: 29 June 2013
RILEM 2013
Abstract Generally, concrete with high resistance to

the marine environment should have high compressive
strength, a low chloride diffusion coefficient (DC), and
a high acceptable chloride level (Ac). Considering all
parameters simultaneously, this study evaluated the
degree of fly ash concrete durability based on 10-year
results in a marine site. Based on the concrete
durability (Ac/DC, as compared to cement concrete
with a W/B ratio of 0.45) and compressive strength,
the degree of concrete durability proposed in this study
indicates that fly ash concretes with a W/B ratio of
0.45 and 1535 wt % fly ash replacement exhibit
high-quality performance in a marine site.
Keywords Concrete durability Acceptable
chloride level Chloride diffusion coefficient
Fly ash Marine environment
1 Introduction
Fly ash has been widely used not only to improve the
mechanical properties of concretes, but also to prolong
T. Cheewaket C. Jaturapitakkul
Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering,
King Mongkuts University of Technology Thonburi,
Bangkok 10140, Thailand
W. Chalee (&)
Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering,
Burapha University, Chonburi 20131, Thailand
e-mail: wichian@buu.ac.th
concrete structures subjected to marine conditions.

Previous studies have found that fly ash can lower the
deterioration rate by reducing water permeability,
chloride and sulfate penetration, and provide a higher
chloride binding capacity, which results in the decrease
in the free chloride content that corrodes the reinforcing
steel [14]. However, though these results have been
conformed under both marine and laboratory conditions, studying the properties of concrete to protect
against deterioration and to prolong service life is very
complex [58]. Many factors, either the physical
characteristic of concrete such as water permeability
or chemical characteristics such as chloride binding
capacity, chloride threshold level, and chloride diffusion coefficient, must be studied over a long period.
These factors are related to the durability properties of
concrete [912]. Both chloride threshold and chloride
diffusion coefficient are generally used to predict the
service life of reinforce concrete structure when
concrete cover is specified or determine a proper cover
thickness when service life is indicated [13]. Moreover,
mechanical properties, such as the compressive
strength of concrete, must be taken into consideration.
Although high-volume fly ash concretes result in higher
chloride penetration resistance and lower steel corrosion, these concretes are not satisfy in marine applications due to their low compressive strength and ease of
deterioration under service [13, 14]. Therefore, this
study focused on the ability of concrete to protect
against deterioration in a marine site. Considering both
durability and mechanical properties of concrete in
1502
terms of durability performances are therefore in

pressing need. The factors that were considered in this
study were the acceptable chloride level (chloride level
for initial corrosion of reinforcing steel), chloride
diffusion coefficient, and compressive strength. These
data were gathered from fly ash concretes exposed to
marine conditions for 3, 4, 5, 7, and 10 years.
2 Experimental program
2.1 Concrete materials
Type I Portland cement, class F fly ash obtained from
the Mae Moh power plant in Thailand, graded sand,
and crushed limestone with a maximum particle size
of 19 mm were used in this study. Fly ash and type I
Portland cement have median particle sizes (d50) of
30.6 and 25.0 lm, respectively. With respect to
chemical composition, the total content of SiO2,
Al2O3, and Fe2O3 in fly ash is 79.45 wt %, indicating
a class F fly ash composition in accordance with
ASTM C 618 [15]. The chemical compositions of
Portland cement and fly ash are shown in Table 1.
2.2 Specimens preparation
Five cylindrical concrete specimens measuring
100 mm in diameter and 200 mm in height of each
Table 1 Chemical composition of Portland cement and fly ash
Chemical compositions
by weight (%)
Sample
Silicon dioxide, SiO2
20.80
44.95
5.50
23.70
Aluminum oxide, Al2O3

Iron oxide, Fe2O3
Cement type I
Fly ash
(FA)
3.16
10.80
64.97
13.80
Magnesium oxide, MgO
1.06
3.47
Sodium oxide, Na2O
0.08
0.07
Potassium oxide, K2O
0.55
2.38
Sulfur trioxide, SO3
2.96
1.31
Loss on ignition, LOI
2.89
0.52
Calcium oxide, CaO
Tricalcium silicate, C3S
56.50
Dicalcium silicate, C2S
17.01
9.23
9.62
Tricalcium aluminate, C3A

Tetracalcium aluminoferrite, C4AF
concrete mix proportion were prepared for a 28-day

compressive strength test. Concrete cube specimens
measuring 200 mm on each side were also produced to
investigate the chloride ingress of each mix proportion
over a specified exposure period. The embedded steel
bars were cut from a 12-mm-diameter round bar
graded SR24 (yield strength of 240 MPa). No sign of
initial rust could be observed before embedding the
bars into the concrete specimens. There was no spacer
use in the specimen preparation to avoid the forming
paths for chloride ingress along spacers in the cover.
Four steel bars measuring 50 mm in length were
embedded in the fresh concrete specimens through a
template tube with clearing distances of 10, 20, 50, and
75 mm from the mold corner corresponding to the
different coverings of 10, 20, 50, and 75 mm to
measure the steel corrosion. The details of the
embedded steel bars and the concrete cube specimen
preparation are illustrated in Fig. 1a, b, respectively.
The preparation of concrete specimens followed the
standard practice for making and curing concrete test
specimens in the laboratory [16].
Control concretes were designed using type I
Portland cement. Their 28-day compressive strengths
were determined to be approximately 30.0, 40.0, and
50.0 MPa, which corresponded to water to binder
ratios (W/B) of 0.65, 0.55, and 0.45, respectively. Fly
ash concretes were cast using fly ash to replace the
type I Portland cement at percentages of 15, 25, 35,
and 50 by weight of binder. Table 2 shows the mix
proportions of the concretes, which followed ACI
211.1 [17]. The water content in the mixtures was
adjusted and compensated for the water absorption of
aggregates. The concrete slump of each mixture
ranged from 10 to 15 cm as designed; therefore, no
superplasticizer was needed in the mixtures. The
concrete specimens were removed from the molds
after being cast for 1 day and were then cured in fresh
water for 27 days. Subsequently, the cube specimens
were transferred to the tidal zone of the marine site in
Chonburi Province, Thailand. Figure 1c shows the
concrete specimens in the tidal zone where they were
subjected to two wetdry cycles daily. The annual
temperatures at this site range from 26 to 35 C. Based
on the chemical analysis of the seawater, sulfate
(SO42-) content ranges from 2,200 to 2,600 mg/l
(0.062 to 0.073 molar) and chloride (free Cl-) content
ranges from 16,000 to 18,000 mg/l (0.451 to 0.507
molar).
1503
20 mm
75 mm
10 mm
50 mm
75 mm
Embedded steel bar

(round bar grade SR24
with12-mm in diameter
and 50-mm in length)
50 mm
75 mm
200 mm
200 mm
(a)
(b)
(c)
Fig. 1 (a) Details of embedded steel bars. (b) Concrete cube specimen preparation and (c) Concrete specimens at a tidal zone in the
Gulf of Thailand
2.3 Test program

The 28-day compressive strengths of the concretes
were determined in accordance with ASTM C39/39M
[18]. After the concrete cube specimens were exposed
to seawater for 3, 4, 5, 7, and 10 years, chloride tests
were conducted to measure the chloride ingress at
different depths in each concrete specimen. The
concrete specimens were cored to obtain 100-mmdiameter cylinders. Each cored sample was dry-cut
from the surface to a thickness of 10 mm and was then
ground into finely powdered particles. Ten grams of
concrete powder was needed for the chloride tests
performed using water-soluble chloride methods,
which defined the free chloride content of the specimens in accordance with ASTM C1218 [19]. For steel
corrosion, each concrete specimen was broken, and

the steel bars were removed from the concrete cube
and then cleaned by brushing. An image of each
visible surface of rusted steel was recorded. Transparent paper with a grid composed of 1 mm2 was then
wrapped around each embedded steel bar. The visible
surface of the rusted steel was marked on the paper and
evaluated. The corrosion of the embedded steel bars
was measured in terms of the percentage of rusted area
by comparing the surface rusted area to the total
surface area of the embedded steel. In addition,
concrete (paste) debris at the embedded steelconcrete
matrix interface was collected and ground. The water
soluble chloride content was determined according to
ASTM C1218 [19] and represented as the free chloride
content at the position of the embedded steel.
1504
Table 2 Mixture proportions
of concretes
Mix
Mixture proportions of concretes (kg/m3)
W/B
Cement
type I
Fly ash
Fine
aggregate
Coarse
aggregate
I45
478
639
1,024
215
0.45
I55
478
639
971
262
0.55
I65
478
639
922
311
0.65
I45FA 15
406
72
639
1,004
215
0.45
I45 FA 25
359
119
639
990
215
0.45
I45 FA 35
311
167
639
977
215
0.45
I45 FA 50
239
239
639
957
215
0.45
I55 FA 15
406
72
639
948
262
0.55
I55 FA 25
359
119
639
933
262
0.55
I55 FA 35
311
167
639
918
262
0.55
I55 FA 50
239
239
639
897
262
0.55
I65 FA 15
406
72
639
898
311
0.65
I65 FA 25
359
119
639
881
311
0.65
I65 FA 35
311
167
639
864
311
0.65
I65 FA 50
239
239
639
840
311
0.65
3 Results and discussion

3.1 Evaluation of acceptable chloride level (Ac)
According to its definition, the chloride threshold level
is the chloride concentration required to initiate the
steel corrosion [2022]. Different test methods for
evaluating the chloride threshold level have been
proposed, but there is no standard available to date
[2325].
This study attempted to identify the chloride
threshold level from the existing rusted area that
could be visibly measured and relate it to the
corresponding free chloride content at the position of
the embedded steel and termed as an acceptable
chloride level (Ac). The relationships between these
parameters were therefore established based on the
experimental data obtained from a marine site after up
to 10 years of exposure. Figure 2 shows the relationship between the percentages of rusted area and free
chloride contents at the position of embedded steel
bars in concretes with a W/B ratio of 0.45 subjected to
marine exposure for 3, 4, 5, 7, and 10 years. Regression analysis was conducted, leading to a simplified
relation between the free chloride contents at the
position of the embedded steel bars and the percentages of rusted area. The initiation of the corrosion of
an embedded steel bar is defined as the initial rusted
Water
area (range 02 % of rusted area) of the bar [26].

Using I45F15 concrete in Fig. 2b as an example, when
substituting the rusted areas (r) = 0.25, 0.50, 0.75,
1.00, 1.25, 1.50, 1.75, and 2.00 % into the relation, the
estimated chloride contents are 0.07, 0.13, 0.19, 0.24,
0.30, 0.36, 0.42, and 0.47 wt % of binder, respectively. The average free chloride content (corresponding to a rusted area ranging from 0 to 2 %) is
0.27 wt % of binder, indicating the acceptable chloride level of I45F15 concrete. The acceptable chloride
levels of the other concrete mixtures were determined
similarly. The values are shown in Table 3.
3.2 Evaluation of chloride diffusion coefficient
(Dc)
A commonly used approach for calculating Dc from
chloride penetration profiles is to fit the general
solution of Ficks second law [27] as shown in the
following equation.

x
Cx;t C0 1 erf p
2 Dc t
where Cx,t is the free chloride concentration at depth

x and exposure time t, C0 is the chloride concentration
at the concrete surface, DC is the chloride diffusion
coefficient
Cl- = 0.0087r2 + 0.1654r + 0.1119

R2 = 0.9281
Ac=0.30%
9 10 11 12
5.00
4.50
4.00
3.50
3.00
2.50
2.00
1.50
1.00
0.50
0.00
Cl- = -0.0013r2 + 0.2312r + 0.0149

R2 = 0.922
Ac=0.27%
9 10 11 12
Rusted area (%)
Rusted area (%)
(a) Cement concrete
(b) 15%-Fly ash concrete

Free cl- (% by Wt. of binder)
5.00
4.50
4.00
3.50
3.00
2.50
2.00
1.50
1.00
0.50
0.00
5.00
4.50
4.00
3.50
3.00
2.50
2.00
1.50
1.00
0.50
0.00
1505
Cl- = 0.0232r2 + 0.1017r + 0.0138

R2 = 0.9632
Ac=0.17%
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
5.00
4.50
4.00
3.50
3.00
2.50
2.00
1.50
1.00
0.50
0.00
Cl- = -0.0007r2 + 0.139r - 0.0102

R2 = 0.9335
Ac=0.15%
9 10 11 12
Rusted area (%)
Rusted area (%)
(c) 25%-Fly ash concrete
(d) 35%-Fly ash concrete
Fig. 2 Relationship
between the free chloride
contents at the position of
embedded steel bars and
percentages of rusted area of
concretes with W/B ratio of
0.45 after 3, 4, 5, 7, and
10 years of exposure to the
marine environment
Free cl (% by Wt. of binder)
5.00
4.50
4.00
3.50
3.00
2.50
2.00
1.50
1.00
0.50
0.00
Cl- = 0.0084r2 + 0.0393r + 0.0381

R2 = 0.9034
Ac=0.10%
9 10 11 12
Rusted area (%)
(e) 50%-Fly ash concrete
Figure 3 shows the fitting curve of Cranks solution

[27] to the chloride penetration profile of fly ash
concrete with a W/B ratio of 0.45 after 10 years of
exposure. The free chloride concentrations of each
concrete mixture at depths of x = 5, 15, 25, 35, 45, 55,
65, and 75 mm from the surface were measured. The
C0 of each mixture was extrapolated from these
measured values. C0, x, t, and a presumed value for DC
were substituted into Eq. (1) to calculate the free
chloride concentrations. Iterated calculations were
performed to obtain the best value of DC by the least
sum of squared errors (SSE) between the calculated
and measured values. The chloride diffusion
coefficients of other concrete mixtures can be similarly determined. Their values are also shown in
Table 3. Please notify that some experimental data
especially those close to the surface (i.e. 15 %-fly ash
chloride content) seem to be far below the fitting curve
but it would have a little effect on the iterated DC.
3.3 Effect of fly ash on acceptable chloride level
(Ac) and chloride diffusion coefficient (Dc)
Figure 4 illustrates that the acceptable chloride level
decreased as the fly ash content in concrete increased.
For example, concretes with W/B ratio of 0.45 and
1506
cement type I
15%-fly ash
Mixed
Chloride diffusion
coefficient at
10-year exposure
(Dc 9 10-6 mm2/s)
Acceptable chloride
level, Ac (wt % of
binder)
Compressive
strength at
28 days (MPa)
Ac/Dc as
compared to
I45 (%)
I45
3.65
0.30
50.4
100
I45FA 15
1.55
0.27
47.4
212
I45FA 25
1.25
0.17
45.2
165
I45FA 35
0.95
0.15
45.0
192
I45FA 50
0.50
0.10
33.8
243
I55
6.08
0.24
37.0
48
I55FA 15
2.34
0.16
32.0
83
I55FA 25
1.56
0.13
30.3
101
I55FA 35
1.23
0.13
32.7
129
I55FA 50
I65
0.65
7.33
0.10
0.12
20.9
29.0
187
20
I65FA 15
2.55
0.12
19.9
57
I65FA 25
2.07
0.10
21.0
59
I65FA 35
1.75
0.10
22.9
70
I65FA 50
1.22
0.10
16.6
100
25%-fly ash
35%-fly ash
7.0
-6
Cement concrete,C o =7.6%, Dc = 3.65x10 mm2/s

15%-fly ash, Co =7.2%, Dc = 1.55x10-6 mm2/s
25%-fly ash, Co =6.0%, Dc = 1.25x10-6 mm2/s
35%-fly ash, Co =5.0%, Dc = 0.95x10-6 mm2 /s
6.0
5.0
4.0
3.0
2.0
Cl (% by Wt. of binder)
8.0
1.0
0.0
0
20
40
60
80
100
Distance from surface (mm)
Fig. 3 Free chloride penetration profiles of concretes with W/B

ratio of 0.45 after 10 years of exposure in tidal zone of the
marine environment
containing fly ash contents of 0, 15, 25, 35, and

50 wt % of binder had acceptable chloride levels of
0.30, 0.27, 0.17, 0.15, and 0.10 wt % of binder,
respectively. It was due to that high fly ash contents
may result in a higher Cl-/OH- ratio, with a rapidly
decreasing initiation time for steel corrosion and
induces a low acceptable chloride level [2833].
Previous studies [3437] have reported that high fly
ash contents enhance the chloride binding capacity of
concretes and could lower the free chloride content in
pore solutions which should result in lower Cl-/OHratios. However, the use of fly ash also greatly reduces
the alkalinity of pore solutions [38], which leads to
Acceptable cl- level (Ac, % by Wt. of

binder)
Table 3 Durability index of

concrete (Ac/DC, as compared
to that of I45 concrete) up to
10 years of exposure to a
marine environment
0.35
W/B=0.45
W/B=0.55
W/B=0.65
0.30
0.25
0.20
0.15
0.10
0.05
0.00
0
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
55
Fly ash replacement (%)
Fig. 4 Effect of fly ash content and W/B ratio on the acceptable
chloride level of concretes after 10 years of exposure to marine
environment
higher Cl-/OH- ratios. As a result, acceptable

chloride level would decrease as the fly ash content
increases.
Moreover, the study also revealed that a low fly ash
content (1535 wt %) had a greater effect on the
acceptable chloride level than a high fly ash content
(3550 wt %). For instance, in concrete with a W/B
ratio of 0.45, the increase in the fly ash content from 15
to 35 wt % of binder could reduce the acceptable
chloride level by 0.12 wt % of binder (reduced from
0.27 to 0.15 wt %). In contrast, an increase in the fly
ash content from 35 to 50 wt % of binder reduced the
acceptable chloride level by only 0.05 wt % of binder
(reduced from 0.15 to 0.10 wt %) or the acceptable

chloride levels remained nearly constant. Thus, it is
possible that a high fly ash content provides a better
pozzolanic reaction that helps improve the pore
structure of concrete by reducing the pore size of the
concrete matrix [1, 3], leading to a low water
permeability of concrete and a low Cl- content in
pore solutions of concrete [1, 4].
Figure 4 also shows that concrete with a higher
W/B ratio lowers the acceptable chloride level. For
example, concretes containing fly ash 25 wt % of
binder with W/B ratios of 0.45, 0.55, and 0.65 yielded
the acceptable chloride levels of 0.20, 0.15, and
0.10 wt % of binder, respectively. It was due to that
concrete with higher W/B ratio has higher porosity
which would more easily allow for moisture and
oxygen ingress [39]. The steel would be corroded
more rapidly, even though the chloride concentration
is low [4].
The effects of both the fly ash content and W/B ratio
on the chloride diffusion coefficient (DC) are shown in
Table 3. It was found that the DC of concretes
subjected to a marine environment for 10 years clearly
decreased as the fly ash content increased due to the
pozzolanic reaction that reduced both the water
permeability and chloride ingress in the concrete.
Similar trends were published with larger DC at the
beginning and became smaller over the exposure
period [2, 40]. In addition, concrete with a high fly ash
content would exhibit a chloride binding capacity,
which would lower the free chloride content in a pore
solution and result in a lower DC [34]. It was also
found that a low W/B ratio of concrete was the major
factor leading to low values of DC. Moreover, this
phenomenon was more clearly observed in normal
concrete than in fly ash concrete [40].
1507
proposed as the durability ratio (Ac/DC) of concrete.

According to the proposed durability ratio, concretes
should provide as high a Ac/DC as possible to best
represent their durability in terms of chloride resistance.
However, it could not be defined how high Ac/DC
should be. Nevertheless, this study compared the Ac/
DC of each concrete mix proportion to that of the
control concrete (I45 concrete) because ACI 201.2R
[43] recommends that the W/C ratio of concrete be kept
below 0.45. Consequently, concrete should provide a
Ac/DC greater than or equal to that of I45 concrete.
Figure 5 presents the relationship between the Ac/
DC ratios that were compared to the ratio of I45
concrete (normal concrete with a W/B ratio of 0.45)
and the percentages of fly ash replacement under
10-year exposure to a marine environment. It was
found that the durability of the concrete, which was
measured in terms of the Ac/DC ratio, increased as the
amount of fly ash content increased at various W/B
ratios. Moreover, the durability (Ac/DC) decreased as
W/B ratio increased. This figure clearly illustrates that
fly ash could improve the resistance of concrete to
chloride corrosion in the marine environment, particularly concrete with a low W/B ratio.
Regarding concrete durability, it was also found
that the concretes containing 2550 % fly ash as a
cement replacement, with W/B ratios of up to 0.55,
yielded Ac/DC ratios greater than 100 % when compared to that of I45 concrete. However, using more
than 25 % fly ash replacement in concrete with W/B
ratios of up to 0.55 could improve the durability of
concrete under marine conditions better than that of
Portland cement concrete with a W/B ratio of 0.45. For
example, fly ash concretes with a W/B ratio of 0.55
Generally, concrete with high resistance to marine

environments should have a low chloride diffusion
coefficient (DC) and a high acceptable chloride level
(Ac) [4042]. Fly ash is widely used in marine concrete
because it lowers DC as desired, although it also lowers
Ac (high Ac is preferred), as discussed in the previous
section. Considering these parameters separately may
be insufficient. Therefore, in this study, the relation
between these two parameters was determined and
Ac/Dc as compared to
concrete I45 (%)
350
3.4 Degree of concrete durability in a marine

environment
W/B=0.45
300
W/B=0.55
W/B=0.65
Cement concrete with W/B=0.45 (I45)
250
W/B=0.45
200
150
W/B=0.55
100
W/B=0.65
50
0
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
55
Fly ash replacement (%)
Fig. 5 Relationship between percentages of Ac/DC, as compared to that of I45 concrete, and fly ash concrete after 10 years
of exposure to marine environment
1508
3.5 Durability performance and its use to evaluate

marine concrete
Although the incorporation of fly ash improves the
durability of concrete, it lowers the compressive
strength of concrete as being shown in Table 3.
Therefore, considering only concrete durability might
be insufficient. By comparing the Ac/DC value of each
concrete mixture to that of I45 concrete and comparing
the 28-day compressive strength of concrete to the
normally specified compressive strength of 35 MPa
[43], the proposed durability performance was determined. The criteria of the proposed durability performance of marine concrete are that the durability index
Ac/DC, as compared to that of normal concrete with a
W/B ratio of 0.45, should not be less than 100 % and
the compressive strength at 28 days should not be less
than 35 MPa [43].
Figure 6 illustrates the classification of concretes
by means of the proposed durability performance,
which was based on the acceptable chloride level,
chloride diffusion coefficient, and 28-day compressive
strength. Based on Fig. 6, the concrete durability
performance could be classified into four categories:
350
Ac/Dc as compared to
concrete I45 (%)
containing 25, 35, and 50 wt % of binder yielded T/DC

ratios over 100 % relative to I45 concrete, i.e., 101,
129, and 187 %, respectively. The results also show
that concretes with a W/B ratio of 0.65 were not satisfy
in marine applications, as indicated by their Ac/DC
ratios, which were less than 100 % relative to I45
concrete.
Furthermore, this study verified the proposed
Ac/DC ratio by applying the results for Ac (in terms
of chloride threshold level) and DC obtained from
Thomas et al. [41]. It was found that fly ash concretes
with W/B ratios ranging from 0.44 to 0.49 provided
Ac/DC ratios (as compared to the Ac/DC ratio of
cement concrete with a W/C ratio of 0.49) of 100, 226,
200, and 52 % for fly ash contents of 0, 15, 30, and
50 wt % of binder, respectively. In other words, when
a fly ash content of 15 and 30 wt % of binder is
introduced, the Ac/DC ratios will be greater than
100 %. By introducing a fly ash content as high as
50 wt % of binder, the Ac/DC ratio will be greatly
reduced to 52 %. As a result, based on each Ac and DC
value from the study by Thomas et al. the results were
determined to agree with those obtained in this study
based on the proposed Ac/DC ratio.

W/B=0.45
W/B=0.55
300
W/B=0.65
High corrosion resistance
High strength

Low Strength
50%FA
250
35%FA
50%FA
200
35%FA
150
50%FA
100
0
0
10
15
20
25%FA
25%FA
35%FA
25%FA
15%FA
Low corrosion resistance 15%FA
I65
Low strength
50
15%FA
25
30
I45
I55
Low corrosion resistance

High strength
35
40
45
50
55
Compressive strength (MPa)
Fig. 6 Proposed durability performance based on the percentages of Ac/DC, as compared to that of I45 concrete, and the
28-day compressive strengths of fly ash concrete
high corrosion resistance-high strength, high corrosion

resistance-low strength, low corrosion resistance-high
strength, and low corrosion resistance-low strength.
Referring to this classification, it was found that fly ash
concretes with a W/B ratio of 0.45 and a fly ash content
ranging from 15 to 35 wt % of binder satisfied the
proposed criteria for application in a marine environment. Although fly ash concrete with a W/B ratio of
0.45 and a fly ash content of 50 wt % of binder
provided high corrosion resistance, its compressive
strength was slightly below 35 MPa, which was not
high enough to satisfy the specified compressive
strength. Moreover, when considered together with the
steel corrosion exhibited by each group of concrete, as
shown in Fig. 7, it was found that the lowest steel
corrosion occurred in the high corrosion resistancehigh strength category. The worst concrete group,
which did not satisfy the proposed criteria for marine
applications, was the low corrosion resistance-low
strength category. The results regarding the concrete
durability performance of marine concrete are presented in Table 4.
4 Conclusions
Based on the results and discussions, the following
conclusions were drawn.
(1)
The acceptable chloride level (free chloride) of

concrete decreased with the decrease in the W/B
ratio and the increase in the fly ash replacement,
especially for low replacement percentages of
fly ash.
1509

Low Strength
I45
3% rusted
10% rusted
4% rusted
11% rusted
15% rusted
16% rusted
27% rusted
I55FA25 I55FA35 I65FA50 I55FA50 I45FA50
13% rusted

High Strength

Low Strength
6% rusted
Fig. 7 Corrosion of
embedded steel bars up to a
depth of 50 mm in concretes
after 10 years of exposure to
marine environment
I45FA15 I45FA25 I45FA35

High Strength
50 mm
40
40% rusted
I65FA15
I65FA25
I65FA35
Table 4 Classification of concrete quality based on durability

and mechanical performance
Concrete
quality
Durability
performance
Concrete details
High
High corrosion
resistance-high
strength
Concrete containing fly ash

of 035 wt % of binder and
W/B ratio of 0.45
High corrosion
resistance-low
strength

of 2550 wt % of binder
with W/B ratio of 0.55
Moderate
(3)
(4)

of 50 wt % of binder with
W/B ratio of 0.45 and 0.65
Low
Very low
(2)
Low corrosion
resistance-high
strength
Cement concrete with W/B

ratio of 0.55
Low corrosion
resistance-low
strength

of 035 wt % of binder and
W/B ratio of 0.65
A low to high replacement of fly ash in concrete

(from 15 to 35 wt % of binder) had a greater
effect on the acceptable chloride level than a
(5)
96% ruste
50% rusted
I65
85% rusted
I55FA15
100% rusted
38% rusted
30
20
10
0
I55
high fly ash content (more than 35 to 50 wt % of

binder).
The chloride diffusion coefficient of all concrete
mixtures clearly decreased with the increase in
fly ash replacement and the decrease in the W/B
ratio.
Although the incorporation of fly ash helped
improve concrete durability by providing higher
chloride and steel corrosion resistance, it lowered the 28-day compressive strength of
concrete. Therefore, both the durability and
mechanical properties should be considered
together to obtain the appropriate concrete mix
proportion to be used in the marine environment.
Based on the degree of concrete durability,
concretes containing fly ash contents of
1535 wt % of binder with a W/B ratio 0.45
provided high-quality concretes for the marine
environment, which can be effectively employed
to enhance the durability of concrete structures in
seawater.
Acknowledgments The authors gratefully acknowledge

financial supports from the Research and Development Funds,
1510
Faculty of Engineering, Burapha University, Thailand Grant
No. 62/2553, and from the Office of the Higher Education
Commission (OHEC), Thailand and the Thailand Research Fund
(TRF) under TRF Senior Research Scholar, grant No. RTA
5380002 and the Royal Golden Jubilee Ph.D. Program, Grant
No. PHD/0320/2550.
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Concrete Durability Presented by Acceptable Chloride Level and Chloride Diffusion Coefficient in Concrete: 10-Year Results in Marine Site

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Materials and Structures (2014) 47:15011511