Evaluating Corrosivity of Geomaterials in MSE walls: determination of Resistivity from Pore Water Chemistry

It is critically important to predict the corrosivity of fill materials in mechanically-stabilized earth (MSE) walls which can cause corrosion of steel reinforcement and lead to structural failure. A common way of assessing the corrosivity of fill materials is to analyze readily soluble constituents such as chloride and sulfate. In this study, fill materials with a wide range of geological type and gradation were collected throughout the US and Canada and analyzed with several methods to extract soil leachate. An empirical model was developed to estimate the resistivity of soil leachates as a function of chloride, sulfate, and alkalinity concentrations, and this calculation can be used to corroborate laboratory testing results.

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  • Supplemental Notes:
    • This document was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation, University Transportation Centers Program.
  • Corporate Authors:

    University of Texas, El Paso

    Department of Civil Engineering
    El Paso, TX  United States  79968-0516

    Rutgers University, Piscataway

    Center for Advanced Infrastructure and Transportation, 100 Brett Road
    Piscataway, NJ  United States  08854-8058

    Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology

    University Transportation Centers Program
    Department of Transportation
    Washington, DC  United States  20590
  • Authors:
    • Walker, W Shane
    • Ghadimi, Shahrouz J
    • Arciniega, Jose Luis
    • Nazarian, Soheil
  • Publication Date: 2019-7

Language

  • English

Media Info

  • Media Type: Digital/other
  • Edition: Final Report
  • Features: Figures; References; Tables;
  • Pagination: 14p

Subject/Index Terms

Filing Info

  • Accession Number: 01714453
  • Record Type: Publication
  • Report/Paper Numbers: CAIT-UTC-NC38
  • Contract Numbers: DTRT13-G-UTC28
  • Files: UTC, NTL, TRIS, ATRI, USDOT
  • Created Date: Aug 22 2019 4:41PM