Abstract
The Prompt Gamma Neutron Activation Analysis technique was used to measure the concentration of chloride in the blast furnace slag (BFS) cement concrete to assess the possibility of reinforcement corrosion. The experimental setup was optimized using Monte Carlo calculations. The BFS concrete specimens containing 0.8-3.5 wt.% chloride were prepared and the concentration of chlorine was evaluated by determining the yield of 6.11, 6.62, 7.41, 7.79 and 8.58 MeV gamma-rays. The Minimum Detectable Concentration (MDC) of chlorine in the BFS cement concrete was estimated. The best value of MDC limit of chlorine in the BFS cement concrete was found to be 0.034 ± 0.011 and 0.038 ± 0.012 wt.% for 6.11 and 6.62 MeV prompt gamma-rays. Within the statistical uncertainty the lower bound of the measured MDC of chlorine in the BFS cement concrete meets the maximum permissible limit of 0.03 wt.% of chloride set by the American Concrete Institute.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1-6 |
| Number of pages | 6 |
| Journal | Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research, Section B: Beam Interactions with Materials and Atoms |
| Volume | 269 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 1 Jan 2011 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This study is part of a project # IN060035 funded by the King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia . The support provided by the Department of Physics, Research Institute and the Department of Civil Engineering is acknowledged.
Keywords
- 2.8 MeV neutrons
- Blast furnace slag cement concrete samples
- Chlorine concentration measurements
- Chlorine minimum detectable concentration limit calculation
- Corrosion analysis
- Monte Carlo simulation
- PGNAA technique
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Nuclear and High Energy Physics
- Instrumentation