The damage of concrete under flexural loading and salt solution

This paper presents an experimental study on the interaction between sulfate and chloride attack and mechanical loading on concrete specimens made with two different water-to-cement ratios (w/c). The resulting damage owing to these combined effects was investigated using ultrasonic techniques. The experimental results showed that high strength concrete had a strong resistance to sulfate attack. Flexural loading accelerated damage to the concrete, whereas the damage owing to sulfate attack is diminished in the presence of chlorides. In general, sulfate attack initially has a positive effect on concrete performance but this reverses with time and significant deterioration can occur in concrete suffered from a long term sulfate attack.