Prediction of diffusion coefficients in cement-based materials on the basis of migration experiments

The chloride diffusion and migration coefficients of 15 different mortar mixtures were systematically compared. Test parameters included water/binder ratio (0.25 and 0.45), type of binder (ASTM type I, ASTM type III, and ASTM type V), use of silica fume and sand volume fractions (0%, 30%, and 50%). Test results indicate the various ways of evaluating chloride transport coefficients generally yield much different values. Test results also show that the assumption of non interacting diffusing flows, used in the mathematical treatment of diffusion and migration equations, is most probably incorrect. Copyright (C) Elsevier Science Ltd