ABSTRACT
Controlling the corrosion process in reinforcement steel bars buried in concrete is accomplished by controlling as best as possible all the factors that help to start the corrosion and spread it throughout the steel reinforcements in the concrete structure. All codes contain different requirements and specifications concerning the required thickness of the concrete cover, the water-to-cement (w/c) ratio in the mixture, and cement content based on the weather factors surrounding the structure. These requirements have been included in the codes after many field and laboratory tests have been performed in order to reach specific guidelines and recommendations.
To protect concrete structures from corrosion, one must bear in mind some precautions to be taken for the use of concrete specifications commensurate with the weather factors surrounding the structure. These will be listed in this chapter, where we will discuss how to control the corrosion process. Several methods and new advanced techniques for protection of the structure from corrosion will be clarified in detail in Chapter 7. These protection methods and techniques do not dismiss the need to control the corrosion process through the use of good quality-control procedures in concrete construction.
