Modelling chloride transport in alkali-activated slags

The service-life of steel-reinforced concrete structures is primarily determined by the ability of the concrete cover to resist chloride ingress. With limited literature available on the ingress of chloride into alkali-activated slags (AAS) under service conditions, it is critical that this is described by appropriate models. This paper describes an interactive software framework to relate chloride ingress into AAS with the chemistry of the concrete cover, by considering the chloride binding capacity and porosity of the binder as a function of time, based on thermodynamic calculations of the phase assemblage as a function of slag and activator composition. This provides a major step towards developing the ability to predict the ingress of chlorides in alkali-activated concretes from a sound theoretical basis, which is essential in providing confidence in the durability of these materials in essential infrastructure applications.