Using Medical X-Ray Machine to Determine the Service Life of Concrete

Concrete is a porous material that allows materials to move through it. The number of pores connected in the concrete, also known as the permeability, influences the ability of fluids to penetration the concrete. And this permeability parameter is an important transport mechanism for freeze-thaw damage, corrosion, alkali silica reaction, and sulfate attack.

The TRB Innovations Deserving Exploratory Analysis Program's IDEA Final Report 199: Using Medical X-Ray Machine to Determine the Service Life of Concrete details the CHIP (checking ion penetration) approach, which can provide state departments of transportation (DOTs) and others with an inexpensive and powerful tool to help them rapidly investigate the performance of their concrete infrastructure.