Chloride diffusion property of recycled aggregate concrete treated with water repellent agents-silane

Silane-base water repellent agents can significantly suppress the capillary water absorption of concrete and consequently improve the durability of the concrete and protects the internal steel reinforcement. This paper presents test result on chloride diffusion property of natural and recycled aggregate concrete externally and internally treated with silane-based water repellent agents based on the ASTM C1202 test method. The effects of concrete cracks on the chloride diffusion property were also investigated. After the tests, the impregnation depth of silane into the natural and recycled aggregate concrete, the total charges passing the testing samples and penetration depth of chloride during the testing period were determined. It was found that, for both cracked and uncracked concrete, externally treated natural and recycled aggregate concrete performed better than internally treated ones. The water repellent treatment method is more effective for recycled aggregate concrete than natural aggregate concrete because a deeper impregnation depth can be achieved in the former case.