The effects of the Application of a hydrophobic silane gel against corrosion of reinforcement in Concrete

In the past, concrete was considered a durable material, but these considerations have drastically changed the ever-increasing demand to resort to ordinary and extraordinary maintenance work on the structures. Initially, concrete repair was based on replacing of deteriorated parts with a cement-based material, without considering durability, which should be guaranteed to a structure, when it needs to be restored. Moreover, durability also blends perfectly with the aspect of environmental sustainability, a topic that is now of primary importance in all fields and especially in construction. The damages caused by corrosion of steel reinforcements in concrete often detected in repaired concrete structures has led to the find solutions to improve durability. In this work, some results related to a research activity will be presented on the effectiveness of the silane-based hydrophobic coating in gel form, in preventing or slowing down the corrosion of reinforcement in concrete. Different tests were performed to analyse the effects of the coating on propagation of corrosion induced by carbonation, the initiation and propagation of corrosion induced by chlorides. The tests have shown that the silane-based hydrophobic coating in gel form may increase the service life of reinforced concrete structures subject to corrosion and therefore their durability.