Abstract: Electrochemical and corrosion behaviour of reinforced steel embedded in cement pastes incorporating different amounts of silica fume as a partial replacement of cement has been studied in chloride and sulphate solutions by using different electrochemical techniques. The results indicate that, while steel passivity degree is low in the control samples upon soaking in the corrosive media, it has been high in samples incorporating silica fume and increased with increasing silica fume content. The improvement effect of silica fume may be attributed to the pore solution structure of the cement paste, which limits the mobility of aggressive ions near the surface of the steel. The mechanism of steel corrosion due to chloride and sulphate attack and passivation effect of silica fume are discussed.

Key words: Corrosion, Reinforced steel, Cement pastes, Silica fume, Aggressive ions