Development and Characterization of Reative Enamel-Coated Steel Rebars for Improved Concrete-Steel Bonding and Enhanced Corrosion Resistance

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"This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5)."This study is aimed at developing a chemically-bonded reactive enamel-coated steel rebar that is corrosion resistant, and enhances the bond strength between the rebar and its surrounding concrete. The scope of work includes 1) Characterize the corrosion resistant properties of the rebar in alkaline environments; 2) Characterize and quantify the long-term bond strength between the rebar and concrete both for physical and chemical effects, including the ?self-healing? behavior of cracks induced on enamel coating; 3) Determine the overall significance of the rebar in reinforced concrete structures under static and cyclic loading. The optimization of the new technology will be achieved by tailoring enamel compositions to create chemically strong bonds to steel, and to react and form a strong bond to the surrounding cement matrix. The increased bond strength will be validated by testing a large-scale beam-column structure.Corrosion is responsible for annual bridge expenditures in the United States of nearly $10 billion with indirect costs approaching 10 times that amount per year. The development of a corrosion-resistant coating technology for steel rebar will have a huge economic impact. This project represents a collaboration of materials scientists and structural engineers with strong participations of two Ph.D. students and one or more undergraduate students, particularly those from underrepresented groups. The students will present their results at professional meetings and at the annual undergraduate research conference on campus, respectively.